Chrystia "Tia" Cabral (born May 18, 1991), known professionally as Spellling (stylized in all caps), is an American experimental pop musician based in Oakland, California. Cabral released her debut album, ''Pantheon of Me'', in September 2017; '' Pitchfork'' felt it was "surely among the most overlooked debuts this calendar year". Signing to Sacred Bones Records in 2018, she followed up in February 2019 with ''

Mazy Fly ''Mazy Fly'' is the second studio album by American experimental pop musician Spellling, released in February 2019. It is her debut recording with Sacred Bones Records, making her labelmates with artists like Jenny Hval and Zola Jesus. Composit ...

''. It was met with universal acclaim by music critics, who enjoyed the dark and eerie qualities of Spellling's sound. Cabral released the third full-length Spellling album, ''

The Turning Wheel "The Turning Wheel" is a novelette by American science fiction writer Philip K. Dick. It was published in ''Science Fiction Stories No. 2'', 1954. Plot The story is set in a post-apocalyptic future where global civilization is governed by a hie ...

'', on June 25, 2021.

Early life

Cabral was born in Sacramento, California. She was raised in the Catholic Church, which would later influence her music. Cabral attended the University of California, Berkeley, studying philosophy for two semesters before changing her major to English literature after feeling "shamed out of the hilosophydepartment" as the only femme person and person of color. She remained at Berkeley to pursue a

Master of Fine Arts A Master of Fine Arts (MFA or M.F.A.) is a terminal degree in fine arts, including visual arts, creative writing, graphic design, photography, filmmaking, dance, theatre, other performing arts and in some cases, theatre management or arts admini ...

, which she completed in 2019.

Career

Cabral started her musical career in 2015, influenced by two events: watching a fellow San Francisco artist performing looped vocals; and the death of a close friend. At the time she was working as an

elementary school A primary school (in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Australia, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica, and South Africa), junior school (in Australia), elementary school or grade school (in North America and the Philippines) is a school for primary ed ...

teacher, and being around crayons inspired her to release a handmade CD called ''Crayola Church''. Cabral said of the project: “I took a Crayola box and made a record based on every color in the box… I would wrap the CDs in children’s drawings and write the track listing, so some people have those ditions” In 2017, she self released her debut album, ''Pantheon of Me''. In 2019, she released a follow-up, ''Mazy Fly'', to positive reviews. In 2021, she released her third album, ''

'', to similarly positive reviews. In 2023, she announced her fourth album, ''

Spellling & the Mystery School ''Spellling & the Mystery School'' ("Spellling" stylized in all caps) is the fourth studio album by American experimental pop musician Spellling. It was released on August 25, 2023, and contains re-recordings of various selected songs from all o ...

,'' which would contain re-recordings of past material.

Artistry

Influences

When asked about her favorite albums, Cabral named Minnie Riperton's ''

Come to My Garden ''Come to My Garden'' is the debut studio album by American singer-songwriter Minnie Riperton which was produced, arranged and orchestrated by Charles Stepney and released in 1970 under ''GRT Records''. It was re-released in 1974 on the Janus la ...

'',

Kraftwerk Kraftwerk (, "power station") is a German band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk were among the first successful acts to popularize the ...

's '' Computer World'', and

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

's '' The Idiot''.

Discography

Albums

* ''Pantheon of Me'' (2017) * ''

'' (2019) * ''

'' (2021) * ''

'' (2023)

Singles

* "Hard to Please" (2018) * "Little Deer" (2021) * "Boys at School" (2021) * "Turning Wheel" (2021) * "Cherry / Under the Sun" (2023) * "Hard to Please (Reprise)" (2023)

References

External links

Spellling
at Bandcamp
Spellling
at Sacred Bones Records {{Authority control American experimental musicians Living people American women singers Experimental pop musicians American electronic musicians American women pop singers Women in electronic music 21st-century African-American women singers 21st-century American women singers University of California, Berkeley alumni 1991 births