TeZATalks: Seattle's Trailblazing Hardcore Popstar on Her Upcoming Release and Cultivating Her Sound
Photo by Emery Lemos
By Lorcan Stokes
With her upcoming record, The Revenge, set to release this Sunday, Seattle-based musician and performer TeZATalks is approaching a significant milestone she has been working towards since her musical beginnings. Known for her unique "Hardcore pop" style—a fusion of nu-metal, punk, and electro-pop that has captivated millions of fans—TeZA is offering a preview of her debut album, Black Girl American Horror Story, a discography of work anticipated to be her most authentic and compelling to date.
"The Revenge is more like a turning point where it's truly the door into Black Girl American Horror Story. I've been leading crumbs," TeZA explained. While some tracks from the upcoming album, like OXYGEN and STOPIT!!, have already been released, The Revenge stands out as a genuine showcasing of the essence of the forthcoming album.
"We've gotten to the door, and it's about to open," TeZA said.
This next phase of TeZA's career marks a defining moment in her professional and personal life, highlighting the growth she has experienced since she first came on the scene with the release of her first EP, Chaos, in 2017.
"It's a colliding of my past and my present and then an introduction to the potential of my future self," TeZA said.
TeZA's trajectory and current success have been deeply influenced by her past, shaped by the highlights and the challenges she has had to overcome. Raised on the island of Oahu in Hawaii, she grew up practicing a Baptist faith in the Aloha State, where music was a constant presence from the beginning.
"The island life is so culturally embracing," TeZA said. "It was always a celebration of someone else's outlook on life and perspective and food and music. I think it really allowed me to feel limitless in my expression, and that's why my sound now is very diverse or eclectic in some ways but still familiar."
TeZA has always been musically gifted, singing in her church's choir and performing solo recitals. When not in church, she grew up on the voices of Tina Turner, Whitney Houston, Etta James, and Mariah Carey. As a teen, that taste changed towards the more alternative-sounding punk-sounding Hailey Williams, Linkin Park, and Jinjer. Still, even with this lyrical background, she never envisioned a career in singing.
"I was a huge athlete," TeZA said. "I was the fastest girl on the island of Oahu."
Primed for Division 1 athletics in track and field with aspirations of reaching the Olympics, TeZA's dreams were derailed at age 15 when she was diagnosed with a severe case of scoliosis.
"Back then, they thought surgery was not only the most progressive but the most immediate solution to my future problems," TeZA said. She later underwent an operation to prevent further curvature, during which Harrington rods—large metal rods that fuse screws to the spine—were placed in her back. The procedure was not without complications, leaving her with chronic pain ever since.
"I woke up and felt like a completely different person," she said. "I couldn't move."
Attempting to return to her previous athletic pursuits proved difficult, if not impossible.
"I tried to trick my body into thinking I was the same. I tried to do a jump once at track practice, which I sat in on, and I hurt myself. I tried to get back to ballet and some of my hip-hop classes, but I didn't move the same," TeZA said. "It just really defeated me. Because even though I thought I was these things, I knew deep down that I truly felt different now. That was the portal to becoming an artist."
The life-changing event did have a silver lining. During a time of reflection, TeZA's passion for music deepened, evolving beyond just singing in a congregation and laying the foundation for her future calling.
"The portal opened to existentialism and the possibility of soul and human connection and oneness and all of this, and it became art," TeZA said. "Life started to imitate art. Weirdly, as much as my back has caused chronic pain, it has kept me upright in life towards what I'm supposed to do and meant to do: music."
Her back issues led her to relocate to Washington in 2016, drawn by the medical benefits of cannabis for chronic pain. However, the move went beyond just medicinal reasons. TeZA was already familiar with Washington, having spent summers visiting Seattle and Tacoma throughout childhood. Over time, the Northwest became like a second home to her.
"We (her family) have a homestead in Lakewood that my grandparents, being the first Black people on that street and in that neighborhood, cultivated a beautiful family that I was able to come from," TeZA stated of her long-standing family ties with the state. "Still, to this day, it has been a place where it's been a home to others as well."
TeZA’s roots run deep in Washington, and she plans to grow even more, this time through music. When she first moved to the state, writing songs was just a passion project, a therapeutic release from her back pain's physical and emotional strains. This early project evolved into her 2017 EP, Chaos, featuring seven tracks showcasing her signature style. Standout songs like STFD and Find Me have garnered over 41 million streams on Spotify alone. While impressive, that number is merely a chunk of the overall success, as the EP has since accumulated 70 million streams.
"It just started bubbling in a very organic way," TeZA told of her success. "I had no intention of it becoming what it is now."
