I remember when December meant Christmas celebrations, for those of us who have the opportunity to be birthed this month, a cheeky little birthday bash and a long break from school. My first year of university I discovered it meant something more. It was no longer friends gathering to blow out candles, hopping from house to house in hopes of securing Christmas food and bingeing holiday romcoms. It had become something bigger, something that would be recorded in Nigeria’s pop culture history for years to come, December’s formerly good name had been sullied.
Maybe I’m speaking too quickly on the timeline of the matter, maybe December had been dirty way before I uncovered the festivities that occur throughout the month, shielded by my innocence, my immediate assumption was these month-long partying traditions began around 2018. Speculations on who deemed the month a party month might never be answered, However, in 2022, Mr Eazi disputed many theories by stating in the year 2016 he coined the term “Detty December” when he was promoting the first concert he ever headlined. He had a song called “Detty Yasef” which encouraged people to have fun, get drunk, and chop life. Since the concert was being held in December they hashtagged it #DettyDecember. I guess we all owe Mr Eazi a big thank you.
Who started it isn't nearly as important as how big it has become. There’s an event every single day of the month, and people are saving up months before and spending those savings lavishly in 31 days. The migrant population, mostly called “IJGBs” (I Just Got Back), are flying in and rekindling old flames. Nigerian celebrities are returning home, and International celebrities are visiting like it's the Bahamas. Everyone who can afford it is swept up in the month's charm and no longer a newcomer to these events, I’m happy to impart wisdom none of you asked for but might need.
I’ve spent my December’s every way you can imagine since 2021, sneaking out of school to go to Lagos and spend my nights at groovy bars and flashy clubs. I’ve also spent it in a way only a ShowDemCamp song can accurately describe, precisely Love on Weekends featuring Ladipoe and Tomi Agape, mind-numbingly and obnoxiously in love, oblivious to the world beyond me and my significant others’ bubble. What I've never spent it in is regret.
My city is Abuja, so the celebrations are a bit more mellow, but it's also the best way to start and end the month. Lagos should be saved for the middle.
2023 was the perfect Abuja December, crammed weekends like the 9th where we went from Popwaves pop-up to the first edition of Even in the Day- may I just say the price inflation on those tickets was ridiculous- ended the night at Speakeasy and started all over again the next day with Brunch in central and finished our night at our friends' apartment birthday party. A handful of events occurred that particular year but dredging up stories from two years ago will only bore you and I’m sure you’ll be more interested in the Ghost of 2024 December.
My friends and I, though partial to our city, decided we needed some time away from here but it would be unfair to look a gift horse in the mouth because our tickets were booked and bags were packed for Lagos. So if our friends get a table at Obis house who are we to say no and if my best friend comes to pick me up past my curfew to attend a house party but we find ourselves in Magic City, shouldn't we just chalk it up to the seasons' lore? So chalk it up we did. Abuja was a mix of fruity drinks and flirty dates, two honorary visits to our regular spot Pickle Social House, where everyone who’s anyone could be found there on a Thursday night and rounded up with a calm Christmas get-together, some traditions never go out of style.
The days flew by quickly and we were buzzing with excitement for the trip, we’d all had our own experiences separately and always planned to do this together, adulthood had been a far stronger antagonist to those plans, but alas the trip had finally made it out of the group chat. Here are some valuables I think others should note if they ever decide to escape to another city.
Do make sure your flights are booked by the first week of November.
Do book an Airbnb with your girls close to where all the action is.
Do not listen to every Tiktok recommendation for restaurants.
Do not start shopping a week before your trip because you think you have all the time.
Do surprise your long-distance friend who thinks she might never see you again
Do not ever underpack.
Do dance with a tall stranger at a party that looks like he walked out of an Ashluxe catalogue
Do not say no to a party, no matter how tired you are.
Do hold the attention of one of the most handsome dark-skinned men you’ve laid eyes on despite the tall stranger you danced with being a few inches away.
And please do not fall in love.
I would hope everyone reading would heed my advice, or not, I didn't necessarily follow all these rules either but having them at the back of your mind makes for an exciting trip.
