Now the year is over…
Hello, lovers of Zikoko,
I’m writing this to talk to you about Zikoko’s 2021 — what we did, what we learnt, and how that has informed our plans for 2022.
2021 has been one hell of a year. We are six months into a Twitter ban, it feels like the entire world is burnt out and very recently, the Omarion variant has put an icebox where our plans used to be.
But before we dive into this year, let’s get introductions out of the way. My name is Edwin Madu, the Editor-in-Chief at Zikoko. What does my role mean? For one, it means I have the great honour of writing to you about our year and our plans. In general, it means I’m tasked with building and directing the team of talented writers and editors who make the content you know and love.
This year started very differently for me. I joined The Cabal a year ago as Senior Editor at Zikoko’s sister publication: TechCabal. Entering 2021, I was set to tell the stories of the people making the African tech ecosystem pop. Eight months later, I was on the phone with Tomiwa Aladekomo, CEO of Big Cabal Media, discussing my transition from TechCabal to Zikoko.
Tomiwa to me in August:
Taking this new role meant that a lot of the conversation around Zikoko’s ethos would have to be guided by me. Today, I can tell you what Zikoko is — an exploration of the Nigerian experience. It’s in the jokes we tell, the stories we uncover, and all the many ways we hold a mirror up to society. This definition is informed by our transformation since we started.
Zikoko has been many things over the years. Circa 2016, the brand was described as a Buzzfeed-esque publication with funny content made for young Nigerians. In 2019, Fu’ad Lawal, then Editor-in-Chief, penned the first Naira Life and suddenly, Zikoko’s scope expanded. The publication was now committed to telling Nigerians their own stories in ways they’d never seen it done before.
That marked the start of something new. Two things were now true of Zikoko: we were home to hilarious content Nigerians could call their own, but we were also telling the very real stories of Nigerians and how they navigate everything, from money to sex and beyond.
We now say goodbye to the year that brought us more TikTok challenges than we can remember, so here’s a quick rundown of all things Zikoko; the team, the things we did, and what to expect in the new year.
The team has had to deal with some exits this year. Two huge ones happened in June — Ope Adedeji and Daniel Orubo, editor-at-large and editor-in-chief, respectively.
Along with Zikoko’s current managing editor, Ruth Zakari, these two people did stellar work in growing the Zikoko brand and delighting you, our reader.
These exits made for a very emotional all-hands meeting but they also meant something else for me — I had to hit the ground running in my first month. There were several projects underway when I joined but one of the first things I had a chance to contribute to was our first physical event, Z! Fest.
You just had to be there. On one side of the event there was drinking and dancing, and on the other, people embraced their competitive sides, screaming over the next person as they played games hosted by Ibukun and Kai. When it got dark, we had live performances from amazing indie acts, and then we danced some more.
The event wasn’t a part of our plans when we started the year. But sometime in May, Ruth and Tomiwa had a conversation about what a Zikoko event would look like. And safe to say we got a taste. We were finally able to meet the Zikoko tribe. The ones who had bones to pick with us because a Zikoko quiz told them their love for semo was the reason they were still single. We met those who told us, almost verbatim, the titles of their favourite Love Life stories. We were recipients, in our own way, of the rather elusive “fan love”. The proof was there in front of us, dancing, singing, laughing.
From Z! Fest we saw first hand the importance of the community we are building and we want to engage more with them. So guess who got a facelift?
Zikoko Daily. We relaunched our daily newsletter with Ifoghale, our newsletter editor at the reins. Beyond telling you what’s up on the website, we also want to give you a look into the inner workings of the team. To finally answer the question: “Are Zikoko people all right?”
P.S. We are very all right. Most times.
As a subscriber, you get a look behind the scenes of your favourite stories; Naira Life, Love Life, A Week In The Life, all the Lifes. I know this goes without saying, but you should really subscribe. There’s so much we have planned for the new year that will get to you first through the newsletter.
We launched our SHIPS category, a place where we intend to tell all the stories and give the best advice about all kinds of relationships. From your adult relationship with your father who used to be a disciplinarian to the very tense relationship, you as a Nigerian must have with your tailor. Led by Itohan, this will be where we discuss and tell all those stories.
So far on SHIPS, we have Love Life, Sex Life, the new Love Life Podcast and, of course, our in-house agony aunt, Aunty Z! who continues to save the day by answering the tough relationship questions you may be too embarrassed to ask anyone else.
In this same year, we saw the continued impact of our Money category. As we share the stories of Nigerians, we expose them to people who are able to help in ways we possibly cannot and it’s been humbling to see all the ways lives change when stories are told.
Enter 2022: The year you see more of us.
In the new year, we’re expanding.
We know you love the articles but we also know you miss the videos. We miss them too and that’s why 2022 will be a huge year for Zikoko videos. Astor and Hassan are cooking up something. We have new Jollof Road content that will trigger your wanderlust and finally put all the “Who has the best jollof?” questions to rest.
Beyond videos, we are also creating more podcasts as well. We want you to listen to Zikoko on your commute. We want you to share the all-new Nigerians Talk episodes with your friends and family. We want to be everywhere that you are.
Most importantly, we want to keep telling you your own stories. Navigating life as a Nigerian anywhere is its own special brand of madness. We want to be able to document all of it. The lives we lead, the things we consume and create, the culture — all of it.
The team has expanded as well. In the past few months we have been looking out for rockstars to join the fray and we’ve found a couple. We’re still on the lookout for more, so please when you see a callout from us, share with that friend you just know will make a great content creator at Zikoko.
We also want to see you again. Physically. Another edition of Z! Fest already has us excited and we cannot wait to use all the things we learnt from throwing the first one. We also have two other events up our sleeves.
So now the year is over, the team is going on a well-deserved break. We’ll be publishing sparingly, so until we see you in January, have a very merry Christmas and the happiest New Year.
Yours,
Dwin from Zikoko.
