Hyperpop, alt-pop, electro-pop, it would be hard to find an artist who encapsulates the many multitudes of pop. Imogen Heap was a pioneer of electropop, Caroline Polachek picked up the baton and molded it into a subsect of alt-pop and now UK-based artist Tlya X An might be the person to take on the mantle and make it her own. Born and raised in Israel/Palestine before moving to the UK at 17, Tlya X An’s identity is much like her electrifying and heady music—a melting pot of cultures feeding off one another to create a multi-faceted artist in all senses of the word.
Tlya X An dropped her first EP, TXN, in 2023 via UK-based label Spinny Nights. The project was a creative marvel, giving us a true taste of the complexities and nuances she offers. Tracks like “Daddy,” an ode to early noughties alt-pop featuring a heady mix of 808s with dripping wit in lyrics like “Scrolling on my phone just to give myself anxiety,” and “Greedy” in which she flexes her producer skills to create a glitchy track fusing electronica with Middle Eastern riffs were complete knock outs.
Since then she has released a string of tracks throughout 2024, “YDKM” is particularly gritty, a synthetic beat best fit for pouring out of EVC loudspeakers. Each release features her signature sound—sensual and empowering, hypnotic and surreal. There is a certain vulnerability in her desire to embrace sonic strangeness, often forgoing pop music’s conventional structure. Similarly, while you may assume her tracks are better listened to at an underground rave or a sticky floor nightclub, she flips the script out of the blue and creates a softly yearning song like “Camel’s Back” which uses a repetitive beat for something almost tender.
Tlya X An has turned her hand to directing, taking the reins on many of her the music videos over the years, including her singles “Ninja” and “Mi Mind Unknown,” offering surrealism in video form with glitchy fishbowl lenses, masked dancers, neon flashing lights and the singer herself at the forefront of each video—either masked behind sunglasses or decked out in a cowboy hat, dancing like everybody is watching. Her dedication to crafting a unique and singular identity for herself, an identity that can sing, produce, write, direct, create, and form ideas into different mediums is what will give her longevity in an industry notorious for having short-term memories.
To celebrate last year’s releases, EveryDejaVu sat with Tlya X An to discuss her creative process and working against constraints.
How long have you been making music? What started your music journey?
I was born and raised in Israel/Palestine to artist and peace activist parents. My Dad is British and when I was 17 my family and I moved to the UK to escape the intensities of the Middle East.
I’ve been making music since a very young age, I started doing DIY photoshoots and random projects on Garageband at the age of eight, performing in school and playing instruments. My music journey fully started when I moved to the UK. I always wanted to sing in English but couldn’t speak the language very well. Moving to England made it all possible. I joined a music production course in DBS music shortly after moving and that’s when I knew music production and composition are what I want to pursue and master in my lifetime.
How would you describe your sound?
Playful hooks with empowering productions that get stuck in your head. Call it alternative pop if you like.
But how much of the creative process is influenced by the constraints of genres?
I never think about what genre I am making while I make a track. The title comes once it’s done and usually only when someone asks. I take inspiration from many different genres and styles which is probably one of the reasons for this.
And much like your music not being confined to one sound, as an artist you cannot and will not be confined to one thing: a director, editor, producer, singer, and performer, you are a multi-disciplinary artist in every sense of the word. What is it that draws you to being a multi-disciplinary musician? Do you prefer to take complete control in every step of the creative process?
Since a young age, I have used different mediums to express my ideas. Having the skills to bring my full visions to life is something I really enjoy. However, the truth is a lot of my skills came by necessity. I could not afford to pay someone else to do it for me, so I learned how to do it myself. I am grateful to have these skills but I also love collaborating with other artists. There is a magic you can only get when collaborating with others.
While this visionary exploration of identity is useful in crafting an enigmatic and unique image, it can also be put another way: a marketing tool to make yourself memorable and packable to music executives and listeners. In the past few years, there has been a real focus on the marketing of singer/songwriters (even before Charli XCX’s BRAT). Do you agree with this? Do you want people to see you just for your music or do you think it’s important to build a distinctive brand?
I think we are probably missing out on some incredible artists and music just because they are no marketing genius—and that’s a little bit sad. The music industry has been demanding a lot from artists these days and that also made music less of a priority for some, which can result in a decline in the quality of original music. It’s a hard one. I don’t know if I agree with it, but I understand that’s the reality we’re in, so bring it on. Maybe magic can come out of that too.
The debate of whether you can separate the art from the artist has been ongoing for eons but by intrinsically linking your music to your identity, there is a sense that this may be a persona of sorts—is this the real Tlya?
She’s a side of me, I think she’s becoming more and more the full me as I move forward and express more sides of myself in my music.
Your live shows are always heady and electrifying, confident and assertive—do you hope this will translate to the audience? Do you encourage them to lose themselves, to match you in the shedding of your inhibitions?
My goal with my live shows is to be as raw and as honest as I can, this is something I imagine will be an everlasting work. I would love to create a space where people feel empowered and as you said lose themselves to the moment. No expectations whatsoever. I just want to create memorable moments.
You’ve released a steady stream of singles last year but when can we expect an album?
I will know when it’s time for an album, at the moment it feels premature for what I have in mind but you can expect EPs and projects that will hopefully hold a certain degree of the energy of an album. Until that day comes.
What does 2025 look like for you? Any plans to go global?
I plan to explore other areas of the world and see where TXN takes me. 2025 feels like a good year to do things a little bit differently. I’m excited to see what comes from that.
