Winter Diaries | Ace Tee

In conversation with Elise Legault
Photo credit: Janick Zebrowski

Ace Tee is the German-Ghanaian artist whose smooth flow and eclectic aesthetic shook the internet back in 2017 when her single ‘Bist du down?’ accumulated millions of views on YouTube and sparked chatter across the globe. Praised for its TLC worthy flow and Missy Elliott inspired wardrobe, the single embodied, for many, the German renaissance of 90’s R&B. For Tarin Wilda however, twenty-three at the time, Ace Tee was a side project – one she developed while working to become a hair stylist, a trade she was learning from her mother. In the winter of 2017, that prospective changed – a career as a musician, like the ones she had grown up idolizing on MTV, no longer seemed so farfetched.

The song and its accompanying video, which she herself directed, are a reflection of the maverick artist that is Ace Tee – one who is ready to carve her own path. Following the success of her breakout single, Ace Tee opened for Future, release a lip gloss with Manhattan Cosmetics and even collaborated with H&M on a signature collection. Although she’s been off to a promising start, Ace Tee is the first to admit that making it big, and remaining on top, isn’t easy.

The singer, who is currently on tour with fellow German artist Cro, has been focusing on producing new material and making her way to the U.S. within the coming year. She recently took a break from life on the road to give us some candid insight into how winter is a time for her to create and to fully embrace her ‘Sip slow’ philosophy.

Where did you grow up?

I grew up in Jenfeld, a district of Hamburg in Germany. Gangster rappers would describe Jenfeld as what it is: a ghetto or a low income neighborhood. I don't live there anymore, but I always get positive vibes when I think about it. We didn’t have a lot of money, but we were a bunch of kids from all over the world and we didn’t care about brands, about race, about religion. Those were the good times. The Ghanaian community is very big in Germany – it seems like everybody has a family member somewhere that can tell your mother what you were up to in the streets as a teenager.

Is winter a creative period for you?

Yes it is – it's less hectic. You can relax your mind and you can be creative. There is also no need to be outside, I like that a lot. Sip slow is my lifestyle – it means to just slow down and think about stuff. Winter is always the period of the year to calm down. Summer gives me more inspiration, but winter is the time to filter it all.

How do you see the German rap scene evolving?

Rap in Germany is the biggest music in the industry… Artists like 187 Strassenbande go platinum with every release. It’s crazy! The only problem with the scene is that German rappers don’t quite sound like themselves. For example, they’re all over Afro Trap right now. They haven’t really owned up to their sound like U.K. or French rappers have.

What are you most looking forward to in the coming months?

I might fly to Ghana to play a festival. That would be unbelievable! Besides that, I told my family and management that I just wanted to make music… Cozy time in the studio. I hope it works out…. And I really want anyone waiting for new music to know that I’m working on it! It doesn’t come easy to me. It’s a spiritual process that I’m learning, but music is the key.