Teyana Taylor Sings for First Time Since Vocal Cord Surgery: ‘I Could Barely Even Talk’

For the first time since undergoing emergency vocal cord surgery in early August, Teyana Taylor treated invited guests to a mini performance at The Sun Rose in West Hollywood Tuesday night (Oct. 14). The occasion was a Grammy for-your-consideration conversation with Adam Blackstone on behalf of Taylor’s latest album — and first since 2020 — Escape Room.

“This is going to be a different type of legacy night,” said the multi-instrumentalist-musical director-producer. “This is a very special creative conversation for my girl Teyana Taylor.”

Over the next hour, Blackstone dropped the needle on various album tracks and interludes such as “Open Invite” featuring Kaytranada, “In Your Skin” and “Long Time” plus one of the album’s narrative interludes voiced by Issa Rae. After each playback, Taylor chatted with Blackstone about what inspired the album, its additional featured guests, the other high-profile friends — including Regina King and Taraji P. Henson — who lent their voices, the artistic freedom that comes from breaking out of preconceived genre boxes and the vulnerability, resilience and authenticity that Escape Room represents. The pair also talked about the singer-songwriter-actress-director’s most valued role: mom.

Of returning to music following a five-year hiatus, Taylor said, “I don’t think I would be doing half the things that I’m doing now since 2020 if I hadn’t taken that faith walk; a leap that I needed to take. At that point, it didn’t matter about what anybody else wanted me to do. It was a gamble I had to take with God and say, ‘OK, this is how it’s going to go down.’”

As an added treat, a tentative Taylor — cheered on by the audience — winningly performed two songs, “Bed of Roses” and “Hard Part,” accompanied by Blackstone on piano. For the latter, the audience was treated to another surprise when Lucky Daye, Taylor’s duet partner on the track, joined her on stage to sing the song live for the first time. Its video was released Monday (Oct. 13).

Ahead of singing “Bed of Roses,” Taylor — who’s still recuperating — cautioned the audience: “I haven’t sung since surgery. I haven’t even done my little vocal therapy.”

Speaking further afterward about her surgery, Taylor said, “I had polyps on my vocal cords that I had to get surgically removed and then I was to shut up for two weeks. But I got the surgery two weeks before the album dropped. So I tried to do as much [promotion] as I could. Then the album came out.

“But I also had to head straight on the road to do press for my new movie [One Battle After Another],” she continued. “So I feel like the album kind of got overshadowed because I had to cancel a lot of performances. But it was either I get [surgery] at that time or don’t get it at all. Then I wouldn’t be able to go on tour next year. So let me just knock this s–t out now because it got to a point where I could barely even talk.”

Another special moment came as the conversation drew to a close. Blackstone introduced Taylor’s oldest daughter, Junie Shumpert, who, along with her sister Rue Rose (who was asleep in the audience), appear on the album’s last track, “Always.” When Blackstone played the song, Junie performed her spoken-word segment on the tune, and then joined her mom on the track’s end.  

Blackstone, who won his first Grammy this year for best musical theater album (Hell’s Kitchen), is also vying for a nomination in the 68th annual Grammy Awards for his second solo album, Humble Magic. “This is music that came from our heart and our soul with the things that we had been going through by making this music,” said Blackstone of his and Taylor’s albums. “We’ve got to hold each other up, hold each other accountable and keep good music going.”