IYEOKA – Say Yes evolved

Label: Intuition
Katalog Nr. INT 34632
Release: 11. September 2026
EAN: 750447346321
Format: CD
Distribution: edel Kultur
LC: 08399

1. Broken Hearts Anthem (Walk Away)
2. The Yellow Brick Road Song (feat. bcap)
3. Breakdown Mode
4. Simply Falling
5. Soundtrack To Life
6. This Time Around
7. Say Yes
8. Millionaire (feat. bcap)
9. Testify (feat. bcap)
10. Happily Ever After
11. I Am Descending
12. I Travel Home
13. Baba

IYEOKA
Say Yes evolved

Poetry Slam & Rap Battles, Singing, Songwriting, and the Occasional Drum Performance

Iyeoka (pronounced: Ee-yo-kah) has explored many artistic disciplines throughout her career, yet at her core she has always remained a storyteller and poet.

„My goal is very simple,“ says the American artist. „I want to move the world, one poem at a time.“ On Say Yes evolved, she achieves exactly that with remarkable grace. Through beautifully crafted songs born from poetry, Iyeoka Ivie Okoawo, to use her full name, offers the perspective of a strong, self-assured woman navigating today’s world. She reflects on love and relationships in the 21st century, contemplates the everyday struggle called life, explores what it means to be a woman in the age of post-feminism, and embarks on a deeply personal search for her African roots.

Musically, Iyeoka proves herself to be extraordinarily versatile. Her repertoire ranges from electronic soul („Breakdown Mode“) and contemporary R&B („Broken Hearts Anthem (Walk Away)“) to infectious dance grooves („The Yellow Brick Road Song“). She is equally at home with jazz („Happily Ever After“), gentle rock („Say Yes“), sophisticated pop („Soundtrack To Life“), reggae („Testify“), and elegant, velvety ballads reminiscent of Sade („This Time Around“ and „Simply Falling“). Few artists move so effortlessly between styles.

The original version of this richly diverse collection of songs was first released in the United States in 2010 under the title Say Yes. It was conceived from the outset as an „evolving album,“ an innovative concept that gave purchasers free access to additional recordings as the project continued to develop—a thoroughly modern interpretation of a work in progress.

Born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Nigerian parents, Iyeoka initially pursued a very different career. After graduating from Northeastern University with a degree in Pharmacy, she worked as a pharmacist for nearly a decade. Throughout those years, however, she continued to nurture her artistic ambitions, and around 2003 they grew into something far greater than a passion pursued in her spare time. As she began questioning whether she wanted to spend the rest of her life behind a pharmacy counter, her lifelong love of poetry provided the answer. For the deeply spiritual artist, writing powerful verse became an almost sacred experience—one that, in her own words, felt „as if someone up there were helping me write.“ Determined to follow that calling, she left pharmacy behind and immersed herself in the spoken-word scene. Performing regularly at poetry slams, she quickly earned critical acclaim and numerous awards. Her performance poetry also held its own alongside artists and cultural icons including Chuck D (Public Enemy), Musiq Soulchild, Vivian Green, Gil Scott-Heron, Sonia Sanchez, and the late writer Amiri Baraka.

Always eager to embrace new artistic challenges, Iyeoka soon expanded her creative vision into music. She founded The Rock By Funk Tribe, a band that allowed her to blend spoken and sung poetry with elements of jazz, funk, blues, and gospel. Her solo debut, Black And Blues, followed in 2004, with Hum The Bass Line and the live album Live @ KTUH Honolulu arriving in 2008. That same year, she contributed a cover of U2’s „Desire“ to the tribute album In The Name Of Love: Africa Celebrates U2, alongside artists such as Angélique Kidjo, Les Nubians, and Vieux Farka Touré.

In 2009, Iyeoka deliberately shifted her musical direction away from what she called „poem songs“ toward more traditional, melody-driven songwriting. Working with producer David Franz, she released the EPs This Time Around and Run Into The Rain as the first expressions of this new approach. By the time Say Yes appeared, the transformation was complete, and the album became her breakthrough release in the United States.

„The Yellow Brick Road Song“ was featured in HBO’s How To Make It In America before becoming the theme song of the hit legal drama Fairly Legal in 2011. At the same time, the official video for „Simply Falling“ became a global YouTube sensation, amassing more than 260 million views.

Radiating warmth, optimism, and authenticity, the East Coast artist continues to spread a message of hope and resilience. Her name, Iyeoka, means „Respect me“ in the Esan language of Nigeria. She believes that many of the ailments of modern life can be healed by embracing the power of the present moment. In interviews, she has often pointed out that her mission has remained remarkably consistent despite leaving pharmacy behind. While she once sought to ease physical suffering through medicine, today she aims to heal emotional wounds through music. The advantage of her healing music is simple: no prescription is required—and there are no unwanted side effects.

With this CD edition, INTUITION presents Say Yes evolved to a new generation of listeners, reaffirming the enduring relevance of Iyeoka’s unique fusion of poetry, soul, and song.