Our Latest Obession - Beardless

Our Latest Obsession is making its resurgence with the help of Atlanta transplant, Shaquille Wharton. Better known as Beardless, the recently relocated rapper has kept a low radar locally despite a bubbling underground following in his hometown, Chicago and Atlanta. Beardless is apart of ATL-based hip-hop collective, Illectric Gold. He stands alongside fellow emcee’s WE$O and Pharaoh of Darrow, and house producer Dallas Winston. Their collaborative effort between uniquely driven forces creates the gutsy sound that Illectric Gold have nearly perfected. The sentiment of always thinking and being outside of the box is important to Beardless and reflects in the work of he and his labelmates.

While in Atlanta last year, Beardless released his debut mixtape, “Dark Walk Pt. 1.” The 17 track release is completely versatile; an impressively well-rounded first effort. Standout tracks include self-produced “Twisted,” and “Leh Go,” featuring WE$O and Pharaoh of Darrow. The broken down, aggressive tone of the tracks weave flawlessly within the pockets of complex production and in turn fosters an intention. On “Yup Yup,” Beardless gives us a peek at a more laid back, unbothered self over a flipped reggae cut. Before moving to DC, Beardless went back to his hometown of Chicago to record his latest project, “Dark Walk Pt. 2.”  The sequel to his debut is much more concise, cutting half of the number of tracks on the project. Beardless’ growth is undeniable, enhancements can be found all around the board. Dark Walk Pt. 2 has cleaner production and is overall more refined than its predecessor. Its lyrical content and delivery take a more thematic turn different from anything we’ve ever heard from Beardless before.

Beardless’ charismatic delivery made him stand out immediately. Adding in the fact that he comes from a collective of musicians just as talented and dedicated, it was a no brainer to make Beardless our latest obsession. Beardless is working on new music in DC and looking forward to performing locally this year. You can keep up with Beardless at the links below.

All Photos by Ilhan Alyanak for Capitol Sound D.C.

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