Nigerian Afrobeats and Afro-R&B singer Fola, born Folarin Odunlami, has sparked a wave of criticism online after he showed up in streetwear to defend his final-year project at the University of Lagos (UNILAG) on July 29, 2026.
The singer, a student in the Department of Economics Education, Faculty of Education, arrived on campus in a Cadillac Escalade dressed in baggy trousers, a shirt, a scarf and accessories. Photos and videos of the outfit quickly circulated on X, drawing comparisons to how other students are expected to dress for the academic exercise.
By the time the pictures went viral, they had drawn over 146,000 views on a single post by X user @abazwhyllzz, who shared the images with the caption, “See wetin Fola wear go defend project for school.”
Fola reportedly left campus soon after his presentation, and he did not appear in the department’s group photos, which included some lecturers. Several of his coursemates, however, took photos and videos with him before he left. One student, posting as @Hbee_tech, wrote that Fola “came to defend his final-year project with us all the way from Canada.”
The outfit sparked talk about whether UNILAG relaxed its standards because of Fola’s celebrity status. Some X users claimed other students had been turned away from their defenses over dress code issues in the past.
User @ithought_iwas2 described being stopped despite wearing a shirt, tie, trousers and shoes. “I had to borrow someone’s blazer before I was allowed to defend,” the user wrote, contrasting the experience with how Fola was allowed to proceed.
Another user, @IbimBoyle, made a similar claim, writing that a student named Emeka was barred from his defense for wearing sneakers instead of corporate shoes, while Fola faced no objection for his outfit.
User @Inspector_khay1 argued that wealth should not exempt anyone from basic decorum, saying it “wouldn’t have cost him anything to dress corporate, or at least wear something decent.”
Not everyone agreed the singer did anything wrong. User @Damilaredeicon pointed out that corporate dressing is not a strict requirement for every course. “It’s really not that unusual,” the user wrote, noting that many non-professional courses do not enforce a formal dress code for project defenses.
User @SafwanAlghazal took a similar view, writing that the university should “relax some of these rules and focus more on values.”
The controversy revived memories of Nigerian singer Victony, born Anthony Ebuka Victor, who wore full corporate attire in 2022 to defend his B.Eng project in Petroleum Engineering at the Federal University of Technology Owerri (FUTO) before graduating in 2023. Commentators online referenced the moment as a contrast to Fola’s outfit.
The Lagos State University (LASU) was also mentioned in the discussion, having banned baggy pants on campus since 2023.
As of the time of this report, neither Fola nor the University of Lagos has issued a statement addressing the controversy. It also remains unconfirmed whether the singer breached any official dress code or received preferential treatment during his defense.
Fola remains a familiar face at UNILAG despite his music career. According to reports, he regularly attends classes and exams at both the Faculty of Education and the Faculty of Social Sciences, and he has performed at university events in the past.
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