On International Women’s Day 2023, we beam the spotlight on mould-breaking Gen Z women [born between 1997 and 2012].
These young women are fast becoming the culture shapers of the emerging generation — one filled with go-getters and daring young people unafraid to speak their minds.
This new class of women have taken centre stage, and are now influencing the way young women dress, talk, and even think.
In no particular order, we list five of these bold new voices in celebration of International Women’s Day 2023
1. Korty EO
You cannot be a fan of YouTube content creators without mentioning Korty.
Eniola Olanrewaju, better known as Korty EO, is a 24-year-old fast-rising YouTube star who describes herself as a filmmaker. Korty studied computer science at the University of Ibadan and graduated in 2018. She modelled for a bit and was even signed to Few Models before she joined Zikoko as a producer. After that, she worked at Mr Eazi’s emPAwa as the head of content before departing to focus on her content.
Now she has over 240,000 subscribers on her YouTube channel, where each episode gets an average of 300k+ views, some reaching as high as eight million views.
Korty brings a really fun perspective to storytelling that makes her videos so relatable and fun to watch — for those in her generation and beyond.
2. Ayra Starr
Oyinkansola Sarah Aderibigbe or Ayra Starr is a member of Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records. She burst into the spotlight with her debut album '19 and Dangerous'. She’s now 20 years old and she is still quite dangerous.
Ayra has many chart-topping songs, including her hit song ‘Rush’ which was a top 40 hit in the United Kingdom.
She is the youngest African female artiste to get 100 million views on a single YouTube video in less than five months and has broken several other records.
She is the only female artiste from Nigeria to have a solo song chart on the official UK Singles Chart. She also has numerous nominations and international awards. No wonder she gave herself the nickname, 'Sabi Girl'.
Starr’s track record is indeed impressive and what makes her a Gen Z culture shaper is her free spirit which often shows in her lyrics. She also dresses the way she wants, often channelling bold 90s fashion, and doesn’t apologise for how short her skirts are.
3. Taaooma
Instagram comedian Taaooma [real name Maryam Apaokagi-Greene] is certainly one of the culture shapers of the Gen Z crowd. She is a 24-year-old graduate of Tourism and Travel Service Management at Kwara State University. She started comedy in 2015 by convincing her boyfriend, now husband, to teach her video editing.
Her quirky jokes and ability to play different characters make her one of the most popular skit-makers in Nigeria.
Now, Taaooma has 855,000 subscribers on YouTube and 4.4 million Instagram followers and is seen as an influential figure.
She has won several awards, including The Gage Award as the Best Online Comedian of the Year and the Nigeria 25 under 25 Awards as a Social Entrepreneur in 2019. In 2020, she was nominated in the MAYA Awards Africa as the Skit Maker of the Year. She was also nominated as a Content Creator (Vlogger and YouTuber) in The Future Awards Africa.
4. Diana Eneje
Diana Eneje is a lifestyle influencer and entrepreneur. This 21-year-old has worked with many brands like HP, Cadbury, PayPorte, Stanbic IBTC, Mango, Krispy Kreme, Indomie Kellogg Tolaram, Infinix, Bolt, CocaCola, Octafx and Swarovski.
Diana embodies what it means to be cool and fashionable on social media; her Instagram page is a testament to her impeccable style.
She started her career as a model and was first seen in Rema’s music video ‘Dumebi'. She is now a lifestyle influencer with almost a million followers on Instagram, 54,000 subscribers on YouTube and 204,000 TikTok followers. She also won the Nigerian Teens Choice Awards for Nigeria's most fashionable teenager in 2018.
5. Priscilla Ojo
Priscilla Ojo is the daughter of famous Nollywood actress, Iyabo Ojo, but that’s not the only reason she is popular.
Even though she acted for a bit, she is more known as a lifestyle influencer and model. This 23-year-old owns a fashion store known as Priscy’s closet; a bag collection, Priscy Luxe; and also dabbled into real estate, Priscy Homes. She has collaborated with different brands like Tecno, Mav Herbals, Cindy Weightloss, New Age and many more.
Priscilla Ojo has over 2.1 million followers on Instagram and her fashion and style are one of the reasons people love to follow her, but she is also an astute businesswoman and a member of the popular Gen Z friend group, The Geng.
Hats offs to this women doing incredible things.