Juwon Announces ÌYÁ ÌYÁ - A Sonic Reimagining of Yoruba Folklore

On May 25, Nigerian composer, performer, and scholar Johnson Oluwajuwon Adenuga, also known as Juwon, will release ÌYÁ ÌYÁ, an eight-track concept album that reimagines a classic Yorùbá folktale through a blend of jazz improvisation, oral tradition, and ambient soundscapes. The album reflects Juwon’s continued exploration of how contemporary musical expression can shape indigenous storytelling practices.

At the center of ÌYÁ ÌYÁ is the tale of Ìjàpá the tortoise and Ajá the dog—a familiar Yorùbá parable that speaks to themes of wit, loyalty, and consequence. Yet Juwon approaches the story less as a fable and more as a living archive, reinterpreting its rhythms and philosophies through a carefully constructed sonic narrative.

Among the album’s compelling pieces is “Èrò Ọjà,” Track 7, which extends the world of the fable into a contemplative soundscape of the Yorùbá marketplace. Featuring subtle percussion, multi-layered vocals, and jazz-influenced harmonic progressions, the track draws on Yorùbá philosophy, which sees the world as a market—where every human being is both a buyer and a seller. It offers a meditative pause in the album’s dramatic structure, emphasizing the idea that every action carries its consequences.

Juwon’s approach to actualizing storytelling is grounded in realistic performance practices and scholarship. 

A PhD candidate in Jazz Studies and an Arts & Sciences Fellow at the University of Pittsburgh, his research focuses on the transformation of Yorùbá storytelling traditions in contemporary performance spaces—from community gatherings to digital platforms. 

ÌYÁ ÌYÁ joins a growing body of his original compositions, including Olúda, Àbáméta, Olúgbon, Obalàbàtà, and Ogórùn-ún that merge sacred themes with musical hybridity.

Opening with a traditional Alo Apamo (riddle), the album moves through parable, improvisation, and reflective reinterpretation. It offers both a tribute to ancestral memory and a forward-looking study in how cultural knowledge is carried, reshaped, and re-performed across generations.

ÌYÁ ÌYÁ will be available on all major digital platforms starting May 25. The album is poised to resonate with listeners drawn to experimental African music, diasporic jazz, and storytelling that crosses boundaries of form and genre.