Tessa Kaye is the alt-pop princess from Philadelphia, and she now releases “Girl, I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend”. This track is a feel-good downtempo breezy single inspired by coming out as queer, “the sheer excitement that comes with feeling free, open, being true to myself and falling in love,” Tessa confides.
Tessa’s music is a stunning fusion of current R&B, indie pop and electronica. She candidly explains her anxiety difficulties and growing up as a black girl, in a largely white Morman village, having spent time as a child in Utah. She left when she was a young adult, heading to the West Coast to follow her love. Now living in Los Angeles, she is armed with a colourful individuality and a fresh perspective, the effervescent performer mixes captivating pop soundscapes with honest and approachable themes. Tessa is ready to tell her tale, one of many life experiences.
Touching on vulnerable topics of heartbreak and mental distress, she reminds listeners that they are not alone in their suffering. Her riveting releases are also a way to stand up to those that see emotional pain as frailty.
Following the successful release of her debut single “Fools Gold,” which was added to numerous Spotify editorial playlists, including New Music Friday U.S., Tessa unveils the intoxicating “You Know Who You Are and I Hate You.” In an honest song narrating her lifelong struggles with severe anxiety, the songwriter gets vulnerable. She explains, “although it could be about a romantic relationship as well, I’m personally talking to my anxiety about the ways it has debilitated my life at times.”
The song is a reminder that it’s perfectly ok to have days when you’re down, we’re all human and we’re allowed to be soft, feel delicate or just not ok! She confides, “I’ve had a lot of people try to tell me that my anxiety and how much I feel is a weakness. It’s taken a lot of self-work for me to realize that there’s strength in allowing yourself to simply be as weak as you feel in a moment. Black women, in particular, are always looked at as ‘strong black women’ and while yes, that is true, there are many sides to us.”
Her release “Smile More” “speaks to the double standard of how men and women have been allowed to express themselves in society. It’s a weird, ridiculous expectation people place on women, to look pleasant 100% of the time.” She confides. Featuring colourful warm beats and signature soulful vocals, “Smile” radiates with confidence.
This sparkling summer anthem “Girl, I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend,” is a breezy, feel-good alternative pop single that details her courage and the process of coming out as a queer woman. She confides the track is about, “the sheer excitement that comes with feeling free, open, being true to myself and falling in love.”
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Words: Izabel Rose
Photography: The Chaserr Photo