ABOUT
"While truly each of her songs stands on its own as a catchy and cathartic outpouring of self-expression, all of McDaniel’s art contains through-lines that effectively, evocatively capture our shared core humanity."
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"Classic dreamy, crystal clear vocals, she lets her melodies soar and brings her sound to life...vulnerable and honest lyrics"
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"Crystalline vocals blend painlessly with the pop-fused melodies and flavorful instrumentation"
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Shayla McDaniel is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer crafting guitar-driven indie pop to soundtrack your life. The Knoxville, TN-based artist’s music has been featured in MTV's “Siesta Key,” Disney+ “Big Shot,” The CW’s “Nancy Drew” and retail and dining spaces around the world.
The laid back artist's honeyed vocals and indie pop-rock hit that sweet spot between major and minor tonalities with a pan-genre appeal. Pristine vocals, breezy pop grooves, big hooks, and soaring melodies contribute to her pop allure and soulful, guitar-driven alt-rock sensibility.
In a short period of time, the young artist has garnered prime accolades. She has opened for Joy Oladokun, performed at Rhythm N’ Blooms Music Festival with the likes of Young the Giant, Dave Barnes, Gogol Bordello, Birds of Chicago, and others; Sunset on Central; Dogwood Arts Festival; the Waynestock Festival; Women in Jazz Jam Festival; and live on-air at WUTK 90.3 FM, WDVX 89.9 FM, and WOZO 103.9 FM, among others. Shayla has been in Knoxville Music Warehouse’s Top 16 song charts; been voted by fans as Knoxville’s Favorite Band; won numerous Knoxville Music Awards; and earned prestigious awards nominations from CityView Magazine and Knoxnews.
Shayla’s catalog is vast, however, several recurring themes surface, thematically as well as musically. The tracks showcase her purposeful and generous songwriting skills—she’s a boldly vulnerable and expressive writer who never hides behind vagueness.
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“I process my feelings through my songs,” Shayla divulges. “Sometimes, I start off feeling confused or neutral, and I let the music take me away. In my songs there are recurring themes of loving others, loving yourself, and mental health. I feel like if you look after yourself, you’ll be equipped to take care of others. I struggle with depression, and now that I have more of a platform, I want to share my story and shine a light on mental health issues,” she says.
Shayla’s polished vocals, her pop-rock songwriting, and her instrumental instincts invite comparisons to John Legend fronting an indie rock band, MUNA, and Harry Styles, but the truth is, there aren’t many talents who sound like Shayla. Her smoothly emotional vocals, self-contained artistry, and indie rock outlook is singular. Shayla counts as influences artists as diverse as the band JOSEPH, Lianne La Havas, and Deep Sea Diver, among others. She released her debut single in 2016; her debut EP in 2017; a follow-up EP in 2019; her debut full-length record in 2022; and another EP in 2023.
It took a little prodding to get lifelong musician, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Shayla McDaniel onstage. A friend of hers had never heard the Knoxville-based singer-songwriter’s musical gifts, but was well-versed in her steely determination and Type A personality. He suggested she take her music out of the basement, and Shayla took his sage advice and emerged an award-winning, prolific artist.
McDaniel grew up playing music in church and elementary school orchestral programs while exploring multiple instruments in her parent’s basement. She began learning bass at church, accompanying the gospel choir when the bassist had gone off to college and left the instrument behind. “My brother messed around with it first, but didn’t really like it, so I picked it up,” she recalls. “Learning to play by ear and with other musicians was extremely helpful.” Through a patchwork of school instruction and informal experiential learning, Shayla has been able to be proficient on bass, guitar, drums, keyboard, and production software. She played her first record release show in 2017, and has been pursuing a professional career ever since. Today, she writes, sings, produces, engineers, and plays all the instruments on her songs, but has outside engineers mix and master her tracks.
Driven, productive, and prodigiously talented, McDaniel is now poised to emerge a world-class artist with a uniquely emotive indie-rock aesthetic. Up next, she will be playing local and regional shows with her band, as well as intimate solo performances for her ever-growing audience. “I feel like I am really finding myself as an artist these days. It’s been such an uplifting journey,” Shayla says. “Music really brings meaning to my life, and it makes me feel better.”
