Southside Da’ro: The Bassist the Industry Knows, the Artist the World Is About to Meet
For years, he’s been a quiet force on stage playing behind some of music’s most popular names — Summer Walker, T-Pain, Lloyd and Teddy Riley. Now he’s ready to tell his own story.
Image courtesy of Southside Da’ro
Growing up on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois — 78th and Emerald to be exact — Southside Da’ro (pronounced Darr-o) unknowingly spoke his future into existence at about age 4, telling his mom he wanted to be an artist. While Southside Da’ro is his full moniker, Da’ro is the identifier — think Lil Wayne or Young Jeezy. It is a testament to the power of words and a journey rooted in faith that led him to fulfill his childhood dream.
He remembers first being drawn to music at Salem Baptist Church in Chicago, where he first heard live gospel infused with R&B chords which left a lasting impression. His pursuit of playing began on the upright bass at his school orchestra, but when he brought the idea home the finances weren’t there. His mother’s solution was simple but profound — pray about it. “If it’s for you, God will make a way.” And he did. It was his high school gospel choir instructor, Mr. McNear, who would change the trajectory of his playing entirely, demonstrating a slap bass technique that Da’ro describes as “the funkiest bass line I could have ever heard at that age” — that’s when electric bass became his focus. Humbling experiences like being fired from playing bass at church on his 14th birthday would drive him to buckle down and take his craft to the next level.
Those years of dedication eventually took him across the country and around the world, from festival stages to television performances, building a reputation as someone you could trust with your show. From serving as Summer Walker’s music director to working with Teddy Riley — who he credits as his touring boot camp — and even sharing the stage with Justin Bieber, he became a steady force that major artists could rely on. His production credits tell a similar story — including “Gas Station Love,” the standout record he produced for rising soul singer EJ Jones, credited under his government name Darnell Stoxstell, the name the industry has known him by until now. Those moments inadvertently prepared him for his own journey as an artist.
Da’ro describes his sound as “neo-futuristic music” — a hodgepodge of the best parts of rap, R&B, and neo-soul, anchored by his live instrumentation. A blend entirely on its own, he’s still working on finding the perfect name for it.
At what point did you know it was time to step into the artist role yourself?
“The pandemic really did a number on me. Isolation, loss of bread, canceled shows left and right, money tight. And it was crazy because even though my money was tight, I still had access to a studio [for] the majority of the pandemic. So I found myself in a studio where I couldn’t record anybody, I couldn’t produce for anybody, everybody was in their house scared. And I just started to experiment.”
The result of that pandemic era soul searching was Honda 7.0, a 15 minute EP four years in the making, released January 30th. Named after his most recent cash car purchase — which he also used to test his mixes — the project finally manifested a childhood dream he had somewhere along the way forgotten.
Tell me about Honda 7.0. What was the inspiration behind the project?
“Honda 7.0 was really another project I started in 2021. During the pandemic when I dropped my first project [released under the name Nasdax Ross], there was so much going on in the world, it didn’t necessarily get its just due. I didn’t perform those songs, I didn’t market it. So I was like, I want to make some songs worth going the extra mile for. […] From the time I started the project until it came out on the 30th of January, that was a four, five year wait. When I got my Honda, that’s when I changed the name because I was making the music and playing it in my Honda and testing out mixes.”
Was there a lyric or moment on the project that felt personal or hard to share?
“I cringe at Work So Hard (W$H) because it was a real time. […] The 2nd verse was personal. I literally had to move back to my mom’s crib during the pandemic. There was times where she had a one bedroom apartment, and that meant I was either sleeping on the couch or sleeping on the pullout bed that she had in her linen closet. […] I was coping, smoking a lot during the pandemic and it began to be an issue. […] The lyrics go — I was devastated, I was living at my mom’s house, didn’t even have a bed to sleep on, I was on my mom’s couch, I was medicated some days, felt too blunt, blacked him out, but I’m glad she was gracious, never kicked the kid up out. […] I kind of wanted to make my own version of [Kanye’s] Hey Mama.”
He goes on to say he was still struggling financially even though he was around millionaires.
“I was playing basketball with London on da Track, DRAM came through to some of the sessions. […] I’m seeing G-Wagons and Lamborghinis, and I’m literally getting dropped off by my mom in a GMC Terrain. It was character building.”
Despite the weight of those moments, Da’ro carries them with gratitude rather than bitterness — and it shows in everything he creates.
We finished the conversation with some “Southern Details” you might not’ve known about Da’ro.
Favorite southern dish?
Southern BBQ
Favorite local restaurant?
Big Daddy’s, D’s Kitchen, Scotch Bonnet, Island Vibes - Atlanta, GA
What city has shaped you the most?
“I will always say I’m from Chicago. I’ll always say that my upbringing really shaped how I view things. […] I would say Atlanta, because I graduated from college here […] I had almost a decade of touring, almost a decade of being a professional musician and being exposed to the things that made me want to become an artist. I’m thankful to have moved here at 20 and was trying to figure it all out, and even though I’ve had very rough spaces and patches in Atlanta, it definitely shaped the good, bad, and ugly into it being the best me.”
What do you want your Southern Legacy to be?
“At some point in my life, I would like to be a great dad, and I want to leave a legacy of encouragement, love and support to whoever comes out of my family tree. But also I want to leave the world with a set of amazing songs. […] I would like for songs to really change people’s lives, change people’s reality […] I do wish to improve the quality of life of people on this earth by them hearing my songs in some way, somehow.”
Advice to your younger musician self?
“Sometimes you gotta shut up bro […] sometimes complaining does not do anything but make your current situation worse, emotionally. I remember when I was in college, wishing that I could tour, and now, I’ve done that a lot, so a lot of it is just ‘be patient.’ […] I hope somebody that’s younger than me sees this, reads this, be patient, because the things that you want are on the way, and it’s a timeline that you have to live inevitably to get the things that you want.”
Never too far from his first love, Da’ro is currently holding down the bass for a residency at the Pinky Ring, Bruno Mars’ lounge at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Rest assured, Southside Da’ro live shows are on the horizon and new music is already in the works. Keep up with him on Instagram and Substack at @southsidedaro.
Listen to Honda 7.0
