How Llona Finally Met His Luck

Llona has a tendency to turn unexpectedly philosophical in the middle of a conversation. Whether he is talking about a memorable performance or the life-changing tour he embarked on after the release of his album Homeless in 2024, the Nigerian singer can tease meaning out of anything. 

With Llona, nothing is really ever just nothing. This is one of his greatest qualities as an artist. It is also the bedrock of his new album On The Road, a project that began to percolate during his landmark tour — one in which he traveled by bus to 25 cities across Nigeria to perform in places many Nigerian artists rarely visit.

On The Road, as Llona describes it, is somewhat of a journal of that surreal time in his life. “It's a journal and also a story of my life put together,” Llona tells OkayAfrica. “There were things I  learned on the road that I jotted down on the album. Some things happened in my life since Homeless that are a story now.”

The album, out today, is a tender, gentle chronicle that finds Llona turning completely inward and coming out with sordid realizations, self-understanding, and thoughtfully kneaded philosophies. The project is unlike anything one might imagine was made on the road, at a time of restlessness and constant movement. It is, if anything, constructed with the mellow quality of music suited for solitary listening - mainly for the honesty of its messaging and the vulnerability in how he delivers them.

The truth, though, is that, despite the logistical demands of pulling off such an ambitious tour, there were many moments of wonder Llona encountered — and that could explain the soothing tone of the project. “[The tour] made me realize that Nigeria is actually beautiful,” he says. “It made me see the landscape, the beauty, the mountains, the very amazing people. Everywhere I traveled to was like a homecoming.  It also made me see how politics is destroying us and stopping us from fully enjoying our country.”

On The Road features collaborations with Black Sherif, Morrelo and Fridayy, with Llona carrying his weight on the other tracks. It is Llona’s first full-length project in two years, and it exhibits admirable growth and proves that, when it comes down to it, Llona will always have something interesting to say.

Giving Things Time

When Llona, whose real name is Michael Ajuma Attah, speaks across our virtual call, his voice is bouncy with energy and airy. Speaking to Llona can quickly feel like bumping into an old friend who is leading a life so much more interesting than the one you remembered them living. Llona himself is aware of how much his life has changed. As a child, his family moved around a lot, an experience that made Llona a person of quick adaptation - often rising quickly up whatever pack he chooses to be a part of.

“[With moving around] sometimes you enjoy it, maybe it's boring, or backward, but in some places you have amazing people. Then you are moving again, and that hurts because you have to go and start a new friendship somewhere else and move on from these people,” he admits. “It taught us how to engage with different people, different tribes, different backgrounds so I can relate to anybody in the world as long as we can speak the same.”

Llona’s journey in music was not linear either. From a first act as a rapper named Tooclassiq working primarily in Kano, to being Llona, a fast-rising act in Lagos with a soft-tempered, even-toned sound peppered with reflections and stories that are in touch with everyday realities. 

In this way, Llona has lived within different contexts and at vastly different possibilities in the music industry. Very few people seem to understand the importance of giving time its time as Llona does. “I let time do its thing, you know. I'm a spiritual person. So when God told me that after Homeless, to take two years, I knew that my next project was going to be 2026, because the next t projects depend on what I do,” he says. “There were a lot of things that changed; there was a lot of perspective that came into place on that journey of me traveling to now, so I just let time answer every question, and I let time direct me.”

While putting On The Road together, Llona says he wasn’t chasing a specific theme. As a characteristic of journal entries, the album reflects the moods, feelings, and observations passing through him during the tour. Some standout moments include the unfortunate killing of a young girl in Maiduguri, the people who traveled miles and hours to see him perform in a town close to theirs, and the people who were meeting him for the first time. The tour itself was a sobering mix of emotions.

“I genuinely can't write fiction. I write from what I have experienced, what I'm seeing with my eyes, what I'm feeling,” he explains. “That's where the emotion comes from. My perspective on politics, my perspective of life entirely. So whenever I write a line, I am always painting a picture because you, the listener, need to really see where I'm coming from before you sync and become one with the music. So, I don't play with how I paint the picture to my people.”

In songs like “Anger Management,” he illustrates a state of constant agitation by admitting that veins are popping out of his head and singing, “my temperament is hurting me.” In “What Do We Do?,” he takes some time to reflect on empty promises, failed starts, and a new reality that is sometimes confusing to accept. 

For this project, Llona wants to offer his listeners something akin to hope through a simple message: “A moving man will always meet his luck,” he says. “Because I never stopped moving in my problems, in my flaws, in my anxiety, in my pressure, there was one thing I never stopped doing, which was waking up and moving.”

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