It was Neneh Cherry who first pointed Titiyo in the direction of performing, encouraging her to sing and prompting her, too, to seek out musical directions that Swedish pop had rarely visited in the past. By 1987, Titiyo was fronting her own band, performing rare groove covers on the Stockholm circuit before signing to the local Telegram label in 1989. She also sang background vocals for a range of Swedish artists, including Army of Lovers and Jakob Hellman.
The title of Sweden's Queen of Soul might not seem one of modern music's most coveted crowns but, in Sweden itself, there is little doubt that Titiyo not only merits all the acclaim lavished by her homeland, but that international acclaim has already demolished borders across much of Europe too.
Titiyo scored her first hit that June, when Talking to the Man in the Moon climbed to number six on the Swedish chart. After the Rain reached number 13 in November and the following summer brought Titiyo's self-titled debut album. It reached number three and also brought her to the attention of American audiences, via a well-received Arista release. An imminent breakthrough, however, was placed on hold when Titiyo withdrew for two years to raise her newborn first child; it was September 1993 before she resurfaced, with a cover of Aretha Franklin's Never Let Me Go a number 25 Swedish hit.
This Is Titiyo, her second album, followed in 1993. Featuring guest appearances from both of her parents (Titiyo's mother is an accomplished pianist), the album spun off further hits Back and Forth and Tell Me I'm Not Dreaming and, even before Titiyo made her London début at the Astoria in February 1994, garage remixes of several tracks were established club favourites.
Over the next two years, Titiyo's activities were largely confined to guest work. She appeared with the Blacknuss All Stars (It Should Have Been You) and Stakka Bo & the Flesh Quartet ("We Vie"), and duetted with sibling Eagle-Eye Cherry on a track from the Best Laid Plans movie soundtrack, "Worried Eyes." Her own next album, Extended, finally arrived in late 1997, a self-produced/composed epic highlighted by the hit single Josefin Dean.
As usual, another lengthy silence followed the album's release, a four-year gap that was finally broken in 2001 by Come Along. Recorded with the songwriting team of Peter Svensson (the Cardigans) and Jocke Berg (Kent), and produced by Tore Johansson, Come Along received a U.S. release (through Lava) in August 2002.
After a lengthy hiatus, Warner Music released a greatest hits album named Best of Titiyo in 2004, which included a few new songs. One of these songs, Loving Out of Nothing , charted within the top-20 in Sweden in early 2005.
In spring 2008, Titiyo was asked to contribute vocals to Kleerup's single Longing for Lullabies (Feat. Titiyo). Released in April 2008 in Scandinavia, the single has since reached the top 20 in Denmark and top 10 in Sweden.
Titiyo released her fifth album, Hidden, on the Swedish independent label Sheriff late 2008. The album mainly feature self-penned material but also results of collaborations with the likes of Kleerup, Moto Boy, and Goran Kajfes of Oddjob. So far videos for Stumble to Fall and Awakening have been released.
Taxi
Titiyo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
På fyra hjul som rullar
Regn och vasagatan hem
Med huvet emot rutan
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som löften nån som ger
Kan du höjavlymen snälla
Den här refrengen är som nätter när jag minns
Fast hela stockholm dansar
Men jag har gjort det där så länge
Sen innan ni börjarde andas
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som löften nån som ger
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som värmen kommer in
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som grässtrån som musik
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som nätter när jag minns
Tar den långa vägen hem
Vill sitta här vill sitta ensam
Kör för regnet kör igen
Ingen som väntar
Kan du höja volymen
Snälla
Den här refregen som när drömmarna slog in
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som socker som vind
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Den här refregen är som nätter när jag minns
Kan du höja volymen
Snälla
Kan du höja volymen
The song "Taxi" by Titiyo depicts a journey home in a taxi. The singer is sitting in the back seat, watching the rain pour down on Vasagatan while listening to a song that evokes memories and emotions within her. She requests the driver to raise the music's volume, insisting that the refrain is like promises that give her hope. The groove of the song takes her back to the nights when she remembers everything, although everyone else in Stockholm seems to be dancing. The singer wants to be left alone, taking the long way home, hoping for nothing and no one to be waiting for her at home. The refrain reminds her of the sweetness of life when dreams come true.
The song speaks of the subtle emotions one might feel on a rainy day, memories triggered by a melody, a journey taken when you feel like being alone with your thoughts. The song's tone and lyrics convey the experience of feeling stuck in a time loop of familiar experiences and emotions that never change, no matter how much time passes.
Line by Line Meaning
I baksätet igen
I find myself once more at the backseat of a car
På fyra hjul som rullar
Traveling on four wheels rolling along either smoothly or bumpily
Regn och vasagatan hem
Going back home on Vasagatan while it's raining
Med huvet emot rutan
With my head leaning against the window glass
Kan du höja volymen snälla
Could you please turn up the volume
Den här refregen är som löften nån som ger
This refrain is like promises being fulfilled
I baksätet igen
I find myself once more at the backseat of a car
Fast hela stockholm dansar
Even though the whole Stockholm is dancing
Men jag har gjort det där så länge
But I have been doing this for so long
Sen innan ni började andas
Since before you even started breathing
Den här refregen är som värmen kommer in
This refrain is like the warmth coming in
Den här refregen är som grässtrån som musik
This refrain is like blades of grass being turned into music
Tar den långa vägen hem
I take the long way back home
Vill sitta här vill sitta ensam
I want to sit here, I want to sit alone
Kör för regnet kör igen
Drive through the rain again
Ingen som väntar
No one is waiting
Den här refregen som när drömmarna slog in
This refrain is like when dreams come true
Den här refregen är som socker som vind
This refrain is like sugar and wind
Kan du höja volymen
Could you turn up the volume
Writer(s): JONATHAN JOHANSSON, DAVID LINDVALL
Contributed by Leo I. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@ofa5425
I❤youNici!
@toomson4457
det är den bäst låten som finns
@angelinokennander3303
Riktigt bra låt
@jamesrhodesia3517
Altough I don't understand a word apart from 'Taxi', this song is one of the best of the '13 Garden'-album. Splendid ánd with a 'summer feel' to it. I would love to listen to an extended version.
@feliciaochjuliakennander4560
Asååå waww vilken låt dina låtar gör mig sååå glad❤️❤️
@Kartonga1
Jag älskar Titiyos nya skiva och fick denna låt i huvudet. Jag skriver in Titiyo i sökfältet och Taxi kommer som första förslag. Med 1444 träffar...hur är detta möjligt? Google kan läsa mina tankar :) Tack att du delar!
@alexandrohutt8421
Den där refrängen är som någon annans spya i min mun, fyfan.