“I felt like I wasn’t really a pretty girl, and then I realized that was because I didn’t feel like a girl at all,” says Tea Wise, also known as wsteaway, a 21-year-old LA-based nonbinary singer, writer, and producer. This representation in the music industry is long overdue, making wsteaway stand out as they make a name for themselves in the LA music scene.

Wise is currently breaking into the hyperpop scene, but they have a long history with music. They first started performing in their school orchestra and played the viola for six years. “I didn’t think I wanted to actually be a musician at that point, because of how intensive that whole process was,” Wise said, “We would do seat checks and I would sit there terrified, shaking in my chair.”

Nonetheless, they admit that this experience gave them a good foundation when it comes to the technical aspects of songwriting. “When I was a kid, I was always writing poetry. I would write it all down in my Notes App, but then one day I opened it up and everything was gone,” Wise said. “Now, I keep a physical songwriting journal, and I know without fail that I can always look back on my songwriting process, even after I’ve released the songs.”

Wise first began their college journey at Truckee Meadows Community College in their hometown of Reno, Nevada, but transferred to the University of Southern California as a Music Industry Major after a semester. After their first semester at USC, they ended up taking a gap year due to COVID, which is when they started managing other artists and writing for a blog.

When they originally moved to Los Angeles, they wrote their first release, “Lonely,” a shoegaze ballad about this isolating period in their life. This was released in February of 2022, before they started producing music for Skeletosphere, a fellow LA-based artist, over the summer. They have also written music with her, which has allowed Wise to explore more of a rock sound.

When Wise began their junior year In August 2022, they met their publicist, Adrian Finer, in a PR class they were taking together. The two have made a great team, utilizing both of their skills and impressive backgrounds to keep up wsteaway’s whole brand.

*Cover art for wsteaway’s breakout single “Losing Sleep”*

Currently, Wise is working on a lot of new experimental pieces with their friend Wxmell. wsteaway’s current releases have been described by Wise as them “[taking] bedroom pop and made it more alt or emo.” With this new project, though, they want to expand outside of that. “I want to blend a lot of different genres and create something fresh and innovative.”

They teased one of the songs off this EP to me called “oh ur in my city? ok and?” set to be released as a single in February of 2023. “It's about this really shitty ex of mine who called me up out of nowhere when I moved to LA to say he was also there,” Wise described. This specific release has a music video planned for the song as well, which Wise is especially excited for, getting the chance to play a lead in a medium they don’t have as much experience with.

When asked about their audience, Wise said, “A lot of my music is to process events in my life in an external way, so I hope that when people listen to my music, even if they’re not going through the same things, or even aware of my original intentions, they’re able to relate and connect with it in a special way.”

To stay updated with their new releases, follow them on Instagram or Spotify.

wsteaway Talks Genre-Bending and Identity in The LA Music Scene