For people following singer L.A.X and his wife Ella, the wedding images coming out of Lagos this weekend tell a different part of the story from the photographs the couple shared in September. On Sunday, 1 November, the couple held a traditional celebration and reception in Lagos. BellaNaija Weddings described the occasion as bringing Ijaw and Yoruba traditions together.
The guests included former president Goodluck Jonathan and his wife Patience. The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, and Oba Saheed Elegushi were also among those in attendance. Coverage of the gathering shows family and friends celebrating alongside the guests from public life. The singer’s name away from the stage is Damilola Afolabi.
The public sequence began with the engagement in January. In June, L.A.X and his family travelled to Warri in Delta State for an introduction to Ella’s family. The visit gave the two families an occasion to meet formally. It was a separate gathering from Sunday’s reception in Lagos, although photographs from both feature in accounts of the couple’s wedding celebrations.
In September the couple announced their civil wedding and shared pictures from Malta. The celebrations there also included a white wedding at Palazzo Parisio. The civil ceremony had therefore already taken place by the time guests assembled for the Lagos event. The pictures from Malta and the Lagos footage document different places as well as different stages.
Between the two came the Nikkah on Thursday, 29 October. The programme reported by Punch included recitation from the Qur’an and prayers for the couple. That religious ceremony and the traditional celebration on Sunday took place only a few days apart, which helps explain why clips of both have been circulating together.
What it means for you: if you are sharing a clip from the celebrations, match it to the occasion before giving it a date. The family introduction belongs to Warri in June, the civil wedding to Malta in September, the Nikkah to late October and the Lagos reception to 1 November.