Artist Profile: TEATEA
TEATEA, the enigmatic singer from Massachusetts, began her music career in the annals of internet, posting videos of acapellas and songs she had made to Youtube, and has since developed into an alluring young artist, shaping unique storylines across the two projects she has released thus far.
A child of Haitian and Congolese immigrants, TEATEA grew up surrounded by the sounds of her heritage, but, being in a heavily musically-involved family, she also was immersed in the various soundtracks to a childhood in the early 2000’s; the radio and movies shaped the sounds she heard throughout the early stages of her life.
A private and overwhelmingly artistic child, TEATEA pursued art in all facets, taking up painting, film, choir, and whatever else she could get her hands on. She, over time, learned to use and experiment with the tools that were available to her, leading her to making her own music on her family’s computer at a young age.
This practice blossomed when she entered adolescence. Like many young artists, her taste in music was shaped profoundly by Soundcloud, which entered the height of its popularity at the very beginnings of the formation of her taste.
“I really miss SoundCloud for that reason, because I think you could get a little bit of everything and it wasn't a problem. It wasn't like you needed to listen to just one genre, and I remember mixing everything together… I'm listening to my One Direction, then I'm listening to Twenty One Pilots, and I'm listening to Georgia Anne Muldrow… I just was always someone who could never stick to one, and I think it's because I'm such an emotionally charged person [that I need a constant mix of sounds].”
As she moved into adulthood, she had already been active in online music communities and found support through various channels, making her transition into having actual output a relatively easy one.
Her first full project, STATIC, released in 2022 and featured her first attempts at conveying a unique concept: something she has aimed to do with both of her projects.
STATIC, across its 33-minute run-time, traces a series of reflections on her first relationship through the lens of a radio station that mirrors the tentative combination of uncertainty and optimism that she felt at that time in her life.
Her next project, MUTHABOARD: CIRCUIT, takes a similarly conceptual route. Based on similar foundations regarding her personal turmoil, the project parallels her life as she becomes trapped in a video game, experiencing much of the same uncertainty as she trudged onward into adulthood. However, she marks a notable difference in her creative approach to the two projects, stating that MUTHABOARD: CIRCUIT, takes a much less reflective approach, instead serving to parse out the turbulence of her life at the same time she was experiencing it.
“I wanted to dream bigger. I wanted to show this world in a more immersive way, and. because I had this world more as an [active] depiction instead of just a reflection…, I think that changed the way I made the music too… I think just the whole process was different because I felt like I was writing more more presently, whereas STATIC was more like I was writing as a reflection of my past or what I just experienced. Even though it was pretty fresh, everything was reflective as opposed to like, ‘Oh my god, in the present, right now, I'm f*cked up over this.”
Now, as TEATEA continues to experiment with genre and mirroring her life experiences, she’s working towards a less conceptual, jazz-rap inspired project called Herbal Tea, one that will provide more direct access to the artist’s life and creative mindset.
With each new exciting development in her career, TEATEA takes large bounds forward into her personal artistic space, and her newest project, in whatever final form it takes, will certainly be another leap into musical prevalence for the young artist.