Singer/songwriter Chezile proves the long game is still a possibility in pop music: his debut single “Beanie” started drawing press attention a year after its release, by which point he’d quietly amassed a staggering number of streams. New fans would discover a growing stockpile of music, including the EP 47 and similarly dreamy singles “Wally” and “Still in Love.” The musician was born Alejandro Sanchez in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 2000. An avid skateboarder in his youth, Sanchez counted a Van Halen concert among his more memorable musical experiences growing up, and found inspiration in the confessional, intimate stylings of acts like Frank Ocean. He’d soon find his own spin on the bedroom pop trends of the 2020s, weaving together dreamy electric guitar licks and lyrics that were big on emotion and short on specificity, allowing listeners to mold it to their social media posts and inner feelings as they saw fit. It was in that spirit that “Beanie” was released in 2023. The centerpiece of his debut EP, 47, released the following year, was a considerable slow burn -- to the point that Chezile had no permanent address once it started taking off, bouncing between motels and Airbnbs. By the time the track started streaming in the hundreds of millions, it was hard to ignore his presence, and singles “Wally” and “Still in Love” -- anchored, like “Beanie,” by dreamy guitar chords, crisp drums, and a keening vocal range -- kept his momentum going through the end of 2024, with promises of a full-length album to follow in 2025.