Ania Tarnowska, known professionally as I Ya Toyah,^[1] is a Chicago, USA musician, singer, composer, producer, performer, and the founder/CEO of Femme Fatale Records label. Her genre-bending music incorporates elements of multiple genres including industrial, electro-industrial, goth electro, punk electro, electronic rock, metal, and synthwave. It best fits in the alternative music category.

She began releasing her music independently in 2018, with 4 single releases, followed by her self-recorded and self-produced debut album, Code Blue.^[2] In 2019, she released 5 singles, participated in many collaborations, became a member of post-industrial supergroup, The Joy Thieves^[3] and toured excessively with bands such as Pigface^[4] and Zwaremachine.^[5] In 2020, she released 2 singles and a double album of remixes titled Code Blue Reloaded plus bonus album Code Blue Revelations.^[6] In 2021 Out of Order - a 5 chapters E.P. consisting of five singles and music videos came out in both digital and physical forms.^[7] 2022 brought I Ya Toyah on the US East Coast Tour,^[8] and marked her first acoustic EP release Ghosts.^[9] In 2023 I Ya Toyah performed at Dark Force Fest, NJ, followed by her first month long West Coast tour in May. In August and September 2023 she toured as a direct opener for Stabbing Westward^[10] She closed the concert season performing a headlining set at Dark City Festival in New Orleans. On October 27 she released a Panic Room single,^[11] produced with Walter Flakus of Stabbing Westward. This and more singles lead to the I am the Fire EP release^[12] scheduled for April 5. To promote her new music in live settings, I Ya Toyah is going on a 45-day all American tour^[13] with Orgy and Cold, starting April 11.

When spoken out loud in Polish, I Ya Toyah means “It’s Just Me.” Her logo art merges the symbols for peace and anarchy that symbolizes her “rebel psyche.”^[14]

Born and raised in Łódź, Poland, Ania began her music education as a child, studying classical guitar, piano, vocal performance, and music theory. She moved to the United States as a young adult, and soon became a part of multiple musical projects, performing with metal, punk rock jazz, and progressive rock bands in prominent venues across the US.

In 2016, she graduated as the valedictorian from SAE Institute, where she focused on Music Business and Audio Engineering. In 2017, she began working at her home studio on her solo project, I Ya Toyah, and her debut album, Code Blue, was released independently on Oct. 26th, 2018.^[15] True to her motto, she spent the majority of 2019 “spreading the disease of music and infecting the human race”^[16] by touring.

In 2020, she was scheduled to tour the US and Canada as direct support for Stabbing Westward, but it was postponed, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[17] The lockdown was spent creating new material for her EP, Out Of Order, and collaborating with various artists. In February / March 2022 I Ya Toyah embarked on an East Coast US Tour, promoting her new material in live settings.^[8] 2023 brought I Ya Toyah to Dark Force Fest in New Jersey, after which she embarked on month long West Coast tour, followed by a tour as a direct opener for Stabbing Westward^[10] later in the year. She performed a headlining set at Dark City Festival in New Orleans on October 21., after which she released a Panic Room single,^[11] produced with Walter Flakus of Stabbing Westward. The single is a part of a full album release scheduled for late 2024.

I Ya Toyah's music has been remixed by artists, including The Anix,^[18] Skold (Marilyn Manson, Shotgun Messiah, KMFDM, Motionless in White),^[19] Gopal Metro (the co-founder of the Gothic Rock band, Bella Morte),^[20] Rhys Fulber (Front Line Assembly, Conjure One),^[21] Adoration Destroyed,^[22] The Joy Thieves,^[23] Stabbing Westward^[24] and more (See full discography below.)

In 2019 I Ya Toyah recorded music with artists such as Julian Beeston (Nitzer Ebb, Cubanate), Max Fox (Zwaremachine), Indign, and Traumabond. That year she also became a member of The Joy Thieves, a post-industrial super group that includes current, former, and touring members of bands such as Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Pigface, Marilyn Manson, Stabbing Westward, Nitzer Ebb, KMFDM, My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult, Blue October, 16VOLT, and more.^[25]

In March 2020, she also started working as a composer, alongside movie director, Ralph Klisiewicz, creating the score for a short film called The Artifact.^[26]

In the Fall 2023 I Ya Toyah announced the releases of new singles and album, produced together with Walter Flakus of Stabbing Westward^[27]

As a suicide loss survivor, I Ya Toyah advocates for the importance of mental wellness, and ending the stigma that surrounds mental illness.^[28] During her live performances, she often talks about mental health with her audience, communicating the significance of breaking the stigma. Her ‘Code Blue’ album focuses on mental health and suicide prevention, and 15% of all proceeds go to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP).^[29] In July 2020, she organized an Art Auction for Mental Health During the Times of Pandemic. Artists from across the US created and donated art pieces that were inspired by her lyrical content, and all the proceeds aided the AFSP.^[30] In December 2022 I Ya Toyah released a self-funded line of suicide prevention and mental health wristbands promoting 988 Crisis Line, available for free with free shipping across the USA.

In April 2019, I Ya Toyah released a single and a video titled Forbidden Bark, which featured her dog, Benek. The release was used as a platform to raise awareness for charity organizations that focus on fighting animal cruelty.^[31] Benek was featured again in May 2022 as I Ya Toyah performed a live streamed show during Goths For Sanctuaries Festival^[32] raising money for animal sanctuaries around the world.

In 2020, her song Funeral for Love was selected to be a part of ESA (Electronic Saviors: Industrial Music to Cure Cancer) compilation released by Metropolis Records/Distortion Productions. This version of the song, featuring Traumabond^[33] appeared on this release, alongside bands such as Ego Likeness, The Clay People, Leæther Strip, Angelspit, <PIG>, Die Warzau, Caustic, God Module, Skatenigs, and Cyanotic.

In Spring 2022 I Ya Toyah participated in the recording of a version of the Beatles’ classic Come Together^[34] to raise funds for the people of the war-torn country of Ukraine. The project^[35] named Lifeline International was arranged and mixed by legendary music producer John Fryer, who has worked with such seminal bands as Nine Inch Nails, Depeche Mode, and Cocteau Twins. Participants included members of Faith No More, Stabbing Westward, Ministry, Rammstein, Filter, THE HARDKISS, The Joy Thieves, Agnostic Front, Basement Jaxx, and more.

• Official website