Nigerian author Chibundu Onuzo has released a new single titled “Mirror”. Unlike her previous laidback songs, this one is upbeat and perfect for dancing! It was released on January 19.
Take a listen here:
Chibundo Onuzo is a successful Nigerian writer and author of three novels. They include Sankofa, Welcome to Lagos, and her debut novel The Spider King’s Daughter, which won a Betty Trask Award, was shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Commonwealth Book Prize, and was longlisted for the Desmond Elliott Prize and the Etisalat Prize for Literature. She has also written a short film Dọlápọ̀ Is Fine that was streamed by HBO and shortlisted for the ABFF HBO film competition.
Onuzo was selected for the 2014 Hay Festival’s Africa39 list of 39 Sub-Saharan African writers aged under 40 with potential and talent to define future trends in African literature. She was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in its “40 Under 40” initiative in 2018.
Onuzo has already released a couple of fantastic singles in the past few years – Good Soil, Led Me Back to You, and Coming Home. Check out our features of Good Soil and Coming Home. But Mirror is special because it comes with an upbeat tune and a reel of Onuzo herself dancing to the song. She labels it, “A song that you can groove this January to”, and it truly is.
Besides the catchy tune, the lyrics are equally soulful as Onuzo asks her listeners to focus on being their true selves and love the person they see in the mirror. Many of us might be trying to change ourselves with new year’s resolutions and other tactics, but embracing ourselves is the only way to be happy and dance to the tune of life.
The cover art is simple but engaging. The photograph is taken by her husband Sarge Odion (see their wedding photos here), while the cover design is done by Lanre Iroch. Featuring Onuzo wearing a yellow outfit and gazing at her reflection in the mirror with a mysterious smile, the image captures the happiness she feels at loving herself for who she is.
Congrats to Onuzo! You can listen to the track on all your major streaming platforms.