S3 Episode 48: Is Emerging Music Talent Getting Weirder and Way Too Good?
Listen to the full episode here:
The music scene used to have rules. You suffer through life, hit your 30s, then maybe write a decent song. Not anymore.
Now we've got kids writing ballads that sound like they've survived two divorces and a tax audit. And adults recording full albums alone in their vintage guitar shops like emotional pirates.
Meanwhile, local bands whisper sad poetry over haunted reverb tracks, and painters scream at their canvases like they owe them rent. This isn't polished, filtered content. This is art that punches you in the gut and leaves a note saying, "You're welcome."
At the Old Settlers Youth Competition, 11-year-old Ira Thorne Clifton wrote songs that could make a grown man sob into his coffee. He performed original work and casually won the whole thing like it was no big deal.
Gigi Shafi, a Houston high schooler, hit the stage next and delivered breakup songs with the emotional weight of a Grammy winner & Oliver, an 11-year-old multi-instrumentalist raised on Old Settlers stages. And if that wasn't enough, The Night Beats showed up with a song that feels like crying alone in a pine forest. A special shoutout to “Joe Carter”, a well-known Lockhart local, for his cameo in the Night Beats Video! Also, big thanks to “Best Little Wine & Books”.
Then there's Chazz Emile Bessette, a one-man band & owner of Sunflower and Friends, who makes music, runs a school, sells vintage gear, and still finds time to question the meaning of tape life.Meanwhile, painter Christopher St. Leger throws paint and curses like it's cardio.
In this article, you'll find out why kids like Ira and Gigi are making adults rethink their careers, how Chazz built a one-man music empire with zero TikTok followers, what's actually going on behind the Green Door, and why painting is a full-contact sport now.
Emerging Music Talent at the Old Settlers Youth Competition
Welcome to the Old Settlers Youth Competition, where kids show up, look innocent, and then sing like 40-year-old poets who've lived through divorce, taxes, and two recessions.
Forget your school talent show. This stage was full of children who should not legally feel this much emotional pain.
This Ain't Just Campfire Karaoke
This whole thing started as a way to "build the next generation of talent." And boy, it's working a little too well. A handful of 21 kids who sent in videos made it to the big show.
Finalists got to open for James McMurtry and Bob Schneider. Not "perform in the backyard." Open. For. Them. Like real artists. They were so good, even the adults watching tried not to cry publicly. No one succeeded.
Meet Ira Thorne Clifton, an Emerging Music Talent
Ira is homeschooled, writes songs inspired by Colorado mountains, and sounds like he's been through a midlife crisis. His lyrics are deep, haunting, and beautiful.
And no, we don't know how he knows this much either, probably past life trauma.
He wrote:
"West of My Window": Basically, a song about light, pain, loneliness, and wondering if he even exists. Light stuff.
"A Different Rhyme": Inspired by aspen trees changing color. Somehow it still made us cry.
Covered John Prine: Because, sure, why not. The kid sings about heartbreak like he's lived through three marriages.
Then they gave him the mic and asked, "How did you start writing?" And he casually dropped, "I don't always know what my songs mean." Cool. We were still learning to spell "banana" at 11.
Ira Wins Because of Course He Did
He won the whole thing. Everyone clapped. The other kids were amazing too, but Ira? He came with a guitar and left with your soul.
He plans to build a band for next year. Might let his dad join, but only if he behaves. He just dropped an EP called End of the Morning under the name Arathorn—yes, like a wizard.
You can find it on all the usual platforms. Spotify, Apple, etc. Go listen and question your own life choices.
Gigi Shafi Came in Like a Heartbreak Tornado
Next up? Gigi Shafi. She's from Houston. She's a junior in high school and writes savage breakup songs like she's lived through ten of them.
She sang one tune that was a polite musical "screw you" to her ex. Then, I followed it up with a softer ballad. The girl had range.
Gigi started by singing at nursing homes. Then started joining competitions. She says she doesn't care about the show part—just wants to make people feel stuff. Mission accomplished.
Also, she wants to be a dentist. But after hearing her sing? We're not sure she'll ever need to clean teeth for money.
What's Going on Behind the Green Door, Pain Pine? a Ghost Emerging Music Talent
Let's talk about The Night Beats and their song Behind the Green Door, which sounds like a late-night panic attack set to music.
It's moody, strange, and somehow still sexy in that "please cry with me in the dark" way. This ain't background music for folding socks. This is soul-searching-with-a-cigarette music.
The Lyrics: Soft Voice, Heavy Baggage
The song starts gently. Like someone trying to convince their partner to stay after a fight at 2 a.m.
"We can just be free of who we are."
"Wherever we go is fine by me. As long as we don't fuss and fight."
Sounds sweet, right? Then it flips.
"I'm lost in the dark behind the green door. I keep losing my sleep."
Cool. So now we're in emotional quicksand. One second it's "let's love each other," next second it's "my dreams are dying and I can't breathe."
Also, shoutout to this line:
"I love the smell of pine."
Because why not throw in forest vibes while we spiral? Adds flavor.
