TEANKO Finds Creative Freedom Between Past and Present in “Between Two Selves”

“Between Two Selves” captures a turning point in the life of TEANKO, the music project of Dutch singer-songwriter and producer Theo Konst, now based in Estômbar, Portugal. Written after retirement shifted his daily priorities, the song reflects on the relationship between past ambitions and present contentment. The central idea is that personal growth doesn't require abandoning earlier versions of ourselves; it means recognising their place in our story while choosing how we want to live today.

The song emerged from a personal exercise in remembering. Last winter, Konst began assembling a timeline of his musical life, revisiting photographs, recordings, and memories from different periods. Looking back revealed how much his identity had changed, from earlier expectations about the future to a quieter understanding of what matters now. That process became the foundation for “Between Two Selves,” turning an archive of personal history into a reflection on change, acceptance, and renewed creative purpose.

One of the song’s most revealing lines, “But this is where I’m exactly meant to be,” expresses the difference between feeling obliged to move forward and choosing to do so freely. Retirement has not ended Konst’s creative ambitions. Instead, it has given him more time to complete music, explore new ideas, and enjoy the work without the pressure of constantly pursuing the next opportunity. This makes the song less an exercise in nostalgia than a statement about finding direction on different terms.

Konst’s perspective carries the weight of more than five decades in music. He formed his first band during primary school and made his first professional studio recording at 18. Since then, he has experienced the shift from analogue recording and early synthesizers to digital production and artificial intelligence. Within TEANKO, he treats technology as another instrument in that evolution, using voice models trained on his own archival recordings while retaining creative control over their selection and production.

That long relationship with music gives “Between Two Selves” a distinctive context. The song connects personal history with the freedom to create something new, showing how reflection can open possibilities instead of closing them. TEANKO presents a thoughtful portrait of a musician who has stopped measuring progress through urgency and begun making music on his own terms.