Tags
Alex Folzi, Bowbi Ladawa, Cassi and Nicki, Christian Rich, Congo DR, Ghana, Kastle Designs, Lidaji sisters, Mozambique, Nigeria, OKUNOREN TWINS, P Square
A few weeks ago, i was mindlessly flipping channels to see what I could watch and ‘Parent Trap’ was on, so that’s the inspiration behind this post.
Here’s a spotlight on 11 African sets of twins in the African fashion and entertainment industry. Enjoy 
1. Peter and Paul Okoye (P Square)
If you’re an African music lover, you’ve heard and seen videos of Nigerian super star duo P Square. I first heard their songs on Channel O years ago and since them,they’ve gone on to headline sold out concerts, appear on BET and in future, they will perform at my wedding. Seriously. Check out this video where they mention how they differ ie one is more laid back and chilled out etc.
2. Fola and Fela of Alex Fozi
Nigerian born twins Fela and Fola are a perfect example of turning a hobby into a business. After moving to Canada for university, they launched a briefcase line called Alex Folzi which has eye popping colors perfect for the spring. They collaborated with Evelyn Ojo last year to launch a t shirt line, and they are dapper dudes. (Based on their individual facebook accounts which I may or may not stalk occasionally.lol) I need that royal blue briefcase in my life pronto! I can’t wait to see what they come up with next and they are setting the bar high for the African luggage market, which I think more designers need to consider entering.
3. Danielle and Chantelle Piper of Kastle Designs/ Treasure Chest
Danielle and Chantelle are a design duo who have shown at various fashion weeks, including Arise Magazine Fashion Week 2011 and 2012. I believe they are from Ghana. I like some of their outfits, but I always wonder why they wear the same clothes all the time? I’m not a twin, but if I was, I highly doubt I would do that past 5, but to each his own I guess. They are also occasional models on the ‘Today Show’. The video below is of their recent Arise show collection.
4. The Lidaju Sisters.
I love Fader Magazine because it has led me to discover such gems like Alec Lomami (shameless plug) and the Lidaju sisters. Taiwo and Kehinde were a popular music duo in Nigeria between the 1960s to 1980s. They mixed jazz, afrobeat, reaggae and other sounds successfully.One of their highlights is performing at the 1972 Munich Olympic games. The New York Times described them as “smiling free spirits” who mixed “sisterly banter and flirtatiousness”. They have since retired and now live in Harlem.Fader Mag captured their style in an interview which you can see below.
5. Christian Rich
Initially, I thought it was an interesting coincidence that the boys of Christian Rich happen to be named Taiwo and Kehinde as well, but I remembered reading something about Nigerian twins and upon further research, I discovered that Taiwo and Kehinde are typically given to Yoruba twins.The Yourba tribe of Nigeria have the highest twin birth rate in the WORLD! “The first of the twins to be born is traditionally named Taiyewo or Tayewo, which means ‘the first to taste the world’, this is often shortened to Taiwo, Taiye or Taye. Kehinde, or Kehin for short, is the name of the last born twin”. (Good old Wikipedia)
The 29 year olds are a song writing, dj, artist duo based in NYC. I first heard about them via Arise mag. They are under Pharrel’s company and have worked with him, Lil Kim, Chris Brown, Diddy, the Noisettes and more. They released their first EP ‘The Decadence 2′ last summer. Here’s one of their tracks ‘Famous Girl’.
6. BOWBI LADAWA + Sister
I’ve been doing quite a bit of research on Congo DR in the 1970s and while I was refreshing my knowledge on Mobutu Sese Seko who succeeded Patrice Lumumba, I read about his wife Bowbi Ladawa. She was considered one of the most fashionable first ladies of Africa at the time and she had ‘expensive’ taste , spending lots of money on shopping trips to Europe. Ladawa had a twin sister who Mobutu allegedly took as a mistress. DRAMA!
7. Cassi and Nicki
I first saw pictures of Cassi as a muse and model for Gold Coast Trading clothing company, then I saw her participating in an artist talk at the Dandy Lion exhibit curated by Shantrelle P Lewis. Nicki is a tea consultant and charity organizer (I’d love to be a coffee and tea consultant too!!). They are from Mozambique but I would call them global Afropolitans based on the fact that they seem to always be travelling and have lived in Kenya, Dominican Republic and many more places. Check this video via Madewell where they talk about their personal style.
8. OKUNOREN TWINS
Seems like twins are into fashion, huh? According to an interview on the blog Fari Boudoir, Taiwo and his brother Kehinde started selling t shirts from retail outlets to friends in university at 19, then decided to start their own brand. Many years later, they have a vast clientele including Naeto C, D banj and more. They showed at Arise 2011 and 2012. A video is below and pictures from the show can be accessed via Terrence Sambo’s One Nigerian Boy.
9. MATAANO
Somalian sisters Ayaan and Idyl have a line i’m sure every African fashion obsessed person has heard about. After they appeared on Oprah, they gained a huge following and have gone on to show at New York Fashion Week and Arise Magazine Fashion Week. I had the pleasure of meeting them at Helen Jennings book launch for ‘New African Fashion’ and they were super sweet. They insisted that Hannah Pool from Essence take a pic of me which ended up on the street style site. Check out their AMFW collection below for 2011.
10.NYANE AND MPHO
These 17 year old bloggers, models and designers have style for dayzz! I featured their blog in my Afropunk’d post and my friend Linda reminded me they are twins, so I had to spotlight them again. Very fashion forward ladies they are,innit?
11.EKU EDEWOR AND KESSIANA EDEWOR
If you watch Studio 53 extra (the new version), you may recognize Eku Georgie Edewor as a host. She’s also a model as she walked in the 2011 and 2012 Arise Mag fashion weeks, and on further digging, I see that she was a contestant on Britain’s Next Top Model. So Im guessing she’s half British? She has a twin sister called Kessiana who I wasn’t able to find much gist about. Thanks to Ese of Allen and Fifth for the tip!
Know of any interesting twins you’d like to share?
