‘Hyperactive’ – Local Creator TELLALI reveals that Truth is Stranger than Friction

“I can’t give this up,” the young artist confesses, proclaims. “It’s one of my main motivators and passions in my life.”

The “this” and the “It” are the same thing, of course — self-expression — and, as is the case with Twin Cities-based TELLALI (“tell-a-lie”), self-expression can take many forms.

TELLALI catalogs: “I’m into mediums of art like graphic design, photography, directing and videography, and I do a lot of my own artwork.”

In recent years, tunes and ‘tude have risen to the fore of the young creator’s consciousness.

“Listening to artists like X, Juice WRLD, Nicki Minaj, Madonna, Playboi Carti, Destroy Lonely, Lil Uzi Vert, Charli XCX, SOPHIE, Halsey, The Weeknd, Troye Sivan, Prince and others over the years made me fall in love with that sector of music so much,” he recalls. “It’s a very addictive sound I don’t get tired of.”

He named his own collective interpretation of this addiction “hyperactive and rage,” and, having named it, made it his own, shaping it into an 11-song mixtape entitled “ADHD.” 

“Having ADHD, I thought the title was fitting, and I wanted to explore more of that with each song,” the artist comments.

“ADHD”possesses 11 tracks, delivered in a voice that sometimes croons and sometimes croaks, a voice that delivers lyrics which sometimes confess and sometimes confound, the “hyperactive and rage” pushing the listener along like sonic rapids. That’s the How of TELLALI’s songs … but the What of his songs is often determined by his gender identity.

“It affects the subject matter of my songs a lot,” TELLALI admits freely.

This acceptance of influence marks a maturity within the still-young artist who notes, “It’s started to mean a lot more to me as I’ve grown up and I’ve had to let go of fears of judgment and more especially in some of the spaces and genres I dabble in.”

Conversely, this facet of self isn’t all-consuming — the facet is just that: a facet.

“It’s a part of me, it doesn’t make me entirely who I am, but it does mean something to me,” TELLALI reflects and re-reflects. “Especially in the current climates of the world.”

Even more intrinsic to his identity is the young artist’s stage name. “After switching names a few times when I was sixteen in late 2015, I wanted a name that had the letters T, A, E and I,” he remembers. “I don’t know why, but I figured it out and did TELLALI. It stuck ever since then.”

Other inspirations stuck, as well, including the Twin Cities themselves … but not in the way one might initially expect.

“Things I’ve experienced here reflect in my music,” TELLALI observes. “Meeting people through the internet who live here and getting to build friendships and creative projects is amazing.”

Those communications invariably revolve around the artist’s art … and his mixtapes are dependably met with mixed reactions.

“It’s always been mixed,” TELLALI reports. “When I first started releasing music in 2016 in high school, it was praised, but also it didn’t feel like it was super appreciated.”

This Mozart-esque precociousness couldn’t last forever, of course.

“As I got older and started releasing more and gaining new listeners over the years, [the audience feedback is] positive with some negatives mixed within,” he says. “With some wanting me to do one type of music more, but overall, it’s been supportive.”

TELLALI is determined to turn that support into a foundation on which he might build a career by realizing specific goals. 

“To gain a bigger audience, spread my music and art through the world to different people who connect with it,” he muses.

That connection requires something to connect with, naturally.

“I really wanna do an album,” TELLALI supposes. “I’ve done many mixtapes, EPs, standalone singles; whatever my creativity takes me to next is what I will do. Albums are a bigger thing for me, and I still feel like over the last nine years, I haven’t had my first debut album yet, just a lot of buildup to that moment.”

But until that moment arrives, TELLALI will always have “ADHD” to rally around. As the artist himself puts it: “It’s abrasive, a high-energy project that has a sound that is polarizing and therefore not for everybody, but I do hope some people enjoy the sound and can have a great time jamming to it.”

open.spotify.com/album/2MlhkgRgF7q21pImgMvxUA