Banners boast UF’s top research status to out-of-towners, but the orange and blue veils the increasingly animated music scene implanted within the heart of the city it inhabits.
Embedded among Gainesville’s fully grown oak trees adorned with snow-white spanish moss, enters a unique breed of wordsmiths, vocalists and ragers who bring an assortment of sonic flavors readily available for any audience.
Here is a sample platter featuring some of the many amazing artists in Gainesville.
Bambii Lamb
Equipped with a flowery voice and metallic instrumentation similar to the futuristic popstar Charli XCX, Gainesville native Grace Lamerson takes her hometown stages under the name Bambii Lamb.
With notable songs like “Innocent” and “After This”, the singer/songwriter possesses a catalog that speaks to a younger generation of women traversing modern-day relationships. Her sound is a nostalgic audio slideshow, living at the intersection of glossy mid-2000s chick flicks like “Mean Girls” and “Legally Blonde” and edgier ‘90s cuts like “Jawbreaker.” Bambii delivers pop songs in a subtle yet demanding register to quickly encapsulate her listeners.
Bambii fits snugly within the varied Gainesville music scene despite her unique sound and appearance. She almost always wears light-colored platforms and a pastel-colored get-up, occasionally with a medieval twist.
Shane Malone
The curly-haired UF computer science senior laces innocent baritone over an indie-pop backdrop to create songs built for a sunny day on campus.
Hailing from Jacksonville, the multi-instrumentalist creates songs he says are simply about life. From a sudden insect infestation at his apartment on the song “Ants” to the ups and downs of life on the song “Nowhere,” Malone makes music for the quintessential college student trying to figure out how to live as a young adult.
Malone is currently in California pursuing an internship at Google and recently formed a new band. He has over 3,300 monthly listeners on Spotify and almost 1 million likes on Tiktok, where he posts videos detailing his chronicles as a student musician.
Sky Luca$
Another Gainesville native, Sky Luca$ breathes the earthy charm of the city in his brand of spacious, hearty music that blends hip-hop, rock, indie and R&B.
The auto-tuned storyteller and twangy guitar player demands attention from those at his local shows. His songs mostly detail adventurous nights in the city and relationship woes, but Luca$ often dives into questions about existence and current societal issues plaguing the country.
Full-length projects like “Lone Sky” and “Our Generation” are Luca$’ bread and butter, as he effectively executes concepts and soundscapes.
The local product is also an integral part of the local music scene, serving as a creative director and CEO of the artist showcase circuit “Night Before.”
FARO
Arguably one of the roots of the Gainesville music scene, the young Gainesville-born hip-hop artist is known for his skillful rhymes packed with pop culture references and wise perspectives on society and culture.
FARO, a member of Gainesville-based record label Dion Dia, creates a flurry of conscious rap, dance bops and hype music built for any set of ears. The versatility and familiarity in his artistry enables him to speak to a wide range of age groups in Gainesville; a community that continuously shows unconditional support for his artistry at many local events he’s a part of.
The MC is a frequent performer at venues like How Bazar and Backyard, and tracks like “Wroten.” and “MYLove” are staples at many local shows.
Clouty!
One of the newest and most exciting artists of the Gainesville music scene, Clouty!, offers an electric act and excites every crowd with his rockstar energy.
He feeds off the momentum of SoundCloud-era heavy-weights like Playboi Carti and Lil Peep and breeds a new wave with the current Pluggnb Soundcloud movement, that seamlessly blends elements of ‘90s R&B and 808-heavy Plugg beats. Clouty!’s songs gleem on the surface of lost love and emo culture.
With notable tracks like “Emopluggforever<3” and “G.I. Joe”, Clouty! invites listeners to a whole new world as his atmospheric instrumentation takes them to an intersection of designer belts and outrageously fast cars.
Contact Dazion at dprosser@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @DazionProsser.
