Cody ChesnuTT

Cody ChesnuTT is a rare creative force with a sound that springs from the crossroads of soul, funk, and rock. He converged on the music scene in 2002 with his debut project, The Headphone Masterpiece, gaining massive exposure from the hit song “The Seed 2.0”. An artist in every sense of the word, Cody’s artistic love for composing the unexpected accident along with his “Independent, Do You” attitude, and his multitalented musical abilities set his performances and recordings apart from his contemporaries. At the dawn of 2011, almost a decade after his debut, Cody ChesnuTT is reemerging full force with highly anticipated new music.

Born in Atlanta, Georgia, Cody had a natural inclination for music that had him active by five years old. Raised at the height of the civil rights movement when rock and roll, funk, soul, and R&B were all taking center stage, Cody’s life and musical style were strongly influenced by all of these elements. At age twenty he embarked on his musical career, making an attempt as an R&B singer in Atlanta. Not having been formally trained, Cody cultivated his own art form moving beyond just singing to playing several instruments, writing, and producing.

As Cody continued to explore his musical sound, he transitioned into a more rock and Southern soul blend. Following his musical dreams, he uprooted to Los Angeles. There he formed the band The Crosswalk in late 1996 and two years later they received a deal with Hollywood Records. Their time on the label was short-lived lasting only long enough to record and mix what would’ve been their debut album, Venus Loves A Melody. They were dropped before the album was ever released and soon after went their separate ways with Cody retreating to what he loved most, making music.

In 2002 Cody took his bass, drum machine, keyboard, guitar, organ, microphone, and headphones into his bedroom and single-handedly crafted his debut album, The Headphone Masterpiece (Ready, Set, Go). The multi-flavored double CD featured 39 songs spanning 99 minutes, impressively all written, produced, and performed on Cody's four-track cassette recorder. Cody was able to achieve something virtually unheard of in the 21st Century high tech recording world and turned heads all throughout the industry for doing so.

Cody’s notoriety and fame soared when Grammy Award winning band, The Roots decided to cover his song, “The Seed” for their Phrenology album and featured him on guitar and vocals. “The Seed (2.0)” video was nominated for an MTV Video Music Award and an MTV 2 Award , introducing Cody to a more mainstream audience. Simultaneously, his own album The Headphone Masterpiece was nominated for the Shortlist Music Prize in 2003.

Cody’s resurrection of live music and pop funk style continued to gain attention with his song “Look Good in Leather” appearing in international TV commercial ads and his performance in the 2006 Dave Chapelle's Block Party movie. Cody, having tasted musical success, continued to tour nationally and internationally with music from his 2006 project The Live Release and received accolades for his video “King of the Game”, directed by Academy Award winning visual effects artist Michel Gondry. Following the 2007 tour, Cody decided to step back for a while in and shifted his focus to his family and self-development.

Returning in 2010, refreshed and renewed, Cody brings a more mature lyrical approach having evolved beyond the more profane content of The Headphone Masterpiece. Cody’s first reemergence project, his six-track EP, “Black Skin No Value”, will be released at the end of 2010. In his words, “The EP is social commentary rooted in spiritual and soul traditions,” and promises to be as passionate and expressive as his debut piece. In addition to the EP release, Cody is continuing to devote time to his wife of over 15 years, their children, photography, and growing vegetables as he resumes touring and recording for his next full length album, “Landing On A hundred” due out in 2011.