CHARLOTTE, N.C. — It’s about time to start making your summer playlist so check out these hot, up-and-coming artists near you.

Turn up the love and celebrate the talent in your community by supporting these local musicians.

Self-taught producer and recording artist, Te’Jani, has been moving swiftly throughout the Charlotte music scene over the last couple years. Te’Jani’s rise through the ranks has been slow, but methodical, cutting his teeth at Safe & Sound Studios (Lute, Dababy, JuiceWRLD, August08) with the intent to inject his own identity into the sound of Charlotte. When not in recording studio sessions with artists like Elevator Jay, Erick Lottary, Cyanca, he is sharing stages with the likes of Nia J, Tre Ahmad, and Mavi among other Charlotte artists.

He has been quoted saying he “makes music for black kids who loved Guitar Hero 3” combining guitars, coming of age like songwriting, and nostalgia while addressing uncomfortable topics like suicide and self-harm.

Te’Jani’s debut album “GIMP” was solely self-produced and recorded in his bedroom over the last 2 years over the course of the pandemic.

He describes ‘GIMP’ as “a love letter to himself, as a reminder that it’s okay to ask for help.” ‘GIMP’ can be found on all streaming platforms.

Click to watch GIMP Album Trailer on YouTube.

Young-Chhaylee is a singer/songwriter originally from The Pacific Northwest.

Influences of Pop, Folk, and Soul are evident in his songs of life and love.

As a self-taught guitar player currently based out of Charlotte, N.C., he says love, societal norms, purpose, and resilience consistently occupy his mind making them the focus of his musical creations.

Young-Chhaylee says “Being the child of a refugee, my career choice makes no sense to my momma but, the love and support has never wavered. My goal, for myself, is to make a living creating and playing my music. My goal, for you, is to believe that there’s no right way to live this life.”

Young-Chhaylee began his music career in 2015 at Conor Byrne Pub in Seattle, W.A., and now, he tours across the United States playing gigs.

Young-Chhaylee also performs in the dynamic duo CZNS with his best friend Craig Suede.

The two artists are undeniable charismatic and hilarious. Often pausing shows to tell the audience various stories about their travels and misadventures.

As a duo, Young-Chhaylee and Craig Suede hope to build a community with their music and love for life.

In Seattle Weekly’s Best of 2018, Jake Uitti wrote this about CZNS;

“Hearing their harmonies blend as I stood in the back of the room made me feel like I was in one of those often talked about nights a decade ago when the founding members of The Head and the Heart sang together for the first time.”

Click to watch video on YouTube.

Growing up in Charlotte, North Carolina, pop-rock artist John Foley always felt like he didn’t belong.

As a teen, John struggled with personal identity issues, and he fended off fears and rejection through retreating to an inner sanctum where he sought solace in singing and songwriting.

None of his friends knew he was a songwriter—he kept this secret to himself until college.

Today, the young singer-songwriter has emerged a promising artist with three EPs, three including the most recently released, Spirits. The 5-song collection represents a milestone in assured artistry.

“Back then, I felt so stifled, and I overthought everything. I used music as a form of therapy,” Foley recalls. “Even today, singing and songwriting helps me process my life. It enables me to talk about things I don’t feel comfortable addressing directly.”

John is a storyteller lyricist who uses narratives, poetic phrases, and metaphors to process complex truths and life struggles. Within his songs, there are feelings of longing, sadness, healing, and escapism. His soulfully emotive vocals, intimate lyrics, and dynamic pop-rock hooks blur the lines between singer-songwriter traditions, pop, and classic rock. John is influenced by such diverse artists as Tom Petty, Brandi Carlile, Eagles, Amy Winehouse, and Black Sabbath among others.

Nicolette was born and raised in Gainesville, Florida.

She relocated to Charlotte, N.C. (after losing her job during the pandemic) and decided to pursue something “bigger than herself” through music.

Nicolette has been writing songs since the age of 7 and has been singing before she could even properly speak.

According to her mom, when Nicolette was a kid she was always singing.

“When you were little, and I took you shopping with me, you would be belting out songs like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and The Wheels on the Bus to everyone in the store while I pushed you around on the shopping cart.” 

Although Nicolette has been singing and songwriting since a young age, it wasn’t until February of 2022, after going through a difficult breakup, that she began publicly sharing her own songs about her heartbreak.

Her song lyrics are about the daily struggles and life experiences that make us human from breakups, falling in love, self-doubt, and more.

“I just want my music to inspire others and be songs that anyone can relate to. I hope when someone listens to my songs they know they aren’t alone in their struggles and find comfort in the raw truth and vulnerability that I try to express through my music.”

