Styled by Zerina Akers
Teyana Taylor knows her strengths as an artist, and she isn’t shy about them. “I work really, really well under pressure,” says the performer, 34. “And I’m a really good problem solver. The queen of pivoting.”
Taylor’s ability to transfer her talents across multiple industries has made her a cultural mainstay for nearly 20 years. The singer and songwriter first amassed fans as a budding recording artist signed to Pharrell’s Star Trak Entertainment record label. She was introduced to the world on MTV’s My Super Sweet 16, and she continued to grow a following through the release of her solo music projects VII, K.T.S.E. and The Album.
Movie roles in Stomp the Yard: Homecoming, Madea’s Big Happy Family and Coming 2 America, as well as in the TV musical-drama Star, built Taylor’s acting career along the way—preparing her for the lead part of Inez de la Paz, in A.V. Rockwell’s Sundance Grand Jury Prize–winning A Thousand and One. For that latter role, Taylor won the Breakthrough Performance Award from the National Board of Review in 2023.
“I’ve never allowed myself to be put into one box,” says Taylor. “I’m like a Glade PlugIn. Why only make the kitchen smell good, when you can make the whole house smell good?” The multi-hyphenate entertainer’s first choreography credit came when she was just 15, for her work on the set of the music video for Beyoncé’s 2006 single “Ring the Alarm.” She later went on to win the 2017 MTV Video Music Award for Best Choreography for her sultry performance in Kanye West’s “Fade.”
“Plug me in! I can do it all,” she declares. “I can handle it. That’s what I want other women to know about themselves, too.” Taylor, who is also a two-time BET Video Director of the Year Award recipient, has directed music videos for herself and other artists, like Schoolboy Q and Queen Naija, under the moniker “Spike Tee.” “You can plug in anywhere you want to plug in,” she says. “You can make the whole building smell good, versus settling for making just one room smell good.”
Taylor’s turn as a creative director and performance coach has been a testament to her empowering “aroma”—and its lingering ability to rub off on others. Under her guidance, young rappers and singers like Latto, Summer Walker and Lola Brooke have been transformed from small music acts into certified entertainers, commanding incrementally larger audiences as they hone their craft onstage.
“I just want to see people win, especially other Black women. I think that’s where the auntie coin kicks in.”
—Teyana Taylor
Styled by Zerina Akers
“I’m a super-nurturer,” explains Taylor. “I spoil all my clients. It’s like a real-life auntie for sure.” And she gains as much from fostering newer talents as they do in learning from her. “I just always want to see people win, especially other Black women,” she says. “I think that’s where the auntie coin kicks in, because I want to help everybody. I just want to coddle them and say ‘Okay, baby, we got it. You ain’t got to be discouraged about this. You ain’t got to be discouraged about that.’ Again, how do we pivot? What’s the solution? How do we turn this negative into a positive?
“I’m always trying to see the light in everything, and helping others heals me in a way,” Taylor adds. “Helping others makes me happy. It’s a feeling that I can’t explain, but I enjoy it. It brings me so much life and so much peace.”
Doing things that spark joy is particularly important in this moment for Taylor. “With everything I’ve ever been through, showing up for myself has been my biggest success,” she says. “In a lot of the work that I’m doing, whether it’s in the public or behind closed doors, I give a lot, and a lot of times it’s not necessarily reciprocated. I’m not looking for it to be, nor am I looking for a gold star, but I’m realizing I need to also show up for myself. How can I fully be happy if I’m not showing up for myself in the same way that I show up for everybody else?”
Being a mom to Junie, 9, and Rue, 4, helps Taylor follow through on that need. “My daughters give me the confidence to be fearless, because they’re super fearless,” she says.
Her girls also inspire her to raise the stakes and go for her heart’s desire. After appearing in Kenya Barris’s White Men Can’t Jump reboot and Jeymes Samuel’s The Book of Clarence, Taylor is diving into acting once again with the action-adventure flick One Battle After Another, set for release on August 8. She stars in the film alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Regina Hall, Sean Penn and Benicio Del Toro.
These days, she’s unwaveringly cool about what the future may hold. “I feel like I’m on a faith walk, and I’m just following the path,” she says. “I don’t really know what’s coming, and I’m not focusing on what’s behind me. I’m kind of just coasting. I look forward to whatever is already written in God’s plan for me.”
Her attitude is fueled by the victories she sees accruing in her life. “When you’re going toward everything you’ve ever dreamed of and everything you’ve ever prayed for, that’s success,” she says. “It’s small wins, small prayers, small yeses.”
Styled by Zerina Akers
The combination of humility and excellence that’s woven into Taylor’s personality is the superpower that keeps her connected to her fans and industry peers—which may be why it’s a character trait she’s intentional about expressing. “I’m a super-relatable person, and I always want to allow myself to be touchable,” she says. “I want people to be able to feel me, mentally and emotionally. That’s the path I would like to stay on.”
CREDITS:
Photographed by Kanya Iwana
Styled by Zerina Akers
Hair: Ray Christopher at The Wall Group
Nails: Temeka Jackson using The GelBottle at A-Frame Agency
Set Design: Priscilla Lee
Tailor: Justin Bontha at 7th Bone Tailoring
Photography Assistants: Kenny Castro & Jeremy Eric Sinclair
Digital Technician: Aron Norman
Fashion Assistant: Bastien Allen
Nail Assistant: Acacia Wright
Set Assistant: Adam Quinn
Production by The Morrison Group
Production Manager: Cecilia Alvarez Blackwell
Production Assistant: Ernie Torres
Post Production: Samantha Nandez
Location: CineDept