Welcome To Tay Iwar’s WONDERFUL

MUSIC

Nov 13

Few artists navigate the space between heritage and futurism quite like Tay Iwar. One of Nigeria’s most visionary voices – and a collaborator to the likes of Wizkid, Dave, Burna Boy and Camila Cabello – Tay has carved out a sound that transcends genre while staying deeply rooted in identity. His new EP, WONDERFUL (out now on all major streaming platforms), is a radiant celebration of Tiv culture and spirit; a project that threads ancestral rhythms through sleek, modern production to create something both intimate and expansive.

WONDERFUL feels like both a return home and a leap forward. It’s Tay at his most grounded – yet most visionary – merging electronic textures, traditional drum patterns, and samples of Tiv legends like Zule Zoo into a tapestry of sound that speaks to legacy, love, and joy.

Astrophe spoke with Tay about reconnecting with his roots, balancing spirit and experimentation, and why celebrating culture can be the most futuristic act of all.

WONDERFUL feels both futuristic and ancestral, weaving Tiv cultural sounds with electronic textures. What drew you to explore your Tiv roots so deeply on this project?

My whole life has led to this point. Being raised Tiv with both parents being Tiv, I always had conversations with my dad on fusing Tiv elements with my music. My dad plays the saxophone and he told me about his friend who he had given some Tiv records and this friend went on to interpret gido melodies and playing style into some kind of jazz fusion with the saxophone imitating gido, I always thought that was genius. Ever since then I’ve wondered how Tiv rhythms could interact with all the other musical influences in my life so I started sampling, but after I made some songs I realised that to fully understand the sound, the dance and culture had to be visualised and it had to be done in Makurdi, Benue. Kwagh-hir is a form of storytelling through theatre and dance that blends influences, spirit, story and rhythm so naturally in an effort to showcase my heritage, this became the main focus of the music video for the title track “WONDERFUL”.

You sample legends like Zule Zoo and traditional Tiv drum patterns – what role does sampling cultural heritage play in shaping the future of African music?

I don’t really know about the future, for me sampling will always be a way to understand and pay respect to the music and people that made me want to make music.

How do you see WONDERFUL (eg: diary, a celebration, a feeling etc)?

WONDERFUL is a celebration of Tiv culture but it's also a celebration of spirit. When I started on this EP I wanted to create a soundscape that was instantly recognisable by Tiv people. I wanted it to feel like a clarion call to Tiv people to join the party, join in on a mindset of celebrating our culture in ways that can inspire a future or a now where Tiv art, music and dance is properly documented.

You’ve worked with global names from Wizkid and Dave to Burna Boy and Camila Cabello. What do you look for in a collaborator that makes it feel organic rather than transactional?

Honestly I just follow my gut, every session is unique.

The EP closes with “NEXT2U,” produced with GG and bAd entity, carrying real dancefloor joy. What do you think joy brings to music – both for you as the artist and for the listener?

It’s a feeling of being free or understood, NEXT2U was born out of that same feeling, Skillz, GG & BadEntity were having a genius moment in the studio and as soon as I walked in, the vibe hit me heavy and the song was recorded in no time.

With WONDERFUL being so cohesive, how do you know when a project is “finished” – when to stop refining and let it go

Sometimes It doesn’t stop, sometimes I go back into my old project files and tweak or sample stuff, I feel like an album is ready for the world when the point of it has been made clear.

You’ve spoken before about music being both intimate and expansive. How do you balance personal storytelling with universal resonance?

I don’t think too much about it. As a human being I know that anything I go through has been experienced by many others too, I'm never the only one so I just focus on expressing myself.

Relocating between Nigeria and London, how does your environment influence your sound — does the city seep into your production process?

I’ve always been influenced by a plethora of music, so even before I moved to London I was fusing the British influences I had in my life but living in the city has taught me about a lot of different cultures, I realised that London is really multicultural.

What do you hope listeners carry with them after experiencing WONDERFUL?

I hope listeners learn something new. I hope they see my culture and appreciate it and most importantly, I hope they enjoy the experience.

If you imagine yourself 10 years from now looking back at this EP, what do you think you’ll remember most about creating it?

I think that’ll be making a trip to Benue state to shoot the video for WONDERFUL, i’ll never forget that.

If your life right now had a soundtrack, what three songs would be on it?

Hiatus Kaiyote - everything’s beautiful

D’angelo - The Root

The beatles - Tomorrow never knows

What’s your go-to comfort meal – and who’s cooking it?

Any dessert by my mum.

Who’s the most unexpected artist on your playlist?

Playboi Carti

Do you have any pre-show rituals or superstitions?

Drink some tea and say a prayer.

If you could time travel to any era of music history, where are you going and why?

I’ll be in 1977 for Fela and 1983 for Michael Jackson

What’s your comfort TV show or movie?

I love documentaries, all Kinds.

List 5 things that you find WONDERFUL.

Growth.

Sunlight hitting water.