Nicolette’s dream is to sell out stadiums and do world tours one day, as well as speak and inspire millions through her music.

Emerging out of Charlotte, N.C., Deep October is a 22-year-old artist who first started releasing music on SoundCloud in 2014 before rebranding as Deep October in 2016.

After garnering a fanbase in 2017 for his songs “Molly Melancholy, Jealousy, Fell Asleep and In The Dark,” he began releasing music on Spotify and Apple Music.

Starting with his Deep October EP, which consisted of previous SoundCloud releases, he released Ultra Empathy in 2018, an EP consisting of 5 tracks including his biggest song to date “God in the Room” which now sits at 2.5 million streams on Spotify.

Often touching on subjects relating to the male experience and struggle with mental health and social issues, Deep October says he has a way of writing that allows his struggle with mental health and heartbreak to be easily digested while not coming off as ‘whiny’ or obnoxiously promoting self pity.

Releasing his debut Album “Qualia” in 2020, the following year he released 3 more projects; “Strange Death”, “Pleasure Dome” and “Easter Pink” in close collaboration with producers Suni Vega, Telo, Darkskyparadox Firemane & Nitrous who he is also close friends with.

Deep October is currently sitting at 75,000+ monthly listeners on Spotify and is steadily growing and plans to continue being as consistent as he has in previous years.

A music minister’s daughter turned fierce front woman, Abby Bryant has cemented her presence as a standout in Americana and soul with her band’s debut album Not Your Little Girl. The 13-track LP features Bryant’s raw vocal talent supported by the confident and dynamic backing group The Echoes and establishes a strong foundation for the band in the world of vintage-inspired Americana and soul rock.

Playing for church services under her father’s direction, Bryant recalls early memories of singing a solo as an angel in a nativity play and backing up the church band in her small-town community near Charlotte, North Carolina. It wasn’t until she attended Appalachian State University that Bryant began to seriously consider a professional career in music. Forming the beginnings of the group with her friend from back home Bailey Faulkner, Bryant merged her love of the sound of soul and American roots music embodied by artists like Etta James and Bonnie Raitt with Faulkner’s similar passion for American blues and Faces-style rock. With these inspirations, Bryant and Faulkner began co-writing songs that would eventually appear on Not Your Little Girl.

After graduating from college and working with a number of part-time band members, the two relocated to Asheville, NC to form a proper band and quickly began heavy touring that kickstarted an organic fanbase throughout the Southeast.

“I’ve really had to learn to trust myself and lean into our confidence in the band. There will always be difficult moments, but the thought of giving up or even slowing down has never crossed my mind,” explains Bryant.

Title track “Not Your Little Girl” announces Bryant’s resolve in trusting her judgment and beliefs when faced with adversity.

“When I started singing professionally, I was young and vulnerable, and there were a lot of older folks trying to steer my career and life choices. I was done letting myself be in situations where someone would try to control my work or talk down to me,” she recounts. “It took so long for me to say / That I’m not your little girl / I gotta find my very own way / To live in this big old world,” declares Bryant in the song’s powerful chorus.

The album also touches on themes of growing up and leaving home and “having a pretty traditional childhood and needing to build an identity and set of values on my own” describes Bryant. Navigating an often harsh world with a determined and fresh sense of self, Bryant finds comfort in the band’s steady march forward. “And if you feel like you’re dying … / You just gotta follow your own lead” Bryant affirms on the emphatic rocker “Keep Moving.”

Xtine G is a singer/songwriter originally hailing from Philadelphia, but for the last decade, has called the Queen City home.

She writes songs she affectionately deems “sad heaux music that lives on the same block as Dolly Parton and Phoebe Bridgers in a yert”.

With her solo electric guitar and lilting vocals, she tells stories in her songs about heartbreak, falling for emotionally unavailable clowns, and her deep-seated love of the convenience of fast food.

An an artist, Tylor Hill manages to weave thoughtful storytelling and intricate guitar melodies into his understated introspective acoustic music.

Heavily influenced by Sting’s intricate blend of genre, Ben Howard’s earnest narrative snapshots, and City and Colour’s somber and wistful nostalgia, Tylor Hill uses his nomadic experiences from across the world—notably in “Carolina”, which he wrote when he was “7000 miles away from home”—as inspiration for his authentic, empathetic, and poetic songwriting.

You can find him sitting in the corner of a quiet dive bar with his dog, whiskey in hand and watching the Atlanta Braves, or every Monday night at The Evening Muse.

If you know a great musician, or are one yourself, and would like to be considered for the next edition of local musicians to check out email sgilstrap@wccbcharlotte.com .

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