From the Tiarra Girls to simply the Tiarras, Sophia, Tiffany, and Tori Baltierra always do it loud, proud, and waving a banner for women’s empowerment, all while keeping the band a family affair. Their latest adventure has been a trek through their favorite artists’ discographies. Starting with their rendition of Caifanes classic “La Negra Tomasa,” then “Tighten Up” from the Black Keys, the Tiarras are dipping into older fare, adding their signature Tejano/punk fusion sound. The band next debuts their version of Robert Palmer’s “Every Kinda People” on Friday, Oct. 11, the day before they make their Weekend 2 ACL debut.
Austin Chronicle: You’ve been performing since you were children, so you’re veterans at this. But do you still get moments of self-doubt?
Tori Baltierra: I feel like for all of us probably those moments popped up into our heads. We go through it mostly every day. I think there’s a healthy balance of keeping yourself humble and knowing that there’s always room to grow, but growing up with that mindset of we just have to keep enduring throughout these performances, because it wasn’t really built to support us. We’ve had to find different crevices within the live music scene and people to uplift us and really cling on to that energy. That’s why we’re here, and not just to fight against what’s not serving us every day. We have to just surrender and then keep creating what is working for us in hopes that the bands after us, and maybe another Latina all-sister band that’s going to come sweeping through Austin, they’re going to be like, “Oh, the Tiarras got these shows, and we can play it, and we’re going to get advice from them.”
We’re writing an album. It’s our first big project. We’re still in the process of it, and so there’s a lot of impostor syndrome and self-doubt. Even with ACL, I know that the lineups are not always very heavily Latino, but we’re used to being in that scene. So we know that we’re going to stick out, but we want to stay true to ourselves and just play what feels good for us and not try to cater to anyone. I think it’s normal to have self-doubt, but you just kind of remind yourself that it keeps you humble.
AC: What are two songs that you absolutely love to perform?
Tiffany Baltierra: “Soy Chingona,” because I love when Tori describes the song before we start. All the women perk up a little bit more, and they dance with us. I feel like that’s a favorite.
Tori Baltierra: It’s kind of funny. Whenever I am introducing the song, I have to be careful about what words I’m saying, because if I say, “This one is for all of our Chingonas,” people get it, and they’re like … [makes cheering sound] They’re too loud!
Sophia Baltierra: We have a song called “Gracias a la Vida” that has a rocky feel, and for me on the drum set, I get to go kind of crazy, so that’s why I like it.
AC: How do you feel Austin supports local talent?
Tori Baltierra: Things were very different when we started, but now, I think a lot of musicians aren’t afraid to speak up about lineups being white male-dominated, about grants and how that system is.
Programs like HAAM and SIMS are doing a really great job of taking care of the people that make the city vibrant. …
What we can improve on is dispersing that monetary stuff that’s within this city. I know that it’s happening now, but these past grants have been kind of confusing, and a lot of musicians have had to seek out people to help them with these processes. When it comes down to it, sometimes the musicians that need a lot of the help are overseen. People just look over their heads, and they focus on the people that are obviously bringing the crowds and the funds to the city. But we need to keep working on the seeds that are scattered throughout Austin and help them grow. We’re still seeds, but we remember what it felt like to have to take those exposure gigs and also fight for fair pay, and even finding out that the men on the same lineup as us were getting paid more. Little things like that, everything needs to be more transparent and fair. But [it] also is on a good track. I believe in that.
Saturday 12, 12:05pm, Tito’s Stage
This article appears in October 4 • 2024.