Key Takeaways:
- Teyana Taylor’s new project, Escape Room, blends music and film into a visual album experience.
- Aaron Pierre was “hands-on” with the project, earning praise from Taylor for his passion and input.
- Taylor envisions her music being admired on stage like a Broadway musical.
Teyana Taylor is full of the best surprises these days! After taking a five-year hiatus from music, she is back in go-mode and applying all the right pressure with her new single, “Long Time.” The track’s pulsating bass line melds into her raspy cooing of “Should’ve been walked out this b**ch a long time” only for the beat to switch up, offering listeners a heart-wrenching vibe as she sings, “Why won’t you love me back to life?”
The video, released on June 4, boasts two leading men: LaKeith Stanfield and the internet’s latest obsession, Aaron Pierre. Taylor and the Rebel Ridge star sent fans into hysterics when they seemingly soft-launched their relationship on social media in celebration of his 31st birthday — but neither of them has explicitly given their close bond a title.
Yet, as it turns out, their chemistry showcased in the visual is woven into the DNA of her upcoming album, Escape Room. The project is slated for release in August. In a new GQ feature published on Wednesday (June 11), the multihyphenate entertainer shared that Pierre played an integral role in supporting her during the creative journey.
She dropped off her last LP, The Album, in 2020. Following its release, she parted ways with Def Jam Recordings. She has since resigned with the label. “They came with a new team and a new plan. They made the proper choices to make sure they came back to me at their best,” said the infinitely talented creative.
Speaking of the new body of work she crafted, Taylor said that Pierre “d**n near EPed the album. He’s so on top of it, and so involved, and so passionate in regards to the album.” The Mufasa: The Lion King actor is not just a sex symbol and on-screen gem; He also has an ear for music and appreciation for the little details. She shared, “He would be like, ‘Oh, yeah, that melody right there? That was fire.’ I’m like, ‘Thank you. I thought nobody was going to notice that,’” and gushed, “He's a real big music head.”
Furthermore, the Harlem-bred superstar shared, “And just how hands-on he’s been on this album with me has been really amazing to see. [Do] you ever sit back and be like, ‘This person [doesn’t] play about me’? I was like, ‘Yeah, you need to be my leading man, because you understand every single song, every single emotion, [and] every single feeling, which [means] that on set, you’re going to bring it.’”
Teyana Taylor wants her music to come to life on Broadway
Taylor is already proving that she is an undeniable force on the big screen. Her movie roles include Tyler Perry’s Madea’s Big Happy Family and Straw, starring opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in One Battle After Another, and 2023’s A Thousand and One, to name a few.
Escape Room will join the year’s catalogue of visual albums when it comes out later this summer, but Taylor is already imagining all the ways she wants fans to experience the world of her music. As told to GQ, she wants “to eventually bring an album to Broadway.” But for now, “I want my tours and my shows to feel like a musical on Broadway and not just a concert,” she said.
With Escape Room, Taylor isn’t just making a comeback; She’s charting a new artistic experience. Blending music, film, and raw emotion, this project marks a new era of creative control.