“If this is what makes me happy whenever I’m listening to it,” he thought, “Why don’t I at least try to write something like this?”
Cuffing Season’ song “Crybaby” was the first of his newly refined style, written and released in late 2023. A slower tempo beat with a bit of swing is topped by Chandler’s vocals, which range from easy going to big and melodic, with plenty of warmth and grit throughout. Chandler was pleasantly surprised by the warm reception, feedback and amount of plays the song received.
“I was making this more for me,” he said, “but I think that my passion for this project now is maybe more contagious.”
He stuck to it in 2024, releasing several more songs and building up a social media presence, particularly on TikTok where he regularly posts short clips of his singing. Subsequent releases such as his top performing song “Hypnotized,” and the latest single “You’re My Paradise” kept Cuffing Season growing steadily, especially in the later months. In all, Cuffing Season racked up over 1.3 million streams across all platforms in just the last year. It all started as fully independent operation, and Chandler continues to create his music and videos at home in his dining room. Now with a collection of solid songs, an engaged and excited community of online listeners, and a team behind him to help get the word out, Cuffing Season stands ready to take the show on the road.
Cuffing Season’s official debut show is going down on February 28th, opening for fellow longtime Mississippi artist and touring performer Sam Donald at Trax Bar & Grill in Long Beach. Just ahead of the show, on Valentine’s Day, Cuffing Season will be dropping the next single “How to Be Loved.” A very cool and smooth jam with a huge chorus, the upcoming track invokes that classic R&B style that Chandler is so fond of and feels like it could have been written in decades past, but is still very much a fresh new thing. Fans of the previous releases should find plenty to love in the new track.
Of course, all this talk of love isn’t just coincidence – It’s a big part of Cuffing Season’s identity. The term “cuffing season” refers to those wonderful cooler months of the year, beginning in October, when people might tend to seek out romantic partners to spend time and keep warm with. It’s an idea that drew Chandler in when he was thinking of names for his solo project.
“A lot of my music tends to float around the theme of love,” he said. “I’ve always found love to be the thing that got me out of those hardships… through friendships, through the partner that I have now… it’s been one of those driving forces that kept me positive throughout my life. I’m obsessed with this idea that no matter how hard your circumstances, if you can just learn to love not only yourself but the people around you, you just… you tend to be happier, you tend to see the brighter side of situations.”
After the debut show, Cuffing Season will be performing at Coast Observer’s Covey Awards, April 22nd at Hard Rock Live. Beyond that, he looks to move forward soon into touring as he continues to create new music to share with his listeners.
“I want people to come to a show and feel that I care about them,” he said. “I want them to feel that I appreciate them, because I absolutely do.”
So, get out there and catch a show!
~Support Local Music~
scott@coastobserver.com
@scottiredd9
TikTok/ Facebook – @cuffingseasonmusic
Links: linktr.ee/cuffingseasonmusic
Music streaming on major platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Youtube)
Photos provided by StrobeLight Management, Cuffing Season
