The Afro-futuristic Sounds Of Milla Mix

Ugo Aliogo in this report examines Milla Mix, his music and philosophy

“I don’t drink or smoke. I believe that no form of highness would give you what you don’t have,” is Milla Mix’s guiding philosophy when it comes to unpacking his creative process. With an impressive collection of hits to his credit, it is no surprise that the ace sound engineer, known for his line-up of celebrity clientele, comes from a long lineage of music minds.

With a grandfather who owned an analogue music studio in Umuahia in the ‘70s, and who is famed to have engineered the likes of the veteran music maestro, Oliver de Coque, alongside a music director Father and an alto-singing Mother, who were members of a Church music group; Milla Mix’s love for music was without a doubt passed on from a prior generation.

Born Eduek Hezekiah Jonah, Milla Mix’s uncanny ability to profile the positioning and intensity of a sequence of sounds is a gift that puts him in a class of his own. It started long before Milla Mix himself could predict the trajectory of his talents, giving you an unmistakable feeling that the sound maestro came ready-made.

“From when I was a kid, I had music in my bones. I broke all the plates in the house using them as drum sets. My Dad eventually gave in and took me to the church drummer for drum lessons,” he explained.

He was only 6 years old.

His trendy alias, Milla Mix, carries with it a queer story. As a boy, after stumbling on a magazine that promised to make anyone a millionaire in 24 hours, he went around the school advertising his discovery and assuring them that they didn’t need school to make millions. As a result, a schoolmate promptly christened him ‘Million boy,’ a name that was soon shortened to ‘Milla boy’ and eventually ‘Milla’ when he left secondary school.

Milla Mix’s move to Lagos, orchestrated by a chance meeting with the artiste, Skales, again prompted a name change to the more self-assured, ‘Milla Mix.’ This was as a result of the trajectory that the producer/sound engineer was set to tread on studying the crowded musical landscape of Lagos.

“I stopped production in 2016 based on what was in demand. I looked at the industry and noticed that there was a lack of sound engineers and quickly got a spot for myself,” he hinted. It took about three years for Milla Mix to grow his brand as a sound engineer into the household name it is today.

On how the lifestyle of music artistes here is distinctly different from what he was used to before now, he explained. “I used to like my space but with Lagos, everything changed with artistes wanting to be there when mixes are done.”

The self-trained creative is ready for a new phase in his career; a return to music production. Something he didn’t quite stop altogether, but kept under the radar, refusing to commercialise that part of his art. “Before now, I would say no to music production but in 2021 I am ready to produce commercially again.”

We don’t need to wait too long to experience the sounds of Milla Mix; the creative drops a new EP in a few weeks. On what form the highly-anticipated EP would take, Milla is as cryptic as they come, offering no clues. “All you need to know for now is that I have recorded music with the likes of Teni, Skales, Peruzzi and Dremo, and I am currently working on a few more with other top-rated artistes.”

With the already star-studded EP offering no working title, and still in the planning stage, it would seem logical to expect a prolonged release date, but nothing is that simple with Milla Mix.

“If I overthink it, I might probably not drop it until the perfect time, so expect it sooner than later.” he argued.

With Milla Mix’s ability to turn a series of personal experiences into a household brand name, there is no doubt that the next phase of his career path is destined to blaze a trail in the African music scene.