Founder and lead singer of The Rock by Funk Tribe, Iyeoka is at the forefront of a new artistic genre that gracefully interweaves spoken word poetry with jazz, blues, gospel and electronic soul. The buzz surrounding her poem-songs has garnered her national attention and led to performances at the TBS Trumpet Awards, the Sullivan Honors Awards at the Kennedy Center, the CBS hip hop show The Source All Access, and Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry Jam. In 2009, she won second place in the Individual World Poetry Jam.
A first-generation Nigerian-American, Iyeoka was a practicing pharmacist before launching her career as a poet, singer, activist and educator. In her native Esan language, Iyeoka means “I want to be respected.” By channeling her culture and ancestral influences, she delivers an authentic and inspiring message of healing through the power of the moment.
In 2009, Iyeoka decided to transform her sound and songwriting approach and began working with producer David Franz to breathe new melodic and musical life into her poetry. Iyeoka released two EPs that year called “This Time Around” and “Run Into the Rain.” The new music infused more pop, R&B, dance, and hip hop into the mix, creating an “electronic soul” sound.
Iyeoka’s latest single, “The Yellow Brick Road Song” received national placement in an episode of the new hit HBO series “How To Make It In America,” gaining many positive reviews for both lyrical content and musical composition.
Her newest album SAY YES (released this week) evokes her revelatory spirit. The creative vision for SAY YES is more expansive than one medium, so for this project Iyeoka will release SAY YES as an Evolving Album. Available as of November 9, the evolving version of SAY YES will be sold exclusively from Iyeoka’s website, and every week new content (whether that be in the form of a song, video or poem) will be added to the album. Fans are able to join the SAY YES journey whenever they like. No matter the part of the ever-evolving journey at which fans decide to join and purchase SAY YES, they will be sent the additional content as the project continues to evolve.
Iyeoka will be touring in support of the release, including several performances at TED conferences. TED (Technology, Entertainment, Design) is a non profit organization dedicated to the spread of ideas, of which Iyeoka is a global fellow. Past tours have included support slots for artists such as Femi Kuti, Zap Mama, Soulive and performances at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. As Iyeoka continues on her artistic and spiritual journey, her warm spirit, stirring lyrics and passionate performances leave audiences not only entertained but also transformed with empowerment.
Following are the tour dates for your reference. Make sure to watch this amazing artist folks!
11/11 – TEDxEast (Times Center) New York, NY
11/12 - St. Johns University (D’Angelo Center) Queens, NY
11/21 - Lizard Lounge Boston, MA
12/01 – TEDxAlcatraz (Temple Night Club) San Francisco, CA
12./07 – TED WOMEN Washington, DC
12/08 – TEDWOMEN Washington, DC
For further details, look up
her website
Submissions