We landed in Lagos on the 26th, and courtesy of my girl we had a driver for the entirety of the trip, one less hassle, arrival at the Airbnb might have been the disruption after the peaceful flight and transportation blessings. The location was perfect, the furthest distance of any event we attended during our stay was 21 minutes, but the maintenance sucked, so maybe an addition to the dos and don'ts list. Do have a friend inspect the Airbnb you paid 700,000 for.
It would seem there was no rest for the fabulous because after we settled in (with major hitches), we were getting ready for our first event, a rave called Vogue Boys, but really an excuse to reunite with our girl who we hadn't seen in years and scope out the talent. It seems our Abuja mannerisms hitched a ride on the flight because we were operating in a different time zone, arriving at the function by 11 pm and being told we were early was very close to what I assume a culture shock would feel like, but as the night went on in a blur of wholesome laughter and flirty banter, our embarrassing punctual arrival was long forgotten.
Now I can proudly say Thank God the next day was Friday but being fully transparent with you then, I wasn't aware of what day it was as they passed, I was more focused on having as much fun packed into the next five days, and that I did.
An underwhelming lunch at Locale, a lucky spotting of Jola of ISWIS at Ebeano for me, followed by an underwhelming short stay at Amapiano district which in my personal opinion should have been held at a bigger space, a quick stop at Nok for an Rnb event and a final stop at Zaza, so maybe not much to be thankful about on that particular Friday.
Saturday morning brought tales of a boat ride and a beach house. No sleep quickly became the theme of the trip and only getting three hours of it the previous night we hit the ground running. One likeness with Abuja that Lagos has is you’re bound to run into someone you know, multiple someones in my case, The boat ride was as long as usual, one would hope they would get faster as the years go on but the destination made up for the trip, I can still feel the humid air as we lay by the pools at Yolo Island and I can tell you this for free not much compares to the feeling of tranquillity derived from feeling the sand under your feet, and the panicked shouts of my friends as I moved closer to the waves, this is what our 20s should be about, Serenity. Sadly the day tired us out but by sunrise the next day, we were through with wipeouts.
I had mentioned before that my friends and I were lucky enough to be born this month, so on Sunday we got ready for brunch to celebrate our girls' birthday, Brisk was our choice location and if we could turn back the hands of time and choose another restaurant we would, so far this was our second bad experience with food, don’t even get me started on the attitude of the waitstaff, brunch quickly turned to Linner, the birthday girl was frustrated because they gave out our reservations, the mediocrity of the food and the mix up of our orders had thrown us off, it was my fourth day and still no sign of JayO, everything was going wrong with a smile on our faces, plus there was nothing that couldn't be fixed with a cheesecake and a cosmo. 10 pm came and we had to attend Sunday service, the name threw me off too but, we were nowhere near a church, It was a rave and instead of normal tickets, you paid an offering to get in, fun double entendre. The night ended or should I say the next day began at Silverfox with a hint of sadness in the air due to the knowledge of what day it was.
It was our last day in Lagos and we decided to round it up with fine dining at Fafarllino, finally, our bad streak with restaurants had come to an end, but that wasn't the highlight of the day, the Ourland Concert with all of my favourite artistes was the most anticipated event on our itinerary, how I found myself backstage is one secret I’ll never tell, but I do know being in the midst of people I listened to on my headphones, my car speakers and youtube channels was euphoric, seeing Santi in casual pop wave attire, Ghost and Tec standing to my right but I’m too shy to say hi, Boj asking my girls and I to come back in because they had decided to leave when the lights went out and I at least got to let Ladipoe know the extent to which I rinsed Talk about Poe, all of this coupled with watching someone I’ve had the pleasure of seeing grow in that scene, I knew I would be completing another trip without contrition.
Alas, we had to say farewell to what was a great trip, some goodbyes more permanent than others, we were leaving on the last day of the month, strangely poetic, I usually spend the very last day of the year anywhere there's a countdown, but this year, filled with content from how I spent the past days, a good holiday movie and cuddles did just fine, Detty December 2024 owes me nothing.
