I remember receiving a press release on an artist by the name of I Ya Toyah. I thought the name was rather interesting so I thought I would open it and read it. That opened a door into the world of I Ya Toyah and I was quickly intrigued by this artist as she is a force to be reckoned. She is captivating, both sonically and visually. I found out that she’s been around for longer than what I knew. She began releasing her music independently in 2018 with singles and then her debut album Code Blue. This year, she went out on a 45 date tour with Orgy and Cold. She released her EP I am the Fire in April and now she is about to drop her full length album Drama on 10/4. That’s a pretty amazing year and we still have three months to go! I sat down with this incredibly talented artist recently to talk about the new album, her musical journey and so much more.
You are a very intriguing person. I am new to the world of I Ya Toyah and I did not realize you had an extensive back catalog before I Am the Fire. How did your journey take you from your homeland of Poland to Chicago here in the U.S.?
I Ya Toyah: I was really fascinated by America. My dad traveled to America for work and he ended up staying. So my first visit was just to see him and I was like ‘wow, I need to be here.’ It also felt like the land of opportunity where as in Poland everything seemed to be very shut down. We didn’t seem to have the power to become what we wanted to freely. Here, I felt like it’s a foreign crowd but I can do what I want and it happened.
I read that you did classical guitar and piano when you were young. When did you start to transition into the type of music that you’re creating now?
I Ya Toyah: I started I Ya Toyah about two years before the pandemic. In late 2018, I dropped Code Blue which was my first record. It was recorded like a demo record and it was very raw. The driving power for doing I Ya Toyah was not only for me to perform and be able to create music. I didn’t feel anybody could match my passion at this point. Most of the bands or projects that I had been in at this point had been kind of slacking to be honest. I decided I had to incorporate my skills and learn music production and become a one person act. The other driving power for I Ya Toyah was for mental health. The fact that I lost my mom to suicide and just didn’t know what to do with all the feelings and emotions about it definitely contributed to it. As a suicide loss survivor it’s been a struggle to learn what to do with everything that I was feeling internally. There were a lot of conflicting emotions so I started writing.
I knew you were a suicide survivor but I was not aware it was your mom. I am so sorry to hear that and I cannot even begin to imagine the feelings you were having. To take those and use writing as a way to channel them must have been very therapeutic for you. You created an entirely new force in your music creation. To me, it sounds like that saying about the phoenix rising from the ashes.
I Ya Toyah: Yes it is; that is very true.
I know I Ya Toyah is Polish for “it’s just me.” Why did you take that on for your new name?
I Ya Toyah: Well, I am just me, literally. I am a one person act on stage although I do have a team of amazing people who help me create videos and visuals and my record Drama that’s about to come out. However, as an act or band I am a one person act so I thought it explained it. I Ya Toyah is just me, I am who I am. Just be yourself.
When you recorded your new album Drama, did you end up having any tracks that didn’t make the cut?
I Ya Toyah: There is one that didn’t make it (laughs). When I was approaching the songwriting and composition in my studio, I already knew that I was going to be working with Walter (Flakus of Stabbing Westward) on this record so I wanted to make these demos right. I invited Walter to my studio and he liked all of them but one was problematic so I had to keep working on it. But then instead of working on it, I wrote three more songs (laughs). So this one never made it but I’m not sure if I will revisit it. I write almost every day and they’re not full songs but they’re ideas that I will record. If you ever saw me with my phone, when I get an idea I’ll record ‘first the synth (imitates a synth) and now the drums (imitates drums).’ So, I’m not sure if that 11th piece will ever come to the surface. We are always growing so I am not sure.
When did you make the personal connection with Walter? Was it when you opened for Stabbing Westward?
I Ya Toyah: So I met Walter at a benefit concert in Chicago and Stabbing Westward performed that night. He has always been my musical hero and Stabbing Westward has always been my favorite for as far back as I can remember. That was the first encounter and then he came to my show in Chicago with his wife. He came up after the show and told me how much he liked the show. He told me that he thought I should be much bigger than I am career wise and that he’d love to work with me. So it was kind of like this validating feeling from your hero. It’s a transcendent feeling; it’s crazy. So then I started writing songs for the record. I was actually invited to go out on tour with them before the pandemic and after I dropped my second record my Out of Order EP.
How do you think working with him affected your music?
