Tizzi on Knowing Why

Poetry is cemented in Tizzi’s lineage. Her ancestors commune with her through spoken word, and she listens. 

“I’m really connected with my ancestors,” Tizzi said. “When I write, I literally could just be walking and their words fall through me.”

As a child, she scribbled poems in a notebook and read them to her Nana—a writer herself—who gave her notes on bringing soul and depth to her words. She continues to communicate with her ancestors through writing and meditation.

“My life is chaotic bliss,” Tizzi said. “I like to find a quiet space to get my mind and body—my physical vessel—prepared to receive. You have to be open.”

Her cousin, Kanye West, is also tapped into this poetic DNA. She cites the moment he performed Family Business, the penultimate song from his first record, The College Dropout, for her and the family as the turning point from writing poems on a page to rapping for audiences. 

From there, Tizzi grew in her lyrical and production talents. At Central Highschool, she was encouraged to pursue performing arts, and used the studio equipment to explore beats, mixing, mastering and all the elements of sewing a song together. She began performing her material around Tulsa and released her first single in 2017.

“The YETI was the spot where if you felt musically or poetically inclined, that’s where you’d go to perform,” Tizzi said of the now-closed bar and venue. “It really built my confidence up.”

In 2021, Tizzi was featured on the acclaimed Fire in Little Africa album, a body of work commemorating the centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre. The project gave her an opportunity to highlight Tulsa, using her voice to lift the voices of others who don’t feel they can speak up. Her contribution, Creme of the Crop, ties into the reverence she holds for her ancestors. 

“I have ups and downs with it—yes this is giving homage, but what is it really doing for the community?” Tizzi asked. “I don’t like that people are celebrating a fire. What I want to celebrate is the legacy of continuing the greatness and the resilience our ancestors had and held within, even when somebody tried to destroy them.”

This July, Tizzi will continue to honor this legacy and build her career by releasing a full-length album, K(NO)WHY. Tizzi has spent the last year working on the album and four visuals to accompany the music. The album encourages her audiences to examine the world around them and use the knowledge they gain from this examination to wield power. 

“K(NO)WHY means knowing why and when to step up and speak your truth,” Tizzi said. “Knowing who you are and where you come from. Knowledge is truth, and if you hold that truth, you should know why and how to carry that.”

Building an experience to envelop all the senses, Tizzi will hold an album release party, The K(no)why Affair on July 3rd at 6:00 p.m.The event will provide audiences an opportunity to step into Tizzi’s conscious with music, visuals, signature cocktails and Tizzi’s own weed strain, The Mango Strain. 

K(NO)WHY is a full experience, and Tizzi intends her audience to immerse themselves in her words and her point of view. 

“I want people to take the time to understand that we’re holding a legacy and the legacy starts with what you say,” Tizzi said. “Go ahead and take the time to hear me. Don’t just see me. Hear me too.”

For tickets and more information on The K(no)why Affair, visit the event brite page. Follow Tizzi on Instagram @tizzi___ for more information and merch, and stream K(NO)WHY on all platforms.