Home video aesthetics of the 90s is now cool with Nigerian millennials

In 2016, it was common to see young Nigerians rock th famous Cash Money t-shirts with the huge logo and excessive display of blinged out designs in Lagos.

And in case you haven't noticed, the VHS filter app is now a cool tool to give your video that cool retro home video film. No one knows the reason behind the renaissance of 90's aesthetics. You could blame 'Stranger Things'- the hit Netflix show that unashamedly taps into 80s and 90s nostalgia.

ALSO READ: 30 unforgettable home videos you should watch again

One thing we are sure about is that trends never die. They lurk in the dark until a generation dusts its up and deems it to be cool again.

Right now in Nigeria, there has been a growing appreciation of the aesthetics of the home video era. Nigerian home videos started in the early 90s as an avenue for filmmakers to sell their movies, after the crumble of Nigerian cinemas.

Low budget, poorly produced, cheesy special effects, and over-the-top acting were the main features of most of these home videos. Though they were insanely popular at the time, they did receive their fair share of criticisms. Apart from the already stated features, Nollywood home videos also featured weird camera angles and a unique sense of fashion.

By 2004, the first era of Nollywood started to fade off because of the G8 ban. A few years later, Nollywood's big players would turn their attention back to the cinema.

Now, with bid budget Nollywood productions frequently showing in cinemas, Nigerian millennials have turned their attention to the glorious 90s of spaghetti tops and baggy denim pants.

Nollywood aesthetics and the Nigerian video style as forerunners

In March 2018, Pulse about a fast growing Instagram account, Nolly Babes, which posts screen shots of Nollywood home videos. It celebrates the fashion statements and style in '90s and 2000s Nollywood movies.

The Instagram account has close to 5,000 followers and now serves as an inspiration for creatives who want to tap into the independent spirit of Nollywood movie makers during this period.

Nigerian photographer, Andiekan, recently did a photo shoot which was inspired by the throwback Instagram account.

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Nolly Babes is not the only online account tapping into the home video vibe. On Twitter, Yung Nollywood has been extracting screen shots from the home videos of the 90s with humourous subtitles to match.

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Presently at 10,000 followers, the account has developed a following.

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90s inspired music videos

The thirst for the 90s vibe is also reflecting in music videos too. Rising pop act Pretty Boy D.O who flirted with home video aesthetics in his 'Footwork' music video went full 90s on his next music video 'Chop Elbow'.

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The anti-establishment song boasts of an extremely low budget and weird visual that immediately takes you back to the days of Even Ezra produced music videos.

The music video even has the shaky chroma key scene, a staple of 90s music videos in Nigeria. In the alte scene, poster boys Odunsi, Santi and Zamir star in the VHS shot video of 'Alte Cruise'. The mood and vibe of the music video is a nostalgic trip to the peak era of VHS.

Santi would double down on his love for home video aesthetics when he released a trailer for his latest single 'Freaky' which featured his own visuals mixed with the trailer of a spiritual thriller made by the controversial evangelist Helen Ukpabio.

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Why are Nigerian millennials tapping into the 90s

There is a cool about recreating the trends of yesteryears. The trendsetter of whatever contemporary generation also become trendsetters by revisiting the old school to create newness.

On July 13, 2018, an article on Urban Central addressed the aesthetic obsession with the Nigerian altè movement. It highlighted the retro, scenery, props, no bra and VHS aesthetics that seemed palpable across board.

The trendy generation has only just borrowed from a familiar source. The 90s-2000s Nollywood aesthetics has inspired on a few noticeable fronts that we constantly overlook.

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The 90s influence

Mostly though, they have influenced contemporary music video culture and contemporary style. What they did was create a template for future pop culture and attractive styles.

They introduced the world to the ideas, however avant-garde or terrible they seemed. While our generation will want to take credit for making these aesthetics attractive, we can’t. We have the luxury of evolution and positively, time on our behalf.

The key though has been time, as a true custodian of change and purveyor of evolution that makes things better. This same time has again proved a worthy reason why things we critiqued have been reborn as ‘new and cool’.

Will the 90s throwback movement end anytime soon? Most likely. Our generation would soon be bored of this era and seek inspiration from another time, maybe the 60s or the 70s. Who knows. While this wave lasts, let us ride it to the highest crest.