The Sound is Trippy and Sad in a Good Way
Imagine if your feelings had a fog machine and a delay pedal. That's what this sounds like. It's spacey, slow, and rough enough to make you feel something without fully breaking you.
You won't dance to this. You'll stare at your ceiling and rethink your last five life choices.
The Mood Check
Whatever's behind that green door? Probably regret. Maybe an ex. Maybe just you, crying with a cup of tea.
This track wraps heartbreak in reverb, slaps on some pine-scented sadness, and says, "Good luck, idiot."
Listen to Behind the Green Door when you want to feel lost but in a poetic, hot-mess way.
Why Chazz Emile Bessette Played Everything Himself to Showcase Emerging Music Talent
Let's be real. Chazz Emile Bessette is the kind of guy who looks at the music industry and says, "No thanks, I'll do it my way." Then he walked into his shop, shut the door, and made a full album with his hands.
One Man Band Because Emerging Music Talent Can Stand Alone
Chazz played almost everything himself. No, not because he's a control freak. Just because people flake.
He called in his friend Ben Jax to play drums on several tracks. Why? Because Chazz needed someone who could count beats while staying sober.
Everything else? That was him writing, recording, mixing, thinking too much. You name it, he touched it.
The Album Has a Theme. Sort Of.
Chazz doesn't force a theme. He lets life punch him in the face, then writes about it. The album name came from a line in one song, and then he realized, "Oh yeah, that fits the rest too."
So the record deals with:
Chasing big dreams
Losing friends
Dads dying
Guitars crying
Regret, but make it sexy
This Time He Tried to Make Life Easier. Good Luck.
His last album had layers upon layers of gear, including four mellotrons. This one? Less chaos, more feeling.
He stripped things down so he wouldn't need a football team to play live. The sound swings between laid-back country rock and floating-in-space weirdness. Somehow, it works.
Spotify? No Thanks. He Has Tapes.
Yeah, tapes. Like, cassette tapes. Because he's not trying to be "discoverable" by some kid in Estonia, he's making art for real people who still own a stereo.
He might release vinyl if someone gives him money. Otherwise, it's tapes and digital (but not on Spotify. screw that place).
He's Also Running a Shop, a School, and Possibly a Cult
When Chazz isn't singing about lost dreams, he runs a shop called Sunflower and Friends. It's part music store, part vintage shop, part school. Kids there actually learn music instead of just posting covers for likes. Wild concept, right?
Chazz doesn't want clicks. He wants a connection. And maybe to mess with guitars using parts stolen from a UFO. His music's honest. His vibe's rare. And his attitude? Refreshing as hell.
Why Christopher St. Leger Paints Like He's in a Bar Fight
Christopher St. Leger doesn't do chill art sessions with calm jazz music in the background. Nope. His style is like throwing punches at a canvas while yelling words that'd get bleeped on TV. For him, painting is less "Bob Ross" and more "MMA cage match."
Painting Is His Way to Get His Rage Out
When Christopher paints, it's messy as hell. He cusses, screams, and gets paint everywhere like a toddler with anger issues. It's loud, messy, and a bit nuts, but somehow it works.
He even thinks every house needs a room dedicated solely to making a mess. Because who wants to live neat all the time?
Moreover, Chris is a control freak in real life. Painting forces him to chill out and let the paint take charge. Picture someone trying to paint using their weaker hand while drunk; that's his method.
Here's how he keeps things under control (sort of):
Never spend more than two or three days on one painting.
Don't waste time making it perfect.
Gets it done quickly, angrily, and moves the hell on.
Central Texas Looks Like a Weird Alien Planet
Chris landed in central Texas and thought, "What kind of weird-ass planet is this?" Grackles everywhere, live oak trees doing their weird tree stuff, houses without gutters. He noticed faded paint all over town like the whole place just said, "Screw it, we're tired."
However, painting made him start liking the place. Once he slapped some paint around, he finally felt at home. He needs to paint stuff before he decides if it's worth staying.
That said, next time you hear shouting and cursing from a house, it might not be a domestic issue. It could just be Chris working on his latest masterpiece.
Conclusion:
Suppose you're feeling both inspired and slightly attacked, good. That means your soul's still working. You just read about kids writing heartbreak songs deeper than your last breakup.
About grown men recording full albums alone, surrounded by dusty amps and emotional damage. And painters who throw paint like they're in a bar fight with their feelings.
This wasn't just a spotlight on emerging music talent. This was a reminder that raw, messy, painful, weird, and loud still wins. Nobody's waiting for the algorithm to say, "good job." They're just making art because they must, like sneezing emotions into the world.
So next time you think, "I need a social strategy before I release this," shut it. Record the thing. Paint the thing. Say the thing. Make it weird. Make it sad. Make it yours. That's what these weirdos did.
And guess what? They made us laugh, cry, scream, and question our entire life path in the same playlist. So, hats off to the kids, the loners, the scream-painters, and everyone making stuff to feel human again.
Go make some noise. Or paint your walls. Or write a song that makes your ex uncomfortable. Whatever it is, just don't stay quiet.
