Tinashe on Her New Album "Joyride," Pushing Back Against Labels, and Being Compared to Janet Jackson

"It’s like you have your own expectations, the public has their expectations, and it’s completely different added pressures than when you’re creating your first album."

Tinashe on Her New Album Joyride Pushing Back Against Labels and Being Compared to Janet Jackson
Composite. Photos by Dennis Leupold.

Tinashe’s new album Joyride is the culmination of a nearly three-year journey that began on September 2, 2015, when she posted a cryptic video to her YouTube channel. Titled “Tinashe Album 2 'JOYRIDE' Trailer,” the trippy visual features her lurking around the desert with a heavy bass-line that seemed to promise even more of the slinky R&B that made her such a buzzy name in the first place. Coming off of her debut Aquarius and a fiery Janet Jackson tribute performance at the BET Awards, the teaser whetted fans' appetites with a single declaration: "So begins a new era."

While Joyride certainly marks the beginning of a new era for the 25-year old artist, it ended up taking longer to get to completion than intended. When 2015 eventually passed, one-off singles such as “Flame” and “Superlove” came and went, a tour for the non-existent album was announced and then canceled, and she even released a free mixtape (the superb Nightride). With fans patience waning, Joyride was beginning to seem like more like a music industry urban legend than an actual album, a sort of cautionary tale for rising artists about the dangers of mismanagement.

But after setbacks and delays, Tinashe is ready to finally share Joyride with the world. And with a sound that pushes her entire aesthetic to glorious new heights, it was certainly worth the wait. To celebrate its release, Teen Vogue caught up with the R&B superstar to talk about the bumpy road to Joyride, the Janet Jackson album that inspired it, and how she feels being compared to other artists.

Teen Vogue: Is Joyride in its finished form the same way you originally envisioned it?

Tinashe: Yeah I think it is, and that’s really exciting that I was able to accomplish that initial goal and initial dream that I had for the project. The specifics definitely changed throughout and there’ve been a few different incarnations of it, but I think the overall vision, context, vibe, and mood have all been pretty set in stone.

TV: Why did Joyride take so much longer to make compared to your first record and mixtapes?

T: With my mixtapes, it was different because it was no one else’s call creatively, just me. Even the label wasn’t involved at that point, so there was a little bit of an evolution with Aquarius learning how to work with other producers outside of my comfort zone. But with this project, what truly took so long was there was almost a crazy expectation with where it was gonna go that was almost detrimental to the creation of the actual material. It’s like you have your own expectations, the public has their expectations, and it’s completely different added pressures than when you’re creating your first album. It just made it a lot harder to come into the perfect conclusion. Joyride is where I am now in my life doing my thing, having fun, and proving myself with newfound energy.

TV: Your first record had lots of collaborators, but on Joyride you wrote most of the songs yourself with only a few producers. What made you want to take an even bigger creative role?


T: For me it’s really important to have that hands-on approach. I think people can tell the difference when stuff feels legit and feels like it’s coming from you. Also since this project went through such a specific set of creative setbacks, it became increasingly more and more important to me to really have my vision shine through.

TV: Because Joyride went through so many different incarnations, what relevance does the title hold for you now?

T: For me, it represents taking everything you go through in life along the journey and just enjoying it as it comes. It’s been a big lesson I’ve learned over the last few years as I’ve created the project, so that concept’s just been even more and more solidified in my mind. It’s also about being in your young, early twenties. You go through so many different experiences and new things in life and it’s all just about trying to have fun and make the most of it. Have an adventure.

TV: Joyride reminds me a lot of Janet Jackson’s album The Velvet Rope since they both emphasize sexuality, self-worth, and the fight for personal and professional control. What are some artists and records you looked to for inspiration going into this project?

T: That’s the biggest compliment because I love that album. That’s an incredible example of one. The Velvet Rope is my favorite Janet album and one I’ve always really loved because there’s no genre and it’s able to touch on a lot of different things that sonically feel hip-hop, R&B, and pop, but molded together into one particular sound. So for me Janet in particular has always been the sort of blueprint for how I go about composing my projects.

TV: When people talk about your music, they often compare you to other R&B artists like Janet, Aaliyah, and Rihanna. Do you welcome comparisons to other artists?

T: I welcome comparisons to other artists more than I welcome genre labels. Artists that I’m compared to are ones that I respect so much that I can only take them as compliments, so I feel more limited when people try to put a genre on my music and ask me “Is this a pop album? Is this an R&B album? Is this a hip hop album? What is it?” That’s probably the most frustrating dialogue for me.

TV: Do you feel those labels are often imposed on you?

T: Absolutely. I think it felt for me that sometimes people took the fact that I wasn’t just focusing on one particular genre as being unfocused or disjointed or lacking direction, which wasn’t the case. Or at least that’s not how I felt. I just felt like I could create all of the things I wanted to create, but that shouldn’t be an issue for people as far as what kind of music it is. I think there became times where I would push back against people’s idea of what they wanted me to be. That wasn’t necessarily always good, but such a big part of my learning process I think.

TV: You’ve been very open about the struggles you’ve faced as an artist fighting to retain creative control. What’s something you wish emerging artists starting in the music industry could know that you didn’t?

T: That it’s a lot harder than it looks and it only gets harder. When you put out a first album and you’re a newer artist on the scene it’s almost like the easiest time because people are excited about new things. When you’re already established and not new anymore it becomes a whole other discussion of “where do we go from here?” And artists are very disposable nowadays, especially with streaming and people consuming music at such a quicker rate than ever before. So it’s important to continue to always just focus on creating the best art and as much of it as you can.

TV: “Superlove” and “Flame” are two of my favorite singles that didn’t end up making Joyride’s final cut. Will any of the material you recorded and scrapped ever see the light of day?


T: I mean I would say never say never! There’s one track on this project that I started writing for Aquarius that was then revamped and reimagined for this project, so you never know! But in my plans not really because I’m always continuing to make new material and I think it’s an important part of the creative process to just always keep working towards new stuff. New stuff is more exciting so maybe not…

TV: With Joyride out, are you relishing the moment or already looking forward to your next project?

T: Both? I’m looking forward to being done with it, if that makes sense. Like obviously I’m not because I have a live tour and performances and videos to put out but just in terms of the album Joyride, it’ll be a relief to know it’s truly finished and out and done. I’m looking forward to mentally feeling like I can begin a new era. I just appreciate everyone’s patience and understanding through this creative journey. My fans’ support means so much to me and I can’t wait to get on the road, play more shows, and just do the whole thing.

Related: How Tinashe Is Shattering Gender Stereotypes

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