© Tayna-Demoi by George
Meet Tayna-Demoi - soulful London-born singer who is breaking into the UK music industry with a bang.
Part 1/6 of UK’s breakout musician series.
The 21-year-old London-born artist dropped her first single Dreams in early 2022 which pairs her soulful voice with insightful lyrics to pay homage to her inner strength and family heritage. With a whole new discography dropping this summer, Tayna-Demoi is breaking out into the music industry. We caught up with Tayna-Demoi to learn about what influences her, and what she hopes to achieve as an artist.
Tayna-Demoi’s infatuation with music began in infancy as she was raised by her professional musician parents. She recorded her first song at just 4 years old for a mission project in Kenya and since then her discography has only continued to grow. Now at age 21, Tayna-Demoi accredits her unique sound to the broad spectrum of music she heard around the house growing up including the likes of Amy Winehouse, Coldplay, TLC and Aaliyah. Stylistically, rather than being tied down to one genre, Tayna-Demoi has perfected the craft of hybridity in taking influence from a variety of music from indie-pop to RnB. Tayna-Demoi discussed how she favours this broader perspective to play around and see what the mood of a song needs.
© Tayna-Demoi
Lyrically, Tayna-Demoi takes inspiration, not only from what she has been through personally but also from what is going on in the world. She commented ‘especially as a young black woman, it is really important to be aware of what's going on and what people are feeling. This is because if you are able to connect people through music and help them have a voice and feel heard then, that’s extremely powerful.' Notably, Tayna-Demoi’s EP, which is set to drop later this summer, was written throughout the pandemic and discusses her own personal journey with therapy during this period.
Dreams was the first single to be released by Tayna-Demoi and in a surreal moment, was played on the radio after being discovered on TikTok. Discussing the powerful ballad, the songstress told us that ‘Dreams is really a message to myself to just remember the strength that I have,’ it’s a reminder of that inner-child of Tayna, that still exists- and she still wants you to go and succeed’. The chorus of Dreams refers to Henry who was Tayna-Demoi’s great grandfather and a freedom fighter. She told us ‘I mention him in the song because if he can be a freedom fighter, and fight oppression, and do everything he has accomplished - it gives me reassurance that I can do this. He’s already accomplished so much, which is in my heritage, so if he can do that, then I can do this.' Throughout the music video for Dreams, Tayna-Demoi holds onto the book written by her great grandfather Henry in an ode to their connection and the underlying message of the song.
In navigating the music industry, Tayna-Demoi emphasised the importance of remaining true to herself as an artist as opposed to chasing those viral moments. She told us how ‘You have to start by knowing who you are as an artist and being sure of it because if you just go viral, people are going to try and mould you and fit you to be who they want you to be.’ In highlighting the importance of having a solid personal foundation as an artist, Tayna-Demoi spoke of how ‘it’s a difficult industry to navigate, but once you know who you are as an artist- no one can tell you anything.’ This foundation derives from Tayna-Demoi’s family who play a significant part in her music journey. Not only was she inspired by her great-grandfather in Dreams and has a strong connection to music through her parents’ musical background - but the video for her single Dreams was also shot by her cousin and God-sister. She accredits working closely with her family in remaining faithful to her own personal voice and style as they ‘always just tell me how it is - they don’t sugar coat anything.’
We asked Tayna-Demoi what she hoped to achieve in her career as a musician, and she is driven by the idea of being able to connect with people on a deeper level. She commented- ‘All I want is to connect with people. Hearing them actually connect with the song and lyrics, and repeat that, and believe that for themselves is really important to me. So yes, i would love to have 02 shows and win Grammys, but even if my songs and lyrics can help just one person I would be so happy.’
Tayna-Demoi’s second single Lost Now came out on June 21st and talks about the ability to overcome dark times and find that inner strength. The third single Lotus is due to be released soon, with the upcoming debut EP being released soon after. The core message of Tayna-Demoi’s EP is to find light in those dark days, highlighting the importance of therapy. Tayna-Demoi noted, ‘the EP really is so important to me because it really goes through a range of emotions, of being happy and going to follow your dreams and then being really low and it's just the honest truth.'