Final fall, indie pop auteur Tei Shi immersed herself within the British Columbia backwoods throughout a inventive retreat — an expertise that helped her reclaim creative management over her decade-long profession.
Out Friday, the Canadian Colombian singer shares her most intimate album so far, “Make believe I make believe,” a 10-track file she’s self-releasing via Tei Shi LLC and the Orchard.
“Being back home, reconnecting with family and old friends, and working without any outside voices or pressure — no label, manager, or restrictions — allowed me to fully dive into my mind and emotions,” says Tei Shi in an announcement.
The 35-year-old singer-songwriter attended the weeklong retreat in Vancouver Island, Canada, with longtime collaborators Noah Beresin (co-creator of the choice hip-hop venture Chiddy Bang) and Tommy English (the file producer behind lots of Børns’ hits).
“The result is a really versatile collection that captures a wide range of feelings and touches on sonics from Canadiana to neo-perreo,” she provides.
Since rising within the music scene together with her breakthrough 2013 debut EP, “Saudade,” and follow-up 2015 EP, “Verde,” Tei Shi — whose actual title is Valerie Teicher Barbosa — stays untethered to a style, ebbing and flowing between dream-pop, indie people and shoegaze.
Her new, fourth studio album expands on the 2024 LP, “Valerie,” her first unbiased venture, which was launched after departing her earlier label, Downtown Data (then below Geffen), which left her feeling creatively wounded. With new management of her creative imaginative and prescient, unfettered by the calls for of the mainstream music business, the transfer has allowed Tei Shi to launch songs in each English and Spanish.
This time round, the artist leans into her multicultural id, experimenting whimsically with what she has lovingly dubbed Canadianatón — a sonic palette impressed by her upbringing in Vancouver’s mountainous terrain and the melancholic Latin ballads she was raised with.
She digs additional into the gritty neo-perreo sound with tantalizing tracks like “222,” that includes Loyal Lobos, and the sticky, synth-laden melody of “Don’t Cry.” In distinction, Tei Shi’s feathery vocals float calmly over a sensual bolero beat in “Aphrodite.”
Within the album’s focus observe, “Montón,” an upbeat reggaeton observe, the artist surrenders herself to the pure motions of affection and lust.
“‘Montón’ is a song about falling for someone, crushing hard and giving into it,” says Tei Shi. “I picture it as a late night with your bb, up all night just the two of you in your room, dancing together and tuning out the world.”
It additionally wouldn’t be an entire Tei Shi album with out the considerate layering of ethereal beats, most evident within the advance single “Best Be Leaving,” which echoes the essence of legendary dream-pop band Cocteau Twins.
The “Bassically” singer additionally dropped particulars on her upcoming U.S. headline tour, which kicks off Sept. 26 in Los Angeles’ Lodge Room. Tei Shi will make a cease in 11 different North American cities, together with stops in Washington, D.C., New York, Chicago, Toronto and extra.
For full dates and ticket data, go to https://teishi.world/.