Since the release of Chaos, TeZATalks officially emerged as a powerful musical force, embarking on an illustrious career. In 2019, she followed up with the album Apart to Chaos and has flourished, engaging with new and innovative sounds and captivating showcases. Whether winning a coveted spot through The Battle of The Bands at AfroPunk, routinely performing at the Capital Hill Block Party, being awarded a $10,000 grant from the Sonic Guild, touring with Danish pop star MØ, or sharing the stage with industry hitmakers like FKA Twigs and Anderson .Paak, these moments have consistently reaffirmed her place as one of the Northwest's leading artists.
"I feel like I'm starting a new chapter within a bigger book," TeZA said. "Every time I'm able to create something new and learn something more about myself as an artist, the journey from then to now has been a lot of exploration of self, who I've been in my experiences, and how I've come out of it in a way that made me better."
Regarding her approach to creating her music, it's as dynamic and exciting as her sound. Her approach is ever-evolving, from the bass-boosted hip-hop vibes with tracks like Lex Luthor to the electrifying dance-infused rhythms of tunes such as In the Dark.
"I tap into the story that I want to tell. It's therapy for me most of the time," TeZA said. "Usually, there's something that I've been carrying around, and that will guide me into, 'okay, so what does that story feel like?' And then that will guide me to the production of it, and the lyrics are just me being honest."
She ensures versatility in each track, adapting to both the sound she's exploring and the collaborations she's engaging in. This dynamic approach not only adds interest but also presents exciting challenges.
"Sometimes we're on the same page, and we're aligned, and sometimes we're beefing," TeZA explained. "That creates an even cooler dynamic within music."
At this point in her career, TeZA is seasoned and well-rehearsed in what works for her, both on a record and in the studio. From that, she knows exactly what she seeks in partnerships: passion.
"I look for people who stand on business when it comes to themselves," TeZA said. "The best experience that I've always had, whether I completely understood the person's assignment or it was like, 'what is going on,' has always been when an artist is coming from a very authentic place, and in that, I get to learn maybe something about myself that I didn't know, or be introduced to something I would have never even thought of."
Exploring her discography, it's evident both audibly and visually that TeZATalks holds herself to the same high standard of passion she seeks in others to unlock the authenticity she desires in her tracks. She draws deeply from her own experiences, whether it's with her chronic pain and the mental torment and physical suffering it causes, as well as the moments of reprieve and her journey toward healing.
"To be in a place where I'm getting treatment, and I'm feeling better, it's changing my art," TeZA said. "It's changing the stories that I'm telling. It's growing me."
TeZA's growth is apparent in her ever-evolving hardcore pop sound, particularly in her music addressing the political landscape of the United States.
"Where I'm at in my life currently is that I finally realized that it's at my own pace, but I'm always going to keep doing what I'm doing," TeZA said. "We have the ability to change the course of what all of our lives look like by choosing to participate and pay attention."
Continuing, she said, "With everything going on, talking any type of politics or election seems heinous and redundant. Our future is in our hands, and if we don't start to grab hold of that collectively, I think the course of what we're doing individually is going to change drastically. I want to continue feeling the ability to feel the pace of my life and knowing the direction of my life. I want others to feel that, too."
In 2022, she created an anthem of body positivity and inclusivity with Not Your Body, a powerful protest against the overturning of Roe v. Wade.
"I am just an echo of a long roar of women who have been trying to gracefully, violently, and passionately fight for our basic human right to exist and be as we are," TeZA said. "No person should ever have to discuss or lean on someone else's discernment or decision-making around their autonomy over their body."
While the song gained traction within Seattle and highlighted a pressing issue, TeZA hoped it inspired fans to examine the legislation, consider the decision-makers, recognize areas of weakness and lack of access, and collectively focus efforts to address these problems.
"I am trying to be better in that way, in having a platform as an artist to be mindful about where I direct people's attention and who I collaborate with," TeZA said. "To make sure that I am not irresponsibly or ignorantly putting my opinion somewhere where I need to just be in a position of help and change."
Her continuously changing evolution in sound is undoubtedly to be expected in her upcoming album. Drawing from experiences in both her career and personal life, her debut promises to reveal a side that fans have yet to see.
"Black Girl American Horror Story is someone who I was," TeZA explained. "I'm now a Black woman. And with this record, I think people who know the Black girl in the story that I'm about to tell, and all the horror that she became and was and was a part of and saw, are going to recognize her and the people who never got to meet her and only got to see the woman that I've been."
But before fans get Black Girl American Horror Story, which still has an undetermined release date, fans will get a preview of what's to come with the release of The Revenge. Alongside this release, TeZA is gearing up for a variety of performances. Fresh off her 4th of July performance at the Pioneer Square Fest, she is set to perform at the Capitol Hill Block Party later this month and the Freak Out Festival in November. Make sure to pre-save The Revenge here to get an exclusive first listen.
"This is the most honest I feel like I've been on a record," Teza said. "It means a lot to me, and I'm really, for once, truly proud of myself."
