INTERVIEW||IGEE OKAFOR – KUYET BAMAI

1) Hey stylish person !!!do you mind telling us where you and what your doing right now, just to start with.*smiles*

How are you doing my man? My name is Igee Okafor. I live in New York City and I am a full time content creator in menswear and lifestyle.

2)I’m  doing well thank you so much for coming on ,so tell us who is Igee Okafor and what exactly was the reason he started blogging in the first place?

I am someone who enjoys a variety of creative endeavors. I enjoy dancing, I enjoy visual stimulation, I enjoy entertainment in movies and music. I enjoy performance. Blogging for me started off as an extension of my creativity. As a young boy, I enjoyed creative writing so through blogging, I set out to be one voice in a conversation revolving something I was still figuring out.

3) Ok so I was doing some digging and I found that you actually studied business and marketing at St johns University in New York.so my question is how were you able to manage your blog efficiently and still meet up with deadlines in school?

I get this question a lot. It was never really that difficult. It was a matter of how obsessed I was with creating content and working with everyone involved to balance my time properly. I tried my best to schedule well and to not procrastinate.

4) I know right you make it sound so easy and again you hardly talk about traffic and follows but I’m sure there are people who want to know in fact I want to know what you think is the best strategy to use or what will you say has been a strategy for you cause its no news that your blog is one of the big guns in this industry.

That’s so kind of you to say. Thank you! I have found that people will invest in product/content they feel like they need to practically include in their lives to elevate it. Creating content that is real and relatable is enough work but the real work lies in promotion. For example, doing this interview with you to hopefully reach your audience, attending events to network or collaborating with content creators of your kind for cross promotion. There are a lot of talented people in the world. What will set you apart is the quality of your product and the fact that you are doing everything in your power to share it for people to see the work and relate to it.

5) How do you stay positive and what will you say is your motivation as regards to lifestyle blogging? I’m asking this  cause at some point in my life I wanted to give up on blogging but after we had a conversation you gave reason why I didn’t have to let the negative energy  from around get to me. Thank you.

I’m glad it helped. That makes me happy! You are very talented and I think you should keep hustling.

I’m generally a positive person. I keep positive and motivated people around me. I also do my best to do the things I feel make me feel my best. I like to watch interviews of my favorite influential people, I like to dance, I love listening to music, I love to laugh and I love to create. As long as I am able to do everything I love doing, I am happy. At the end of the day, you have to love what you do and if you feel you passion is fading away, try to find ways to resurrect it in ways that compliment your person. If it still does not make you happy, move on to something else. Always try to stay motivated! If you lack that, it’s over for you.

My motivation in regards to blogging stems from wanting to be the best at one of the few things that I am good at especially since I am representing my people as a man of color. Everyone is born with a gift and if you can harness that and make it work for you while also reaching people positively, you’re gold.

6) What will you say has been a major challenge for you since you started this journey?

Probably the inner battle most creatives fight centered around not feeling like what we are doing is ever enough.

7) Igee, you have worked so hard and we have seen you as an insider for GQ and you have worked with so many well known fashion and lifestyle brands like MR PORTER, MONTBLANC, NETFLIX, NAUTICA and lots more so what will you say is the best way to get the attention of  brands as a blogger?

I have been lucky enough to work with brands I have been a fan of since I was a young boy and for that I am so grateful. It still all feels like a dream. I would say the best way to get the attention of a brand is to truly live and support the brand. Engage with them as much as possible, be your own brand ambassador for them and do it in the most original way possible. 

8) If you were to work with any fashion brand or a fashion blogger in Nigeria which and who will it be (I’m a blogger to just in case lol).

Orange Culture has made some fantastic suiting I would love to wear. I think you have good style and a cohesive aesthetic. I am honestly open to collaborating with anyone who shares or can compliment my perspective. Fisayo Longe is great, Denola Adepetun has done an exceptional job, Steven Onoja is a legend. I’m open.

9)  Wow well I look forward to it but I’m a little curious about this , who is your style icon?

I have a variety of style influences. Tom Ford and Victoria Beckham have been consistent. The men and women you see in old Hollywood films inspire me.

10) You graduated from college recently – congratulations on that! So, what’s next now? Are you going to blog full time or do you have other big plans?

Thank you! Blogging it is, full time. I am very excited about it.

11)Did you guys hear that?He’s going full time. Now this is a random one, why did you cut your hair? and what’s your height? please don’t ignore

Haha! Good questions. I am 5’11(1/2). I cut my hair because I was at a point where I felt creatively stifled. I wasn’t enthused by anything I was doing and I just needed to feel a change – something that would strike a reaction in me so, I cut my hair. I’ll be keeping it for a while.

12) Last one, what are some the things you wish you knew then that you’ve come to know now.

It’s a working progress for everyone.