So many artists focus on being different, fusing genres, adding new gimmicks into the mix, or trying to stand out by breaking the rules, that they often miss the obvious. Rather than introduce new templates, why not just be good according to the ones that we already have? Or, put another way, why try reinventing the wheel when you can enhance the existing one?
And this, to a degree, is the real charm of TaniA Kyllikki. You may have heard artists like her before, understand exactly where she fits into the musical map, but you will rarely have heard it done this well. Musically, she sits at the cutting edge of a long line of artists that trail back through 90’s R&B, 70’s soul and down the years, using as touchstones the jazz greats and soul divas of the 20th century.
What If, her latest release, is a deft and understated ballad, one that, with only gentle piano and delicate sonic washes added, frames her voice perfectly. And what a voice it is too. Cool, calm, and creative, as controlled when it explores lulling lows as when hitting sonic crescendoes.
But a song is more than just a voice, and what drives the music, what adds the passion and personal touch, is that it recalls the confused jumble of thoughts and feelings that she and her partner struggled with in the wake of her miscarriage. Thoughts relating to who that person might have become, how they might have looked, their smile, their laugh, the things that would have made them unique, and what they might have done with their life, a life that will never be.
It also offers hope to others faced with such a situation, a reminder that you are not alone and that, with enough time, closure can be attained, and healing begins.
As a song, it is timeless, it’s as simple as that. As a message, it is both intimate and personal but also universal and relatable—a perfect blend of the beautiful and the brave, the poised and the poignant.
