Have you looked up the term ‘jack of all trades’ on Webster’s Dictionary recently? We haven’t, but we would not be surprised to find a huge picture of Teyana Taylor right next to it: Because at just 32 years old, the singer/ songwriter/ director/ dancer/ choreographer/ mother/ fashion icon/ actress has been collecting praise and accolades for over a decade already – and it seems that with every new year, there’s a new creative category the Harlemite comes to veni, vidi, vici.
Ever since she made a name for choreographing Beyonce’s “Ring the Alarm” music video in 2005 at only 15 years (!) old, going two-tracked has been in Teyana‘s artistic DNA: And thanks to the spotlight, after a short-lived episode with Pharrell William’s imprint, her captivating voice and charisma made her the first female artist on Kanye West’s label G.O.O.D. Music.
Three albums, star-studded projects and several gold and platinum plaques later, her ability to effortlessly blend elements of R&B, soul, and hip-hop had solidified her status as a genre-bending creative force. Which apparently still didn’t keep her busy enough, even before her surprising self-proclaimed retirement as a singer after years of label struggle:
Channeling her inner (quote) ‘Spike Tee’, she directed several music videos for herself, Lil Durk, Queen Naija and others with her own female-led production company “The Aunties Production“ and – while gaining even bigger artistic integrity – won two BET awards for Video Director of the Year consequently in 2020.
Since then, at the latest, the word ‘limits’ seems to be erased from Teyana’s vocabulary: As the Creative Director for Latto, she’s currently opening up the doors for the next generation of young black talent. She won 2022’s season of The Masked Singer. All whilst she became of a mother of two with Iman Shumpert, alongside whom she rose to reality TV fame. And did we mention the big screen?
After roles in almost a dozen movies including reprises of “Coming to America” and “White Men Can’t Jump”, she scored the lead in “A Thousand and One” – which might indeed be the one film to catapult her into higher Hollywood spheres: Not only has the story about a mother kidnapping her son from foster care in a rapidly changing New York City left audiences in awe of Teyana’s acting. It also won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival.
A jack of all trades indeed, naturally her next project is already on the way: The much-anticipated “A Rose from Harlem” collab with Air Jordan – a no-brainer, given the vintage afficiniado’s penchant for retro sneakers and her cultural impact. We guess, every milestone just serves as a cobblestone on Teyana’s way to the next goal.
