5 Young, Up-And-Coming Chattanooga Artists You Need In Your Earbuds

By David Martin

Qualls

​As 2017 drew to a close, Chattanooga rapper Qualls released an EP titled Will, and it has had a recurring presence on my playlist ever since. It’s easy listening, the way a good album is supposed to be. Thoroughly approachable with mellow beats and hooks that take their time delivering the goods, Qualls’ EP explores substantive matters from family and culture, to love and our present racial landscape. As the weather warms, Qualls’ 2017 release should be the perfect companion to a windows-down introspective drive. ​

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DjDee

If you follow DJDee’s SoundCloud profile, then your ears get treated to frequent new music drops. And the latest to this library is “Black Minds,” a single that was freshly minted this week. After a 20-second buildup peaks, this track is propelled through its duration by a mighty powerful beat. Owners of low-rent speakers beware: “Black Minds” will annihilate any substandard equipment. This one, however, is about more than punching bass. “Black Minds” features quality lyricism and a textbook bridge (study up, youngins).

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ihateheartless

Wait, what — dude’s only 17? That’s pretty amazing, given how well-executed and nuanced his tracks are. It’s easy to get hung up on the driving beats iHateHeartless delivers, but you’d be remiss if you didn’t dial into the other (numerous) background sounds he includes that give a detailed texture to tracks like “Nine to Five.” It’s been a minute since iHateHeartless put one of his own up on SoundCloud. Here’s to hoping that changes soon — we’ll all benefit.

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Danny Polo

Time to slowwwwww it down some. Aye, nothing puts the freak in the freakin’ weekend like some slow jams, and that’s precisely what Danny Polo throws down on the regular. Polo tosses well-known jams like “Hotline Bling” and “The Weekend” into a blender with some musical valium and frappes it all into a chilled cocktail tailor-made for quality time with that special someone. Word is that he’s got a new EP releasing soon. And even if you’re not into the slower stuff, guess what? Your girl is. So keep an eye out.

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Yo Miestro

Over the past year, Yo Miestro has released a steady drip of tracks that defy being pigeonholed into a specific genre. His creative range is expansive to say they least, going hard on freestyle tracks like “Holy Key,” and then slipping back into something more downtempo on “Just You.” If you’re a low-change listener, Yo Miestro’s broad artistic boundaries will confound you. But if you appreciate diversity in your eardrums, he’s your go-to.

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