ARTICLE: Taylah - Jaspers Jottings

Taylah: Patience makes Perfect

Like all artistic professions, having a young start will always give you an edge over competition. This is especially true in the music business as there is clearly too much talent for the amount of paid gigs. However, pushing yourself as an artist in your teen years can often lead to regrettable decisions or images that are hard to shake. I have certainly found myself in this place and I know plenty of artists who wish they had waited. This is why I have taken a special interest in Taylah Barker's career recently. Not only did she get an early start in the music scene, she has made cool headed decisions throughout her career which has molded her into the Taylah we see today.

While watching Taylah perform at the Soundshell in 2021, her level of professionalism on stage wasn’t just notable, it was spectacular. If it weren't for the fact I knew the drummer on stage, I could have been fooled that this was an international touring act. She was effortlessly charismatic in her interactions with the band, the mic, and the crowd, ensuring there was never an awkward moment in a set, even when the band were playing instrumentals.

After seeing that performance, it was no surprise to learn that she started playing gigs at the age of 14! Taylah remembers, “My mum was this, 5”2, Mana Wāhine, lioness who would storm into venues and demand that I play on the best stages…and no one really said no to her. That's how I got my feet as a musician.”

Since then, Taylah has spent years exploring different facets of her musical personality through various live acts. Honing her craft in reggae, classic rock, jazz, funk, and all in-between, Taylah has taken influences from all her experience and put them into her song writing. Although it has taken up to 2020 for her to release her first solo track, her patience has paid off. She has taken the time to act like a sponge and find her own path to be certain of. “Now, I can say without any doubt, that the music I create and release is authentically ‘Taylah’.”

This mentality is what has set her apart most for me. She has come out into the public media with an authentic yet prepared image. Revolutionary yet rounded. Her ‘Aunty-Energy’, as she calls it, is a quirky touch to her digestible persona. She may be going against the grain but it's all the grains we don’t like in society so you can’t help but love her for it.

Since her first release, Taylah has hit the ground running. She has released two more singles to date, with the latest being ‘Graphic’, a soulful ballad on self celebration. The opening guitar riff’s ambient setting is somehow distinctly Kiwi for me which is only validated by its super catchy chorus and smooth groove. (I could dive into what the ‘Kiwi’ sound seems to be for me but that's probably a whole other paper).

While recording ‘Graphic’, Taylah was in the studio for two weeks with Toby Lloyd from Tiny Triumph Recordings to put together a few more songs. She says “Considering my track ‘Undies’ took about 9 months, this was insane progress for me…I’m looking ahead to another 5 releases within the year, so 2023 is looking busy, and I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

Throughout her career, Taylah has seen a lot of incredibly talented musicians go by unnoticed because they just didn’t have the personal drive to get their music out there. Her motivation comes from the desire to carve her name into the industry and not be overlooked as a female musician. “I was raised by strong women, and I intend to perpetuate that.”

Taylah is a pearl to this “safe zone for artists”, Te-Whanganui-a-tara. She perpetrates diversity and positivity and contributes high quality music to the scene. I asked her if there was one thing about Te-Whanganui-a-tara she’d like to change and she said “it would be adding

more music venues…. That’s not an easy feat, but I know so many budding young

artists who have the odds stacked against them when it comes to booking gigs”.

Taylah has made mature, bold, and calculated decisions to put her in the position she is in today. She has broken onto the scene with a product that I genuinely want to interact with straight away…ehem Let me rephrase that, her music SLAPS! I’m really impressed with what she has done so far and she is genuinely an inspiration and role model to me. Get amongst!

Written by Jasper West