Abuja, Nigeria – October 17, 2026 — At five years old, Jonathan Moses lost his mother in Chikara, Kogi State. For the next eight years he lived with the consequences. Then he left his father’s town on foot and walked roughly 85 miles to reach his grandmother and aunties near Abuja. He has stayed there ever since. The Abuja singer and songwriter who records as OmaYe does not turn that walk into branding. He turns it into sequencing.
The Records That Came First
Signed to Lucky Lisiano Records, OmaYe arrived in 2026 with a catalog already in motion. Early Audiomack records such as “Totori Dem” and “NonFictional” preceded the January 10 release of the EP 17EEN. Tracks including “Jojo,” “Chosen” (with Emir Makhanaki), “Mula,” and “Dehcallme Omaye” established a sound that moves between Afrobeats, hip-hop, and Amapiano without forcing the blend. “Tell Them,” released in late 2025, framed the stance clearly: trust the process, widen the room. Follow-up single “Seven P” (June 20, 2026) crossed 100,000 combined streams on Spotify, Apple Music, and Audiomack and moved through radio, clubs, and DJ sets before the album existed.
Street Laws as Sequence
On July 24, 2026, the 10-track debut album Street Laws landed. It is structured as a progression rather than a collection. The sequence runs from “Intro” through “Order,” “Alive,” “Understand,” and “Wanted,” then into “Faith Over Fear” and “Get Better (Outro),” with “No Fit Resign (NFR),” “Be Careful,” and “Seven P” threaded inside the arc. Titles signal discipline, survival, refusal to quit, and ongoing growth. Coverage in Hip Hop Since 1987, BLK News, Entertainment Post, Melody Maker Magazine, 4 The Culture, and a Stardom101 Magazine cover feature positioned the project as one of the more intentional Afrobeats debuts of the year, with attention reaching Nigeria, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United States.
The work was shaped with producers PTD, Xavi, Choice D, MC Sameerah, and Strings2Mental, alongside sessions involving Emir Makhanaki and Stardon Globe. Early support included co-signs from DJ Ivan in Kenya and DJ Khalifa in Abuja.
How the Songs Actually Start
OmaYe still begins most hooks as freestyles caught on his phone. He builds the idea before he reaches the booth so the session stays guided by what already feels natural. He usually records straight through. That method keeps the records raw.
“There wasn’t one particular moment where it clicked. The passion for music was always there. What changed was learning how to express it — and turning that into my own sound, OmaYe. I’m young. I’m still learning myself. That’s the best part of following this journey: you get to witness the growth. You get to see the process,” he said.
What Comes Next
Heading into the next run of singles and official videos, the distance between an 85-mile walk and a sequenced debut album is already public. Whether that distance becomes a sustained career will be decided in the records still to come.
About OmaYe
OmaYe (Jonathan Moses) is an Abuja-based singer and songwriter signed to Lucky Lisiano Records. Born April 8, 2008, in Chikara, Kogi State, he has documented personal loss and relocation through a catalog that moves from early singles and the 17EEN EP to the July 2026 debut album Street Laws. His sound blends Afrobeats, hip-hop, and Amapiano with freestyle-first writing.
