Aisha Ayoade: battling imposter syndrome, starting a clothing line, and the story behind Yellowzine

Welcome to The Strategy Journal, a resource for aspiring creatives to get real advice from the most unique and experienced voices in the industry.

For the second instalment of this series, I’m talking to Aisha Ayoade, co-founder of arts platform Yellowzine,  and copywriter at sustainability agency Futerra. Yellowzine is an online and print platform focusing on visual art from the UK African, Caribbean and Asian diaspora. Although Aisha’s been curating Yellowzine’s content (along with her brother Oreoluwa) for roughly three years, she’s been working at Futerra for two of those three.

Aisha graduated in 2017 studying English Literature and Language and felt weary at the lack of non-white representation on her course. Yes, there were stories and texts from people around the world, but rarely did a text include a non-white person which wasn’t about slavery or imperialism. In the final year there was one module on the Harlem Renaissance, but was she really ready to pretend that that was the start and end of non-white creativity? Along with her brother, Aisha sought to rediscover and repackage how POC have found their creative outlets in the world of today. Yellowzine seeks to exhibit the nuances of African, Caribbean and Asian identities, displaying softness, intimacy, one’s playfulness, and their individualism along with all the other complex layers to their existence. It is a platform which champions something that the universities failed to recognise and celebrate.

Aisha is now 24, she was ‘born and part-raised’ in Nigeria, telling me that ‘most Nigerians will tell you where we’re from, [it] is a very big part of who we are and we don’t let anyone forget it!’ Her family later moved to Coventry but her most formative years were spent in Sheffield, Manchester and London. She likes working on projects that bring people together,  her dream being to create a massive community through art or creativity for black and brown people. A cool, wholesome place, one where we can work together, share ideas and shed any feeling of imposter syndrome to continually thrive. Oh and that’s another thing, imposter syndrome. Aisha hates that, even I hate that, it is the f*cking worst. In fact, according to Aisha, “it’s a persistent little bitch.” But that’s a conversation for another post!

During lockdown, Aisha has been enjoying the work of Nigerian born artist Peter Uka, and has started her own clothing line which you can read more about below.

Peter Uka - Pause (2020)

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In terms of thinking, learning and doing, what has lockdown allowed you to do?

Wow, vague.

I'd like to say that lockdown has given me loads of time to reflect and self-care, but actually, it's given me a bit of anxiety. Everyone's about the rise and grind during lockdown, and there's only so much rising and grinding I can do without burning out. Lockdown has made me feel like I have to get my shit together. Whether that's through Yellowzine, or starting up other side-hustles, I feel like it’s pushed me in ways I don't want - but probably need - to be pushed. That being said, it differs everyday. I've gone from being super motivated and learning to use new programs such as Premier Pro, Photoshop and InDesign etc, to spending days doing nothing and being riddled with guilt because the only thing I've achieved is seven episodes of Modern Family. Today is one of those days. 

Lockdown's allowed a wealth of new content to be created - how do you keep up with feeling inspired?

For me, the one thing that's able to kill my inspiration just as fast as it ignites it is Instagram. Lockdown has resulted in an endless stream of amazing content, and as much as it sometimes makes me feel like I'm not doing enough, I can't tear my eyes away from it. It's not all bad though, the save button on Instagram has been my best friend. It lets me create a safe space within Instagram with which I can go back to being inspired, and not overwhelmed. I think creating some sort of collection of your inspiration is a great way to keep you motivated. Whether that's a saved section on Instagram, a Pinterest board, your liked tweets, a YouTube playlist, whatever. 

In terms of what lockdown has unlocked for me...I recently relaunched my own clothing brand shopsheba and with this, I feel like I've unlocked a new lease of creativity. Currently, it's not something I particularly see as a main source of income, so because of that I feel like I can have more fun with it and be myself without the pressure. 

What advice would you give to young creatives and strategists looking to crack into the creative industry post lockdown?

As much as I hate this saying, we are literally in unprecedented times (ew) so I'd say use that to your advantage. As a strategist what cultural shifts have you seen or can you predict. Do you think online exhibitions will be something that last beyond lockdown? What about virtual clothing? Have you been taking note of the cultural trends during lockdown (No Signal radio, Houseparty app, IG lives everywhere)? I think when you're applying to be a strategist post-lockdown, you should have a good grasp on how the world has changed from your perspective. Especially if you're a young 'person of colour', our experiences of lockdown are very valuable and probably very different to the experience of your average white Brit. What did you tune into that others may have missed? Make a note of this, or better still, make a thing of this that you can bring to the table when you're back out in the world. 

Which brands do you think are doing the most right now?

I've referenced them earlier before, but No Signal radio inspired me so much during lockdown. I don't know any of them personally but I was here for every single one of their wins like they were my own. They brought the black community together in such a beautiful way. For anyone who was on Twitter in the lead up to the Vybz Kartel v Wizkid clash...you'd know it felt like the whole world was listening, from the initial crash of the website to the following outrage that ensued once the winner was announced. We were so happy to be in competition and I loved every minute of it. I don't know if this is the kind of platform you mean by "brands" but the whole No Signal team has been doing a great job from where I'm standing.

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You can follow Aisha on Instagram and LinkedIn.