For a split second I almost thought I was at New York Fashion Week. Backstage, top models like Georgie Badiel, Alek Wek and Oluchi Onweagba were getting beautified, while at front of house an army of street style photographers stalked the front row for candids of celebs and it-girls. Outside, copies of an all-African daily (suspiciously similar to The Daily Front Row) were being handed out to thousands of paying guests while the oversized tents, similar to those at Lincoln Center, were prepped for the influx.

Yet as time went on, it became increasingly clear that this was definitely not New York. This was Arise Magazine Fashion Week in Lagos, Nigeria–and for all the similarities–it’s a whole different ball game.

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