Today we’d like to introduce you to Zuleiha Yusuf.
Hi Zuleiha, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I have always been a medium of unadulterated expression.
It started before I understood what it was. As a barely-there child, I was obsessed with sounding out words, tasting them, turning them over like smooth stones. I loved rhythm and instrumentals, and my body always answered before my mind could. Then came the books. I read so many that I stopped caring about the titles. All I knew was that I had arrived at a forest of words, and I had to make my way into the thick of it and dance with the wild greens.
I started writing in secondary school, or high school, as the westerners say. There was no structure and no order, only the need to express and create.
I come from a middle-class Nigerian family where the most successful people all followed the bureaucratic path: structured, monotonous, and reliable. Nobody in our tribe had ever excelled as a creative. My mother welcomed the arts, but the thought of attempting them came with a fear of failure that bit at my skin like winter wind. So I studied computer engineering, not because it was my choice, but because it promised to secure my future.
I excelled, of course. I finished, then started work as an Applications Support Specialist and grew into Software Project Management. I grew in a way that sated my physical needs, my soul, neglected in my pursuit of financial freedom.
So I started writing again, hosting karaoke events as an outlet, bringing artists together in one room. I began performing my poetry at the Abuja Literary Society, and I felt most alive again. I carried both lives at once, corporate by day and creative by night, and a little balance was restored.
Then I decided to build something that held all of it.
Learning to combine everything I had picked up in grueling corporate spaces has been a journey. I understood, and still understand, why that period was necessary. It gave me an advantage I am willing to exploit, and I now am a published author, a respected speaker on the human condition, social justice, and the adulation of women. I write and build products that help people play, express, feel, and live.
I am what you would call a romantic poet. My focus is romanticism, and I have a deep passion for making people feel good. Art of Zuleiha is the home I built for all of me, a castle of safety where my soul can experience the fullness of humanity. It is a return to the center of who I am: an expressive woman who loves to write, dance, and show people the beauty of expression.
These days, the calls come in. I get booked for speaking, poetry, modelling gigs and I am busy in the best way. Of course, I take on unpaid gigs sometimes, because the right room is worth it. I am being invited to speak at events, and my goal is bigger than any single room. I want to speak to an audience of over 100,000, where everyone leaves impacted by what I say.
My book, Wretched Race To Be Alive, is available on Amazon. I also create products for shared experiences with friends and family, so check out the Play link on my website; artofzuleiha.com.
If you want to follow the journey, find me at @artofzuleiha on Instagram.
And if you take one thing from my story, let it be this: your passion is screaming to be let out. You do not have to sacrifice one life for the other. Just give your passion some attention for the entirety of life and watch that outcome compound.
What is the outcome to aim for? I navigate this earth with my body and heart and soul. It simply is good health to ensure all aspects are adequately tendered. I will keep writing and performing poetry, bringing people together through play, and living a life full of creativity.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Not at all, and I think the unsmooth parts are what is shaping the work.
The first struggle is the absence of a map. I am still figuring things out as I go. Building a brand is not glamorous. I am learning to run a creative business while still giving my art room to breathe. Also the balancing act can get tiring. My split needs requires me to live two lives until one is sustainable enough, however in this economic climate, it takes a lot to get there. Not impossible, just a lot of work.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
What I do
I am a poet, an author, and creative director. Under Art of Zuleiha, I write and perform poetry, direct short-form video, write copy, and speak at events. I also model, and I build products that get people playing, expressing, and feeling.
What I specialize in
Making people feel good through expression. My focus is romanticism, and my work lives in identity, womanhood, intimacy, and reclamation. Whether it is a poem, a frame, or a keynote, I give beautiful, honest form to what people feel but have not yet said.
What I am known for
My book, Wretched Race To Be Alive, my voice, on the page and in the room. I have performed across Nigeria, Canada, and the United States. My poetry has been published in a literary journal at Laurentian University in Sudbury. I am also known for spotlighting other creatives, turning the camera toward makers and giving their work the frame it deserves.
What I am most proud of
My book, Wretched Race To Be Alive, and what it took to get there. Choosing to write, perform, and build a creative life anyway, and then putting my own book into the world, is the thing I am proudest of. Art of Zuleiha itself comes close behind. It is the home I built for all of me.
What sets me apart
I carry two worlds. My years in tech and project management gave me discipline, structure, and business sense, and I use that advantage in my art.
I also treat creativity as something that should not be forced into one lane. Poetry, performance, direction, play, and speaking all come from the same source, and people can feel that consistency in the work. My goal is to speak to an audience of over 100,000, where everyone leaves impacted by what I say.
Is there anyone you’d like to thank or give credit to?
My mother. She never made me feel foolish for loving words, and that quiet support gave me somewhere to return to when fear got loud.
The Abuja Literary Society. This is where I first stood up and performed my poetry. A room full of writers who listened with real attention gave me my first proof that my voice belonged in front of people.
My friends and family. They are the ones who show up to the readings, share the posts, buy the book, and play the games I make. They are my first audience and my loudest cheerleaders.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://artofzuleiha.com
- Instagram: artofzuleiha
