¿Téo? talks about making music that sounds and feels authentic with such a fervor that it makes you believe in his mission. The Colombian American singer and songwriter has dedicated his time to making each release sound better than the last. In turn, the music sounds vibrant and fresh — encompassing a rich collection of genres and experiences.
“To really operate on the highest level, you have to give all of your energy to it,” he said. “Right now, I’m in the building stages of doing it. Obviously, I’ve been doing music for a some time ... and I am giving it all of my energy to continue to sustain this thing. I’m an independent artist. There’s been moments of intense chaos, but that’s what fuels you to get it together and figure it out.”
With a new album underway, the Atlanta-born and Lawrenceville-raised musician is fine-tuning that journey. He’ll give his Atlanta fans a taste of what’s to come during a concert at Terminal West on Saturday.
Although he currently lives in Los Angeles, ¿Téo?, born Mateo Arias, said the concert feels like a homecoming. He credits growing up in a “pseudo-Colombian” culture in Georgia for shaping his artistry.
“I was surrounded by Colombian family,” the 27-year-old said. “I didn’t speak English until I was about four or five. It wasn’t until I started going to school, until I started interacting with the outside world that I was even aware of the fact that I was in the States, but I had a very unique experience because my entire immediate family is Colombian.”
When he was in the third grade, he moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career with his brother. He’s most known for playing the role of Jerry in the Disney XD series “Kickin’ It,” which ended in 2015. He most recently starred alongside his brother, Moises Arias, in the 2020 coming-of-age film “Blast Beat.” But ¿Téo? wants to focus more on his music and developing his artistry. His self-titled debut album was released in 2018. In 2021, he dropped his sophomore album, “Sol,” and embarked on a world tour as an opening act for Justin Bieber the following year.
In January, he released “A Mi Cama,” a single from his forthcoming album, “Luna.”
“Even though I’ve lived most of my life in Los Angeles, I don’t really consider myself an L.A. boy in terms of psyche, in terms of my mentality,” he said. “There’s a realness to Atlanta. There’s an authenticity to Atlanta. There’s an authenticity to Colombia. L.A. is an interesting melting pot. I’ve been very luck to find my tribe in L.A. I feel very connected to the city, but I have my roots in Atlanta and Georgia and obviously Colombia.”
As for the stylized version of his name he uses for his musical endeavors, it’s all about his blend of cultures. “I have a little bit of everything,” he said. “That’s why I created this world of ¿Téo? with the questions marks because it’s an all-inclusive, unique experience in my life of mixing of culture and being this interested in-between where I’m not fully Colombian, I’m not fully American.”
Saturday’s concert is a part of ¿Téo?’s Sol & Luna Tour, which began in February in Colombia, marking his first performance in his parents’ homeland. The 20-city tour ends with an appearance at Coachella in April. He said he’s most excited to see how fans interact with his new music.
“I’m experiencing such a vast window with some of these songs,” he said. “I was on tour with Bieber last year, which was such a beautiful experience. I’ve performed in stadiums in Mexico or arenas here in the states and in Canada and now I’m in these really intimate spaces, which is more beautiful to some extent because, for me, I’m all about intimacy so being in the crowd with people who are really there for me, want to experience the music and get to hear me sing the songs means a lot.”
Credit: Moises Arias
Credit: Moises Arias
Although ¿Téo? said he’s still working on “Luna,” he said fans can expect it in a few months. Intended to be a companion piece to “Sol,” he shares that the album will also be 12 tracks and give a more sultry, R&B vibe than “Sol.” But he wants it to sound thorough before he shares it with the world.
Whereas ¿Téo? used colors like orange, yellow and red as a moodboard for “Sol,” he describes Luna as blue and purple — further delineating the day/night theme with both albums.
“I am fan of deadlines because I know it needs to get done, but I really strive, like any artist whose heart is really in music, to look at the best possible version of everything,” he said. “I wouldn’t say I’m a perfectionist. I don’t believe in perfectionism, but I do believe in energy of perfection meaning like there is a place to where it can be as whole and total as it can be, and I’m just trying to find that totality in ‘Luna’ and put everything that I can in it.”
For now, though, he’s happy to return to the city he says will always have a special place in his heart.
“I’ll give you a little bit of everything, but it all just boils down to a good time,” ¿Téo? said of the show. “I love Atlanta. The people there have such good energy. They know how to turn up, and I love that element about being in Atlanta. I’ve only had great experiences in Atlanta, so I’m really looking forward to the show.”
CONCERT PREVIEW
¿Téo?: Sol & Luna Tour
8 p.m. Saturday, March 4. $25-$30. Terminal West, 887 W. Marietta St. NW C, Atlanta. terminalwestatl.com.
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