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The month of December has now become one that is highly anticipated by almost everyone, especially Nigerians; for some, the end is good/bad with hope of a better new year ahead, while for others, it has become a month filled with a flurry of activities to end the year with celebration.
Now, this excitement is not limited to those living in Nigeria alone, as the particular frenzy which started around 2019 and has become an annual ritual is attracting thousands of Nigerians from around the globe to make a return home every year not just to visit relatives and friends, but to participate in one of the world’s biggest national extravaganzas.
The December celebrations, usually occasioned by the Christmas season, has snowballed into a month-long celebration that corporate organisations, the hospitality and entertainment industries and even state governments now make and prepare budget for.
Although the regular Christmas and new year holidays are observed dedicatedly, the season, starting from the first week, the last month of the year now has new meaning for Nigerians and features a frenzied, holiday-long lineup of fun activities that range from clubbing, concert-going, carnivals to sightseeing and camping, all entrenched in what Nigerians have christened as ‘Detty December’.
According to Friday Treat’s findings, while the exact origins of ‘Detty December’ remains largely unknown, some say it may have originated from Calabar Carnival, with its sexual motifs and cues, featuring an international parade of delectable dancing women. Most people however opine that it must have come from the entertainment capital of Nigeria, after the intense month-long celebrations of 2019 in Lagos that featured the record highest number of concerts and state-promoted festivities in Nigeria at the time.
‘Detty December’ has become so big that corporate organisations and state governments have become some of its biggest promoters, especially pacy Lagos.
“Detty December is the biggest market for travel and tourism around the world and it’s no different in Nigeria,” Omolola Adele-Oso, CEO of LOS Lifestyle Co., a Nigerian brand curating the African experience through travel and culture, said. “Our customers mainly come from the US and UK and are members of the diaspora from those regions. Our company typically offers multi-day tour packages that include a mix of visits to historic sites, arts and culture activities, as well as tasting the best of Detty December events.”
According to a report from the World Bank, remittance inflows accounted for four percent of Nigeria’s GDP last year and is growing. The Nigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reveals that globally, the art and entertainment sector is impacted by technology and shifts in people’s consuming habits. A 2017 PwC report had predicted that the Nigerian entertainment and media industry will be the fastest growing in the world in the next five years with a CAGR of 12.1 per cent. Nigeria’s Nollywood is now second only to Hollywood and has seen growth with increasing cinemas, lucrative partnerships with global players like Netflix, Youtube, Prime Video, Showmax, among others.
This boom and expectations for ‘Detty December’ have seen multinationals and the state governments struggle to outdo one another with events that are garnished with superstar entertainers and family-oriented activities, most times, for free. One of such states preparing for December this year, is Cross River. After a two-year hiatus caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the ‘Calabar Carnival’ is set to return in a few weeks.
The Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Cross River State, Eric Anderson, confirmed the development, saying, “Cross River is among the committee of carnival producers in the world. Carnivals were shut down worldwide in the last two years because of COVID-19.
“As we speak, carnivals worldwide have started production, and we can see that the Covid-19 protocols have been relaxed. As a member of the committee, we feel we should also resume as well. Tourism is one aspect of culture that has put Cross River on the world tourism map.”
The Calabar carnival and festival is now also known as Africa’s biggest street party, and displays African culture and heritage by means of music, dressing, drama, and other cultural creativities of talented persons. This year’s festival has been scheduled to hold from December 1 to December 31, while the flag-off took place on October 16 at the Millennium Park roundabout.
The festival has improved the cultural aspect of the Nigerian people as traditional title holders and illustrious sons and daughters always partake in the carnival that attracts over two million spectators from various parts of the world.
The Calabar carnival festival kicks off officially with a tree-lighting ceremony. The first three weeks of the event will be musical entertainment, street parties, art shows, food competitions, an esteemed essay writing competition, masque events, and traditional dances.
Some of the major events featured in the Calabar carnival festival are the crowning of the carnival queens and kings for each band, J’ouvert Band fetes, the children carnival, the Christmas party cultural carnival, the Annual Ekpe masquerade festival and the Mary Slessor Golf Charity dinner. The festival will usher in performances such as fashion shows, beauty pageants, boat regatta, Christmas village, traditional dances and the annual Ekpe masquerade festival, all organised by the Cross-River State Carnival Commission.
In Lagos, the frenzy is at its highest as major roads are already being decorated by corporate bodies and the state government. Already, the biggest concerts featuring the reigning and most celebrated Nigerian exports are already being announced. From Wizkid to Burna boy, Tiwa Savage to Yemi Alade, Lagos is set for ‘Detty December’ like no other, Thomas Adekunle, a showbiz expert told Friday Treat.
“It’s the time when the city fully comes to life and everyone’s in high spirits. Everybody is in party mood and will spend money freely with gladness; we love to have and Lagos is ready for all that”, he said.
‘Detty December’ has also become a continental export, seeing how neighbouring country Ghana is already emerging as a player, enjoying enough goodwill to keep itself motivated. According to reports, despite its present economic crisis, it is taking urgent steps to wrestle influence from Nigeria. Ghana has become a rival, throwing a curveball with its ‘The Year of the Return’ initiative in 2019, a mandate encouraging black diaspora to visit and invest in the country.
“During the Year of the Return, event companies in Ghana decided to do things that will make people come more,” a representative from CY Travels, Ghana-based travel consultancy company, said, “This has trickled into Ghana’s take on Detty December and our government is in support of it. That’s the difference between Ghana and Nigeria.”
“The Year of the Return was a big win for Ghana,” Lola said, “It was smart and with support from the federal level, the marketing and programming continues to tap into the growing black travel market for people looking to reconnect and explore Africa.”
In fact, Alhaji Theozzy, a Ghanaian travel influencer and vlogger, sees Ghana overtaking Nigeria as the ideal destination for ‘Detty December’.
“Ordinarily, nightlife in Ghana is mad, especially with places like Osu, The Republic, Garage and Alley Bar and Bloom Bar. People secure their one month salary just for Friday nightlife in Accra,” Theozzy reportedly said. “But there’s something for everything but overall Ghana’s nightlife has no bounds and this could be its greatest asset.”
For those familiar with the longstanding rivalry between Ghana and Nigeria regarding jollof rice, football, etc, this may be the only time the feud between both countries is approved, working on each other’s tourism potential as a tool for national branding.
Speaking to Friday Treat, Kenni Akintoye, a social critic, stressed that the happy and partying spirit of the average Nigerian makes it easier for immediate adoption of the ‘Detty December’ spirit.
He said, “Nigerians are natural party animals and respond to anything entertainment with excitement. The most popular tribes in Nigeria are known for their peculiar ways of celebration for instance. Now that the ‘Detty December’ is a widely accepted norm, it is only natural that it would balloon into what it is now. Personally, I also look forward to December with zest. The economic situation pales into insignificance somehow because I just want to have fun. When January comes, eyes will clear and we move again. ‘Detty December’ has come to stay and we are loving and now exporting it’.
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