An Interview With Talii
For many, music is an escape. It helps us take a break from reality, a much-needed distraction from work, school, relationships and the world around us. For Orlando-based singer/songwriter Talii, music is far more -- it’s life itself. With a focus on body positivity and a genre-bending sound, the rising artist has quickly gained a following across the country. Vivid Seats spoke with Talii about helping others through her songs, her artistic style and more.
Vivid Seats: You come from a musical background. Tell us about your family’s influence on your music.
Talii: Growing up surrounded by so many talented musicians and such a deep love for music is a blessing. I grew up seeing them perform, record and create music together which really prepared me to become the artist I am today. We all still perform together for fun at our family reunions. Music is literally such a huge part of who we are and because of that, I was constantly exposed to so many different types of music. Pop, R&B and Soul were the main genres that we listened to, and it ended up becoming a big sonic influence in my music now .
VS: Your music is often described as Alt. R&B. What does that subgenre mean to you and how would you describe your music?
T: I think it’s difficult to describe my sound/sounds using only one genre. It’s more like blends of genres. I feel like the term “Alt. R&B” just refers to the fact that it’s not traditional R&B music. My team and I love to infuse dancehall, pop, and some sprinkles of electronic as well. Music is like colors, when you mix different kinds together you get a whole new shade.
VS: When creating new music, what artists do you look to for inspiration?
T: My collaborators and I don’t really directly look to other artists for inspiration. I like to think our individual influences make up who we are creatively, and that translates during the music making process. Some of my personal influences are Alina Baraz, Sade, HER, SAINt JHN, Michael Jackson and Prince. The list goes on!
VS: Your previous single, “THICKNESS,” is all about self-empowerment. How important is it to you to help others learn to believe in themselves?
T: It’s so important to me and I’m thankful that I can help people with my music! Loving and believing in yourself can be such a hard thing to do. It’s something I’ve struggled with and I know first hand how a lack of self love can negatively affect so many aspects of life. Creating and listening to music that celebrates self-empowerment has helped me believe in and love myself through a lot of tough times. If my music can do that for just one person, it makes everything worth it .
VS: What tools do you use to connect with your fans? How has that shaped your career?
T: Instagram is one of the major places where I connect and interact with fans through my content. I get to show people all aspects of myself and my music on there. It’s a fun way to build a community with them and other content creators! I also like using platforms like YouTube and more recently, TikTok. It’s fun finding more avenues to share my music and connect with more people.
Follow Talii on Spotify and Instagram.