Music is not just some superficial front for TĀLĀ's bare good-looks; she's a genuine artist whose life's work imitates art. Influenced by diversity and ethnicity—coming from an Iranian heritage—TĀLĀ writes, produces and lays spine-tingling vocals over multi-textured instrumentals and progressive rhythms, with her social and creative conscience forming the backbone to the lyrical focus of the music. Discovered by Brixton-based indie label Aesop, and favourited by industry taste-makers the world over, this songstress' broad appeal lies in her originality and multi-faceted inspirations.
Writing her Alchemy EP in the hip-hop centric Kingston Upon Thames, after being awakened to the juxtaposing rich exotic music of Quatar, the main focus of influence for TĀLĀ's second outing, following The Duchess earlier in the year, was to make music that she enjoys, melding underground dance with pop to form a solid, highly-praised work. Planting a blossoming seed of brilliance, drenched in synth, reverbs and colourful chords, TĀLĀ is growing a fresh sound, one that the world is just about ready to pluck.
Interview by Milly McMahon (@MillyMcMahon)
Your sound's quite international. What cities have been integral to the making of the new material?
I don't know if there's one specific place, because I'm always changing. There are places I've been that have made a mark on me; visits to Qatar were very memorable. Travelling a lot and seeing different cultures leave a mark, and I find that I'm most creative when I come back.
You draw in various eclectic cultural references with your sound. Are you actively trying to encourage commercial music to become more international?
That's something I've done without really thinking about it. The international references come up a lot for me. I put everything into my music, including my surroundings, and I definitely feel connected with travelling and that's why I like to bring in cultural diversity; it's something that is just important to me.
You're pretty big on UK garage, aren't you? The genre seems to be booming again.
UKG is having a second spin and there are a lot of things going on right now enforcing it. I love the People Just Do Nothing mockumentry about a pirate radio stations and the guys who run it. To me, that represents a whole garage era. I think popular shows like that do influence things, in a way. I know those guys from Rox FM and they do the live shows and people resonating things towards that brings back the old school garage vibes, it brings back memories and resonates with audiences, and I think that everything influences culture in its own way. So, yeah, I think garage will continue to have its moment; there are elements breaking through in other genres too and it's all very exciting.
Sometimes, appreciating something that wasn't part of my generation or era, something I can't relate to, is very inspiring.
House is the new pop; dance music is dominating the charts right now. How do you think that happens?
If you go to Detroit, it's a different vibe because house music is just constantly at the forefront. But here, it's like the new pop, you're right. It's more geared towards a hook, and acts like Disclosure massively influenced that. That whole sound is now becoming much more commercially viable. All it really takes is one act to nail it, to represent the underground and also feature relevantly with chart territory, so both sides can appreciate the talent. Then, before you know it, there are 100 more like-minded talents emerging. Its always interesting comparing the London scene to Detroit.
The Alchemy EP feels cohesive and disparate, with regards to your rhythms and instrumentals. Did you write those tracks to be released together or were they pulled from a wider body of work?
There's a lot of material that was there when the song "Alchemy" was created, it was something I had worked on quite early on. I see things in colour with music and if tracks all feel like they're the same colour, then I think they'll complement each other and work in the same body of work. It was all a journey.
You're invested in a plethora of musical genres and feel informed about the various elements of the industry, in terms of origins and trends.
Sometimes, appreciating something that wasn't part of my generation or era, something I can't relate to, is very inspiring. Trying to figure out how something was made with different technology, there's so much that can be learned from original music from the past; it's so far removed from my experience. I'm always searching out new things to be inspired by.
Some female artists see their role as a woman in music as an important one, while others will say their gender isn't a factor in their creativity. Is your femininity something you're overly aware of in what is mainly a male-dominated industry?
I think it's something that I wasn't really aware of, something I was a bit naive to. It is a very male-dominated industry, and I didn't acknowledge that when I was younger, but I think it's more people's reactions to specific elements of music that raise awareness to the fact that music is very male-dominated. The reaction to a girl being a producer or doing something more technical, that's the only thing I've noticed more because of people's reactions.
Do those reactions ever plant the seed of doubt?
No. If anything, it inspires me and pushed me to do even more!