I Ya Toyah: He affected my music before he came to me studio. I was getting my thoughts together about how I wanted to do the record and I started thinking that Walter is going to be working with this record. So I started conceptualizing this record in a more alt rock kind of way because he was already there in my mind if that makes sense. Then he came to my studio and the first thing he said when he came to my studio was that he liked the songs and he was totally committed to them. That was great because you have all of these insecurities because you don’t know how he is going to react and then your hero comes to your home and you’re thinking he’s going to hate this stuff but he didn’t.
I know you had to be nervous with your hero coming into to work with you on this album. Then, you have him like what you created!
I Ya Toyah: Yes, it has been a dream collaboration. Now that we’ve finished the record I can tell that I have grown as an artist and I wouldn’t have been able to do that so quickly if it had not been for Walter. So whatever comes next, I am super excited.
I know the music comes first, but I am also interested in your image. How image conscious are you? Everything that I see, including your videos, is jaw dropping and to keep in mind that it is all DIY. How important is that and how much of that is your vision?
I Ya Toyah: I want to let people into my life who support me and my journey. Some of the art choices like the images and the creative choices for the videos are always thought through. I am always thinking what is the best way to represent this particular piece in a visual form? Often times, as the song comes to me in my head, I can also see the visual for it in my head more or less. It’s almost like I can see the video idea and the look. Sometimes, it evolves into different things. Once I collaborate with my creative team, it can go its own way. In the videos, I always work with Alex Zarek. It’s funny how we laugh because we always come up with new stuff. The image is a visual extensive of the concept of the song. They are an extension of my soul and it’s very important. I pay attention, I take my time and I curate it. Sometimes I just snap a photo and just post it (laughs).
It sounds like your brain is constantly going a million miles an hour. How do you cut that off and relax?
I Ya Toyah: It’s kind of hard; cinema helps me but even that is difficult too because I have to be deeply into it for that to happen. My dog helps me tremendously to unwind. Nature also helps me to slow down for a moment and refresh. I like my gears working all the time actually (laughs).
The visuals for the new album are a thing of beauty. We live in the digital age where not a lot of time and effort are put into things like that. Some people never even know what the actual album cover looks like. You can tell that you took a lot of time with everything from the cover down to the liner notes. I absolutely love it!
I Ya Toyah: That’s awesome; thank you. I like nice things; I like pretty things in my life. I am so greatly thankful for every single fan who wants to buy my new record so I like to show them that. So I want to give them something pretty, something nice, and something special.
On top of all of this that’s going on daily, you must have a daily workout routine because you look tone enough to be a fighter?
I Ya Toyah: I started working out a year ago and that started because in October I was still working on my mental health. If you looked at me from the outside, everything seemed to be going great in my life, but I was still struggling mentally and I wasn’t sure what to do. I started feeling so bad about it and then it hit me. Maybe I will start working out and it will give me some sense of control. I joined a training class but then I went out on tour with Orgy and Cold this year and it broke that regiment. When I got back, I started working out in my place. I got some weights and I started working out regularly so that when I go out again I can remain strong and healthy.
It’s very deceiving the outside and the inside of a person. They can complete opposites of what’s going on in an individual’s life.
I Ya Toyah: That’s very true.
I’ve heard that running and working out helps to release different chemicals when you do.
I Ya Toyah: Serotonin and other hormones that I can’t remember the names of.
Do you have anything coming up that you want to plug into our talk?
I Ya Toyah: October 4th is the release date of the album and that’s a big one. I have a European tour, a short one with Front Line Assembly. That will be my first one over there and it’s very important because that’s where I come from. I am taking this music that I created here over to where I come from so that’s very important to me. All the dates are listed on my website.
We like to end our talks with something fun called Three for the Road which is three not so common questions. Do you remember who your first celebrity crush was?
I Ya Toyah: It must have been Keanu Reeves.
If you could play any character in any movie or television show, who would it be?
I Ya Toyah: Any character under the direction of David Lynch. I love him!
If music was over today and you had to go into the world of professional wrestling, what would your wrestling name be?
I Ya Toyah: (Laughs) Oh my god! I Ya Destroyer!
That rolled out very quickly as if you may have been thinking about this before. Hmmmm……….
I Ya Toyah: I may have started my wrestling career there!
Well, it’s time to wrap this one up! Thank you so much for your time today. This has been such a fun talk.
I Ya Toyah: Thank you Johnny and thank you so much for all of the support that you and your magazine have given to me.
Interview by I’m Music Magazine Owner/Editor Johnny Price
Connect with I Ya Toyah online:
https://www.instagram.com/iyatoyah
