THE ALBUM - Teyana Taylor Archives

Teyana Taylor is supposedly retired but she is still active in the music world. The New York singer has performed at major festivals this year even after concluding her Last Rose Petal Tour in 2022. She has not released an album since 2020 and has since focused her attention on other endeavors. Taylor appeared in numerous films and TV shows, including Coming 2 America, White Men Can’t Jump, and Kid Cudi’s Entergalactic. She also notably won The Masked Singer last year.

Teyana Taylor’s name has also been in news headlines recently following confirmation of separating from her ex-husband, Iman Shumpert. In an Instagram post, she stated that she and the former NBA player are still on good terms despite being separated for a while. She even referred to Shumpert as her bestie. Teyana Taylor may have retired from music for now, but fans are still longing for new music from the multifaceted singer and dancer. Today, we are highlighting her music career with a ranking of her albums and mixtapes from least to greatest. Take a look at the list below.

Read More: Teyana Taylor’s 7 Biggest Hits

6. From A Planet Called Harlem (2009)

Teyana Taylor started her career under Pharrell’s tutelage in 2007 when he signed her to Star Trak Entertainment. Her 2009 debut mixtape, From A Planet Called Harlem is her first full-length project and her only release on the label. The mixtape notably included Taylor’s debut single, “Google Me.” Jazze Pha, Pharrell, Hit-Boy, and more contributed beats while Chris Brown, Eve, Keri Hilson, Keyshia Cole, and others featured on the mixtape. From A Planet Called Harlem certainly showcased Teyana Taylor’s talents, but she had not yet completely established her musical identity. For that reason, it sits at the bottom of her discography. It was not until her later work that she would find her sound as a singer and reinvent herself as an artist.

5. The Misunderstanding of Teyana Taylor (2012)

A fitting title for her second mixtape, The Misunderstanding of Teyana Taylor was the follow-up to From A Planet Called Harlem which marked a new phase in her career. Freshly released from her deal with Star Trak, Teyana Taylor’s first independent project was a promising effort. However, she still sounded as if she was developing her comfort zone as a singer, which we’d later see fully established in her studio albums. She made an admirable project that helped better reveal her growth. However, she grew both vocally and artistically on her albums, which her G.O.O.D. Music signing helped uncover.

4. The Cassette Tape 1994 (2015)

Just a year removed from her debut album, Teyana Taylor released The Cassette Tape 1994. The 5-track EP was inspired by ’90s R&B, sampling numerous throwbacks like K.P. & Envyi’s “Swing My Way” and Tony! Toni! Toné!’s “Anniversary.” Teyana Taylor put her own spin on these songs, repurposing old-school classics to make her very own cassette tape. While it is a brief and enjoyable listen, The Cassette Tape 1994 does not stack up to her polished and carefully crafted studio albums. Still, the project sits above Teyana’s mixtapes as her vocal range drastically grew and she skillfully reimagined older songs with her own flair.

3. The Album (2020)

Teyana Taylor’s most recent and supposedly final album fully delivered on its promises. Her highly anticipated third album satisfied her fanbase with its lengthy tracklist. While bloated, the 23-track album contains some of Teyana Taylor’s best material. It is both well-produced and varied in its musical stylings. There are ballads, bangers, afro-fusion and reggae-inspired songs, and of course, sensual R&B tracks. Her most personal release to date, The Album contains moments of reflection, celebration, and gratitude. It does not leave much to be desired because fans were given everything they wanted across the tracklist. In that regard, The Album’s length is justified but the extensive runtime and filler songs diminish its replay value. If it really is Teyana Taylor’s final album, she ended her music career on a solid note.

2. K.T.S.E. (2018)

The last album to be released in a series of short albums produced by Kanye West, K.T.S.E. stood out among a slew of hip-hop projects. The only release from the series to feature eight songs, as opposed to seven, Teyana Taylor’s second studio album contains a surprising amount of variety in such a short amount of time. K.T.S.E.’s brightest moments utilize chopped soul samples to make modern classics like “Gonna Love Me” and “Issues/Hold On.”

There is also “Rose in Harlem,” an album highlight that combines vintage with contemporary to forge one of Teyana Taylor’s best songs. The album’s closing track, “WTP” pays homage to the Harlem ballroom scene with Taylor’s signature style of sexual liberty. K.T.S.E. may not have been the final product she envisioned, but the Kanye West production was perfect for her voice. It made for a memorable second album even though she had already set the bar extremely high.

