The Queen of Afro-House delivers an intimate six-track tribute to her late husband, exploring grief, memory, love and healing through music
For more than a decade, Niniola and her husband and manager, Michael Chiedu Ndika, built a life together away from the spotlight. Their marriage remained private for 13 years, known only to those closest to them. When Michael passed away suddenly on May 19, 2026, at the age of 44, the loss reshaped the world of one of Nigeria’s most celebrated artists.
Now, Niniola is sharing that story for the first time.
Her new EP, Without You, is a deeply personal four-track body of work written in honour of her late husband. Keeping the high-energy Afro-house sound that earned her the title of the Queen of Afro-House, the project embraces vulnerability through uptempo production, emotionally rich storytelling and some of the most intimate songwriting of her career.
Across the EP, Niniola explores the many faces of grief: disbelief, heartbreak, longing, remembrance and, ultimately, healing. Rather than focusing solely on loss, Without You becomes a celebration of enduring love and the invisible threads that continue to connect us to the people we carry with us.
Leading the project is the focus track, “Pain,” an unflinching account of the moment Niniola learned that her husband had passed away. Built around the recurring phrase, “e day pain me,” the song captures the disorienting experience of watching life split into a before and an after. Happiness gives way to sorrow, certainty becomes unfamiliar, and grief unfolds in real time.
Throughout Without You, Niniola allows listeners into a space she has never shared publicly before. The result is a project that feels less like a traditional release and more like a collection of personal conversations transformed into music.
For an artist whose catalogue has long been defined by rhythm, movement and celebration, Without You reveals another side entirely: one rooted in honesty, tenderness and the courage to continue creating through unimaginable loss.
Some stories are too personal to tell. Niniola chose to sing this one.
