How Tamera Transcends Musical Genres And Styles

After taking some time out, rebranding and hitting us with brand new tracks ‘Romeo’ and ‘Don’t Phone’ via Moonshyne, British songstress Tamera has been working hard to not only be one of the most captivating singers on the London scene right now, but she’s also someone who knows exactly what she wants. Having collectively over 300,000 streams on Spotify and over 100,000 views on YouTube and counting, these tracks have planted her right in the neo-soul scene where she can flourish into being the dreamy soul singer that once she looked up to as a child. With creative direction from India Rose and Saffron Guiness for her first music visual for ‘Romeo’ which was released in August 2019, both the video and track were described as having gentle jazz, R&B with lo-fi 70s effects. Written about an ex lover who had enabled her to see the bigger picture in life but wasn’t romantic at all, the first lyric reads “You’re no Romeo but I like it better because you inspire thought” whilst the chorus reads “Now I know how far I’d go for you”, fortifying the idea of space age visuals in a bubblegum-pink suit and air helmet. Shot in Wales, she wanders around the copper coloured rocks reflecting on this time in her life. With her being blasted into space for the ‘Romeo’ visuals, it perfectly symbolises how Tamera is going to be reaching new heights in the forthcoming years.

Tamera has always been singing since she was young. Encouraged by her grandma who is a church minister, she would always call her out to sing and take part. Being able to explore harmonising and sing within a group of people was what paved a way for her career in the future and as she grew up. Tamera draws inspiration from a variety of artists such as Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, James Brown and Usher, whom she was a huge fan of. As she got older, she started to listen to artists such as Sammy Davis Jr and Sarah Vaughan from the traditional Pop and Jazz genres. With this she was introduced to a more technical side of music as well as hearing classic soul. From singing in church choirs to eventually writing her own lyrics in the studio, Tamera absorbs inspiration from absolutely anything she can get her hands on. Whether it’s a new artist she discovers, scrolling through Pinterest or watching a movie, there is always something she can utilise to make herself get more creative within her songwriting. She nurtures her creative genius whilst simultaneously listening to powerful female artists that she feels like she can relate to. Albums that meant the most to her in the last decade include Rihanna’s ‘R8’, SZA’s ‘CTRL’ and Teyana Taylor’s ‘K.T.S.E’.

Although her debut track ‘Romeo’ has been described to be neo-soul or R&B, Tamera doesn’t think she has a sound. As she changes and grows as a person she thinks she will adapt as her life goes on through different experiences she has. It is clear that she is evolving and will continue to as it shows with her second single; the summery and beat consistent track ‘Don’t Phone’ which was released in November 2019. She now explores more sounds like subtle afrobeats and draws inspiration from rappers. From having this dream since she was young, there’s no stopping Tamera from trying to achieve what she was born to do.

With the industry being condensed, Tamera believes that the most important way to stand out is for her to be truthful to herself. As she tries to view the world through multiple perspectives and connect with people, she thinks deeper into things and shows that she cares about people and the world around her. She injects that feeling of authenticity within her writing and wants anyone who listens to her to feel like they can relate.

In terms of competitiveness, Tamera believes that UK artists should stand together more in solidarity. Much like artists in the US who love to feature and collaborate with each other, she wishes of seeing a bigger sense of community that would bring everyone closer together as a family who are all striving for success but not trying to be on top of another. Tamera loves to collaborate as she feels that it can sometimes bring out something new that she wouldn’t necessarily find on her own. Alongside this, Tamera has dreams of one day collaborating with Missy Elliott; it’s apparent that Tamera means business. Hard work pays and it’s important to our songstress to knuckle down and grind to get what you want. In a materialistic world, it’s easy to get lost and caught up in the glittering things the industry has to offer as well as clout-chasing to get 15 minutes of fame. Tamera knows that it could all be gone in a heartbeat and strives to perfect her craft for as long as takes.

It may just be the start of perfecting herself, but this artiste is finding her feet and letting us feast on her art whilst she does so. By already producing two finely tuned tracks it’s clear that Tamera is going to be one to watch by spreading a bona fide sense of authenticity, love and positivity through her music.