1. VII (2014)

Teyana Taylor unlocked her full potential on her debut album, VII. She had found her voice and signature sound in the album’s lush instrumentation. The music suits her voice and sexually descriptive lyrics. VII is Teyana Taylor’s most complete body of work from top to bottom, resulting in a tracklist without skips. Nothing on the album sounds forced and the songs transition seamlessly from one to the other. Songs like “Just Different,” “Request,” and “Broken Hearted Girl” are some of the sexiest tracks in her discography that display her unique vocal tone.

Many of VII’s highlights are its slow contemporary R&B jams, but its production is also varied in style. The reggae-fused “Put Your Love On” keeps the album unpredictable and the upbeat “Maybe” with Pusha T and Yo Gotti perfectly balances gentle emotions with playful flirting. Ultimately, Teyana Taylor perfected her sound with her debut album. VII is an unforgettable listening experience that proved extremely difficult to top.

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Teyana Taylor has slipped in and out of the world of R&B since she initially burst onto the scene. The multihyphenate’s career has multiple focuses, with curating genre-driving albums solely being one aspect of Taylor’s accredited career. Initially discovered by Pharell Williams at the mere age of 15, she signed a record deal with his Star Trak Entertainment imprint. Her early career existed in the world of MTV, making an appearance on My Super Sweet 16. By 2010, she was contributing guest vocals to Kanye West’s My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. Now 33 years old, Teyana Taylor is a seasoned veteran in the chaos of the entertainment world. She’s been at it since 2005, and recent development suggests that she’s only just getting started.

Of her numerous influential albums, none stands out more in her discography than K.T.S.E. Kanye West’s summer of 2018 featured iconic projects such as Kids See Ghosts and Ye. However, he also produced Taylor’s sophomore studio album. Blending aggressive frustration with her intimate relationships with the R&B soundscapes of her Harlem upbringing, K.T.S.E. was widely regarded as her hallmark project to date. Debuting at No. 2 on the R&B album charts, it’s also been her most commercially successful sonic initiative to date. Taylor’s sound walks a tightrope between being smooth and adventurous and emotionally harrowing. In essence, the record displayed newfound growth from 2014’s VII.

K.T.S.E. Was Her Breakout Project

While K.T.S.E. was a successful endeavor for Taylor, its success was largely attributed to the College Dropout era production chops from Kanye West rather than the emotionally engaging and harrowing vocals of Teyana. In addition, the project’s four-year wait was only justified with 23 minutes of new music. The record mirrored Teyana Taylor’s struggling relationships with record labels, which led to her announcing her retirement from music at the age of 31 years old. Worn down by the music industry, Kanye West’s GOOD Music made plenty of mistakes in their handling of generational talent. The Album in 2020 saw her regain control of her art under a long and complex form of sonic narratives, embracing a persona of self-loving autonomy.

However, we haven’t heard much from Taylor on the music front since the critically acclaimed 2020 release. As previously mentioned, Taylor’s interests have always subverted solely to being a musician. At only 15 years old, she was choreographing Beyonce’s hit single “Ring the Alarm.” That would only be the beginning of her chorographical career. More recently, she teamed up with Lola Brooke as the Creative Director behind her Hot 97 Summer Jam debut. She collaborated with Summer Walker on her one-night show. Taylor’s influence was blatant in Walker’s performance, which was well-received by local Atlanta fans of the fellow R&B icon. In addition, she’s teaming up with the Jordan brand to release her Jordan 1 sneakers. Taylor enlisted star Philadelphia Eagles QB Jalen Hurts for the captivating commercial behind the anticipated release.

Teyana Taylor Is Pivoting Away From Music

In essence, Teyana Taylor isn’t in love with the studio. She’s captivating both in front of and behind the camera. Taylor delivered an emotional performance on A Thousand And One, which saw her break away from comedically casual roles into one as a struggling mother. Speaking to Atlanta Black Star, she stated, “I always wanted to just be taken more serious, you know what I’m saying? I feel like this put me in a position for a person to never second guess when they hear my name.” The role also more accurately mirrors her personal life, as she currently shares two daughters with ex-NBA player Iman Shumpert. In addition, she recently acted as Imani in the Jack Harlow-assisted White Men Can’t Jump. Teyana Taylor is some sort of wild blend between Lauryn Hill, Beyoncé, and Misa Hylton.

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