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Skylyne Spotlight: Teo Tala

Slip into your grandpa sweaters and family heirlooms and join the party with indie-pop artist Teo Tala

Skylyne Spotlight: Teo Tala

Teo Tala seated on a wooden box in a studio portrait, wearing a colorful patterned cardigan, white tank top, wide-leg jeans, and black shoes against a white background.

Shot by: Randell Olaes


Releasing music within the past two years, he’s grown his following to 4K+ monthly listeners and has recently released his newest single, “t-shirt sleeves.”  I found Tala from his TikTok page and was honestly just happy to see more Southeast Asian representation. But diving deeper into his image and his music, I loved how much sentiment and intention Tala puts into representing his culture and his artistry. 


Inspired by the posters of Michael Jackson and the Jonas Brothers in his childhood bedroom, and by the atmosphere of lively Filipino karaoke parties, Tala has always had roots in music. After taking an interest in his sister's long-forgotten ukulele, Tala began his journey, teaching himself to play and sing as a hobby. However, it was not until he worked in tech at his first post-grad job in Chicago that he began to take his artistry seriously. I had the pleasure of speaking with Tala, and we talked about everything from fashion to sonic influences and overcoming mental health challenges.


We started our conversation by talking about AJ Rafael, an influential Filipino-American singer-songwriter, YouTuber, and philanthropist who dominated the music space on YouTube during the 2010s, and how the Asian American community fostered his creativity. 


Teo Tala: AJ Rafael was a really big influence for me. I'm a big believer in that if you can see it, then you can be it. He was that person for me. After my year living in Chicago, the Filipino/AAPI community in Southern California really helped kick-start my career. I remember one of the first mixers I attended was a Live Nation AAPI mixer, and I met so many people who told me about different shows. Even at the first Open Mic I attended, a girl came up to me after my set and asked, "Are you Filipino?" That's how I met one of my close friends (shout-out to Julianna Almario!) and booked my first show here in West Hollywood. The AAPI community really looks out for each other and has been impactful in my early career as an artist. 


As Tala notes, the need for that big push from his community catapulted his career. He notes that as a person with social anxiety, it had been his biggest obstacle, and worrying about what people in his personal life would think. However, he recalls one of the most influential memories of his time in Chicago as his solo trip to Lollapalooza within his first month of moving to Illinois. 


Teo Tala: Part of attending that festival really launched me to follow my dreams of putting out my music. I remember one of the sets was by Grent Perez, and he's also Filipino in the indie-pop, bedroom-pop genre. I've loved music my whole life, but I wonder what would've happened if I hadn't attended. It really was the final push I needed. 


With big dreams of attending Lollapalooza in the future as a performing artist and performing at NPR's Tiny Desk, Tala has already achieved some of his biggest goals now, a year into his time pursuing his music in California. 


Teo Tala: When I was writing my list of things I wanted to accomplish within the next year, moving back to LA, The Viper Room was one of them. A lot of my favorite artists have performed there, and landing it within the first year of being in LA was incredible. I'm really blessed to have a really good community and support system that comes to my shows. But with the Viper Room, I remember looking out at the audience and not recognizing half of it, which was really big for me. It was also my 24th birthday, and I sang one of my favorite songs, "Pink Pony Club," and it meant a lot in that setting because I moved from the Midwest to chase my dream. 


Teo Tala performing onstage with a microphone, reaching toward the crowd as bright purple and green stage lights flare around him.

Shot by: Seha Khan


Influenced by fashion and nostalgia, our conversation shifted to how the audience can participate in these concert spaces and how to bring parts of themselves into a new space. 


Teo Tala: I try to include a lot of crowd engagement with my audience, but overall, I hope that everyone can just let loose and have fun! I try to make a soundtrack that serves listeners in their everyday life, such as dealing with a bad situation, and I love it when an audience is open and ready to make the music something they can relate to. Personally, I would describe my style as grandpa sweater vintage, so if people want to show up in some old funky patterns and baggy fits, I’d love that! But of course, whatever makes them feel comfortable. 



We then shifted to discuss his personal branding in fashion and how it influences his music. 


Teo Tala: Clothes are a really big cornerstone of my life. I hold a lot of sentimental value to the clothing I wear. Most of the clothes I wear on stage were worn by my grandfather—literally a grandpa sweater. I take a lot of inspiration from my clothes for my music. My newest single, "t-shirt sleeves," was inspired by the shirt I cried into for hours after I got dumped. I took that inspiration and ran with it. Even one of the first songs that I wrote, "white pearls," was influenced by my own love for accessories and a story I had from college of getting these pearls. 


Between the releases of these two fashion-inspired songs, Tala remarks that, stylistically, he was willing to be more honest in his music. He points to his longest EP thus far, "Good Grief," as an example of his sonic growth.



Teo Tala: Each song was about each stage of grief, and it was really personal and intentional to me. All of those songs were produced in LA with my producer (shoutout to Bryan Hernandez and dog Mango!). Over time, I’ve had the opportunity to add more variety to the types of music I put out, too. At first, I was inspired by a lot of the sad-boy indie acoustic scene, but with my newest single, “t-shirt sleeves,” it’s more of an angsty indie rock anthem. 


In terms of creativity, Teo outlines his writing process through a couple of different pathways. 


Teo Tala: I usually get a lot of melodic inspiration when I’m in my car. I also love lyrics, so those come on their own, and when I get to go into the studio with my producer, we are just really good collaborators, and I really appreciate how we can fine-tune an idea into something real. The biggest compliment that I’ve gotten is that I sound like Rex Orange County. I need to get that pinned on my wall! I definitely pull from him in my vocal delivery. 


Teo Tala lying on a patterned rug surrounded by records, headphones, music gear, a ukulele, and an acoustic guitar in an overhead artist portrait.

Shot by: Terrance Da-Kyung Yim


With new music on the rise, Tala speaks about how his upcoming single aligns more with a folky-pop sound and explores themes of mental health drawn from his personal experience. Releasing in September, for national suicide prevention month, Tala recalls candidly about his time in college and how he would self-soothe during hard times. He hopes that with the release of "The Boy's Lullaby," someone will be able to connect and feel less alone. 


Teo Tala: My stage name, Teo Tala, comes from two different ideas. Teo is my childhood nickname from when I was growing up; Tala means "bright star" in Tagalog (Filipino). I was telling my team, as we were getting everything figured out, that a story that's really important to me is the starfish story. The story revolves around a boy on a beach who sees a bunch of starfish lying on the sand and tosses them back into the ocean one by one. An old man comes around and says to the boy, "You're not gonna be able to save all of them," and the boy replies, "Yeah, but I just saved that one, and that one and that one." And that's the reason why I do what I do. I hope my songs help my listeners get through their normal Wednesday. I want them to feel heard and belong. 


Lastly, I closed the interview by asking what's coming up next!


Teo Tala: Would love for everyone to stream my newest release "t-shirt sleeves" and be on the lookout for my upcoming song "The Boy's Lullaby" coming to you September 4th! See me play at Bar Lubitsch in West Hollywood on August 22nd if you're in the area, and thank you for reading and taking the time to learn more about me!


Follow Teo Tala:

Links to Upcoming Shows!: https://linktr.ee/teotalamusic

Latest Single- "t-shirt sleeves" :https://open.spotify.com/album




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