AfroFuture And Martell Celebrate Food, Fashion And Afrobeats At NYFW
AfroFuture and Martell Cognac fused food, fashion, and flavor into New York Fashion Week with their “Supper x Style NYFW” dinner last month, celebrating the global influence of Afrobeats and African culture.
The event featured premium Martell cocktails, a guided cognac tasting led by Martell Brand Ambassador Jasmin Goldstein, a fusion of Nigerian-Italian dishes curated by Chef Tayo of Ebi-Ayo Supper Club, and a fireside chat about amplifying African fashion, featuring fashion designer IZ, the founder of Street Souk.
The food, which was the centerpiece of the evening, included Yoruba garden salad with citrus dressing, lobster jollof risotto, sweet plantain fusilli pasta with chicken infused with Martell, and Martell-infused puff puff with honey ricotta dip for dessert. Tayo says the menu was inspired by his upbringing in Nigeria and the culinary influences he learned while traveling to Italy.
“We’re doing a fine dining experience for New York Fashion Week. The menu tonight is special—straight from my Nigerian roots, using Italian techniques,” he told BLACK ENTERPRISE. “It’s only right for our guests to get to experience a menu that comes from my heart.”
Abdul Karim Abdullah, the founder and CEO of the AfroFuture Festival, expressed his appreciation for the creatives, fashionistas, and lovers of African culture in attendance.
“Thank you so much for taking the time out to celebrate with us with Martell here in New York City. This is the second annual dinner we did at New York Fashion Week, and we’re really excited,” said Abdullah, who also serves as a Martell Global Cultural Ambassador.
Formerly known as Afrochella, Abdullah and his co-founder, Kenny Agyapong, Jr., launched AfroFuture in Ghana in 2017. Since then, the festival has exploded into a cultural phenomenon that attracts tens of thousands of attendees to the multi-day event, which celebrates African music, food, art, fashion, and heritage. Held in Ghana’s coastal city of Accra during Africa’s “Detty December” season, the annual festival has also increased Ghana’s tourism by 16% and a 3.1% surge in GDP in Q4 of 2019 alone.
August marked the U.S. debut of the AfroFuture Festival in Detroit and the first of a series of cultural events in America under its partnership with Martell. In addition to celebrating Afrobeats, the collaboration aims to uplift African creativity, connect communities within the diaspora, and elevate new voices.
Later this month, AfroFuture plans to host an HBCU Homecoming, followed by an event this November in Houston during AfroTech 2025.
For Abdullah, AfroFuture is more than a festival — it’s a movement that showcases the beauty, innovation, and brilliance of Africa.
“We exist as a platform connecting the global Black diaspora,” he said.
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