Tai Verdes at Reading Festival

Tai Verdes’ global domination is on its way.

If there was one good thing that came out of the shit show that was 2020, it was incredible new music we heard from both emerging and established artists. After years of trying to make it, Tai Verdes got his big break in 2020 when his first single, Stuck In The Middle, went viral on TikTok and racked up the streams. With no time like the present, the 26-year-old has been nothing short of creative since his breakthrough. He’s released more hit singles, collaborated with the likes of 24k Goldn, Kiana Lede, and Manuel Turizo, and put out his debut album, TV.

On September 16, Verdes will arrive with his sophomore record, HDTV, which will feature a number of the bangers he’s been feeding fans with all year – Let’s Go To Hell, Last Day on Earth, and Sheluvme, and 3 Outfits. His latest offering, How Deep?, dropped the day before making his Reading Festival debut on August 27. Performing to thousands of fans inside the BBC Radio 1 Dance Stage, Verdes is part of a rare breed of musicians whose material translates to a live crowd outside of social media hype.

Following his energetic set, Verdes sat down with 1883 to talk about his festival experience and the upcoming album.

 

 

You not long got off the BBC Radio 1 Dance Stage and performed to a huge, loud crowd. How was that experience for you?

You know what, every single time we play a show I get to see people from different walks of life. Every single artist says the same shit but it was great! I just like to go out and understand what being an artist is.

 

How familiar were you with Reading before attending?

I don’t know anything about any concerts. I was that person that stayed in the house. This is what got me out the house. I didn’t know Reading was a place, I didn’t know about any of these concerts. I had heard of Glastonbury, Coachella, and Lollapalooza. It’s crazy to see what the live music industry is like around the world. I always thought about the music videos, the cover art, and what songs are trending on the radio. Live music pushes me out of my comfort zone because I don’t really like being in a crowd. Not necessarily on stage but being around so many people at a festival. I had a walk around earlier to see what it’s like out there. I love that you guys have rides, that’s crazy.

 

I read that you auditioned for a couple of competition shows before making it, American Idol being one of them. How was performing on the show with your own song years later?

You know, when I was auditioning, I never wanted to win. I was just looking for a yes because, in the industry, one of the hardest things you can find is a yes. I don’t really give a fuck about American Idol, no shade, I used to love it. I used to watch it when I was a kid, that’s why I went back and did it when they asked me so I can tell my grandkids, ‘Oh, you see that? I’m cool as shit!’

 

Since blowing up, you released your debut album, TV. What was the biggest pinch-me moment from that whole era?

I only have one and that’s when I played my first show at Lollapalooza in front of thousands and thousands of people on the main stage.

 

 

You have your sophomore record, HDTV, on its way. How does it differ from your debut?

I really got to flex my muscles more. My goal is to make people feel something but especially myself because I believe I am a tastemaker. If I feel something, then hopefully everyone else will too. Even if they don’t, I don’t give a fuck, I like it!

 

When did the creative process for the album start?

I’ve been making this from the beginning. When I was working in the Verizon store, I told every label that I was meeting with that I had a four-album trilogy that I wanted to release. I knew the names of them, I knew the cover art, I knew what was going to happen.

 

When compiling the tracklisting for your debut album, you admitted that you kept adding songs to the album. Was that the case this time around too?

No, for the first album, I knew I wanted to make an album but I didn’t know how long I wanted it to be because I was picking from my first 30 songs and I was trying to be precise with what I wanted to say. With the second album, I knew I wanted it to be 20 songs from the beginning because Kanye is one of my idols and he does the same. I knew I needed to knock one of those out right away that told a story from front to back like the first one. I didn’t want it to be a compilation of just hits, I wanted it to be a true story with the cover art, the theme of the album, music videos, all of it. I’m really glad that I accomplished it and I can’t wait to come back in 2023 with another one.

 

Your debut album was previously described as a chronological story of the last four years of your life. Does the sophomore detail your life in a similar way following those years?

A little bit. The first one was about me introducing myself to someone who doesn’t know who I am but listens to the music and then understands me as an artist. For the second one, it’s kind of a dedication to what got me here. I have a random love song that I wrote on my balcony called Stuck In The Middle and even though it says “hoes” in it, it’s technically a love song. I’m dedicating my whole second album to that relationship and my relationship with love. It’s about two people on the second album. I just go through what it’s like to go through that physical relationship that’s not really made to last.

 

You just released the song “how deep?” Tell me about this song and what inspired it.

It’s about meeting someone that makes you happy but also sad, lost, and found, all that stuff. Whenever you meet somebody, you could be meeting your wife or the person you sleep with and leave. You could be meeting someone you have dinner with and never talk to again.

 

“Two Sugars” is one of my favourites. Production-wise, it has a Lenny Kravitz vibe. Would you say that’s fair?

I just wanna give off whatever I listened to in the past, put my own sauce on it, and be able to say, I can do whatever the fuck I want. Any genre, anything. I don’t believe in genres. But, doesn’t it go crazy? It’s scary, I kind of don’t want it to come out because it’s too good!

 

What are you hoping listeners will take away from the album once they hear it?

I don’t care, I enjoy it. I’m the type of artist that’s going to make the four albums and then once I’ve made the four albums, I’m going to reassess what I wanna do. I love making things and I wanna be unencumbered by public opinion. I think there are a lot of people who are telling artists about putting certain songs on the radio and I don’t give a fuck about any of that. If it goes, it goes. If it doesn’t, it doesn’t. When people hear my stuff, I want them to know it’s me making the stuff, putting it out, making the cover art, me doing the music videos, and writing the treatments.

 

You’ve already started mapping out the third album. What can you tell me about it?

Since 2020, I’ve been making it. I have songs right now in my head that I need to flesh out. I’m probably going to finish out this festival circuit and start the next one.

 

how deep? is out now, follow via @taiverdes

 

Interview Fabio Magnocavallo

 

 

You don't have permission to register