Dear Reader ,

I’m still recovering from what happening in Umuahia

Three days. Twenty creatives. One room I still find myself returning to.

A participant said something at the end of Day 3 that has stayed with me:

"Just before people start giving their thank-yous, let it be known that we cheated you for the fee we paid for this experience."

I smiled, and then I sat with it. Because sometimes the deepest moments are not loud. They simply stay with you.

It has been a few days since we closed the ABC Masterclass in Abia, and I still catch myself scrolling through the photos on my phone, sitting in the experience all over again.

Let me take you back for a moment, because this gathering almost did not happen.

There were changes we did not expect. Plans shifted. Logistics that felt settled suddenly were not. There were moments my team and I sat together asking difficult questions: Can we still make this work?

But purpose has a way of asking you to keep showing up.

Through all of it, one thought kept returning: There are creatives waiting for this room. So we stayed with the process. We prayed, solved problems late into the night, leaned on each other, and by grace, we arrived.

Then the messages started coming in:

"Wow, today was something else."

"Thank you so much for pouring into us."

"This is beyond words."

"I would have regretted not attending."

"I learned a lot and I feel full."

That evening, I sat with those messages and read them slowly. Moments like that always remind me why we do this. People rise differently when they rise together.

Day 2 brought another kind of depth. We moved beyond ideas and into honest conversations around creative business, sustainability, pricing, marketing and the realities many creatives quietly carry. Questions became conversations, people shared openly, and the room began to feel less like a class and more like a community.

By Day 3, we closed out our structure sessions before heading to the Nigerian National War Museum in Umuahia. Watching creatives move through that space felt special. Photography has a quiet way of doing something powerful—it slows you down, helps you see differently, and reminds you why you create in the first place.

Later, we returned for our Pitch Session. Nine creatives stepped forward to share the businesses they are building and received practical feedback, encouragement, and guidance. Because our hope has always been more than teaching. We want creatives to build sustainable work and step into leadership with clarity.

As we came to the end, more words found us:

"The past three days have been nothing short of a cocktail of emotions. Too much has happened for me to remain the same."

"Thank you for BEING. For mirroring my possibilities."

Reading those words, I felt grateful. Because every challenge that came before the room suddenly felt smaller. Every late-night conversation, every moment of uncertainty, every difficult decision felt worth it.

This experience has stayed with me and the team.

We have held this masterclass in Lagos before, but purpose has been inviting us into something wider across different parts of Nigeria. And Abia reminded us of something important: sometimes communities are waiting, sometimes people are ready, and sometimes all that is needed is for someone to show up.

Now we continue.

The Art, Business & Creativity Masterclass is moving, and I have a question for you:

Can you guess where we are heading next?

A small hint: we're travelling North.

Love and Light Always,

​
GAZ

P.S. By the way... the official video sharing why Gazmadu Education is now ELEVÉ Creatives is finally out, and I have genuinely loved seeing the conversations around it.

If you haven't watched it yet, I think you'll enjoy sitting with the heart behind this next chapter.

​Watch here​