The Talking Drum Magazine

13/04/2026

Big News!
The Talking Drum Magazine is taking a new editorial direction and we're looking for exceptional editors to join the team.

This new direction gives us the opportunity to listen to a wider community and carefully tell their stories with utmost accuracy.

If you have any experience as a culture or lifestyle editor, politics, entertainment or beauty/fashion editor, we're looking for you.

Send us a CREATIVE cover letter telling us why you're best suited for the role and a copy of your resume to [email protected]. Get witty with the SUBJECT. 😉

PS: you get a stipend for every story you successfully commission. 🥁🥳

What are you waiting for? We can't wait for you to join the team! 🥁🎉🎉

21/03/2026

Check the comment section for link to the full essay. 🥁

21/03/2026

20/03/2026

“I would watch the films I want and read the books my heart sought to fill blank spaces in their storylines but then we only had these films burned into DVDs ...But then everyone switched to DSTV cables and there was nothing left except the stories which were saved in more mediums than one. The books were only printed in limited copies so when termites and beetles ate up copies in now dilapidated government libraries, there are no digital archives, individuals lost or mishandled remaining copies, manuscripts are nowhere to be found for reprinting, there is not a lot you can do to satiate that kind of hunger.

Oftentimes I wonder whose fault it is that we do not have our books, films, songs, centuries and decades of history, culture and traditions properly preserved and passed down.”

The recent ichafu and gele situation is a pretty good reminder why proper cultural documentation and preservation matters.

In this essay, Chidinma Otubo (.dinma__) explains with various conversations with family members, why cultural preservation is a matter of urgency.

🔗 Read the full essay at the link in bio. Or click the link in the comment section. Do well to join the conversation.

16/03/2026

We're always in the business of documenting the lives of everyday Nigerian youths. If you have an experience you'd love to share, pitch it to us or submit it to [email protected]. 🥁🥁🥁

Here are essays we've published this year. You can read them and some more at the link in bio. 🥁

02/03/2026

“I think I've trained my mind to not say I need to give up. Take a pause, but don't give up. Because I know I'm talented. I do great stuff so there is really no need for me to say I want to give up on anything.”

For our photographer space in Issue 001 of The Talking Drum Magazine, we spoke with Diji Aderogba () on how he started out as a street photographer, the challenges he has faced and overcome and how photography has transformed his life.

Photography is a huge part of Diji's life and he's on his way to becoming one of the most amazing street photographers in Nigeria.

Read the full interview at the link in bio.

20/02/2026

The transition from rebellious teenagers to young adults not afraid to push boundaries, challenge stereotypes and rewrite history is a persistent story in the lives of Nigerian youths.

Across industries, Gen Z's have upturned tradition and are creating new spaces, new ideas and shaping a new culture. A better Nigeria for the newer generation.

This Issue of The Talking Drum Magazine is asking you to answer four questions:
• In what area are you shaping youth culture in Nigeria?
• Why are you doing it?
• How are you shaping this scene?
• And how does it remain culturally relevant after the year 2026?

Send us your nonfiction piece, essays, arts, and perspectives for a feature on the many ways youths become themselves. Not through trends or labels but through our lived culture and shared experiences.

Submit via the form at the link in bio or to [email protected] and be part of the record.

14/02/2026

“Before we get to you 23 year old internet hustler with savings plan for ‘somewhere chill around FESTAC’, there are a few Nigerians who, at odd hours, take turns to bathe behind a cut open tank, who sleep on mats underneath flyovers or warehouse garages and school fields.

25 million of these ones. Should their ‘dollar a day’ wages ever accumulate to something affording a modest room, there is nowhere enough to give them. We do not speak of the short end of NorthEast Mining Operations, living through the annual destruction of buildings (and farms), faceless families fancied the nom de guerre eye-di-pee(s). Those have a different number.

We do not speak of flesh sacrifices to that sprawling cityspirit of Vagabonds! lore; split figures report around 21 million in Lagos alone live in decrepit housing, shacks, overcrowded sublets, usually without access to clean water and electricity, and low grid connectivity so their trepid calls back home do not narrate clearly.”

Read the full essay at the link in the comment section. Share your thoughts with us too.

13/02/2026

In less than six months, we have seen rents get over 200% increment in some cities in Nigeria. Lands are being sold off to private developers and Nigerians are being chased out of the little properties they own because the government decided it or due to insecurity.

We have big dreams, so our underdeveloped villages with little to no internet services cannot be considered.

What is the fate of the average Nigerian with 50k-200k monthly income? If the rents keep rising and there are no lands to build on, where are we all going to live?

🔗Read full essay at the link in the comment section.

_________
📝: Ebri Kowaki
🔍: Chidinma Otubo (.dinma__)
📸: All images saved from Cosmos.
_________

08/02/2026

Two years after the 2023 election that left our hearts shattered and totally crippled our future, we wrote about how you can get involved in the 2027 election.
Tinubu and the APC (very ironic, their name) have failed this country and it is left for us to change things.

How can you lock in politically ahead of the 2027 elections? Click the link in the comment section to read all of the steps.

06/02/2026

The lives we live on social media is not so far from our real life and in many cases, we have been confronted by that realization.

What happens when the "harmless" post or comment you made doesn't seem so harmless anymore?

How are you building your digital footprint and how will that affect you tomorrow?

🔗 Tap the link in the comment section to read the full essay.

________
📝: Oluwafunmilayo Olamide Odanye ()
🔍: Chidinma Otubo (.dinma__)
📸: Images from Pinterest & Cosmos.
________