ABOUT

Kevin Adams Jr. — known to the world as YGTUT, or simply TUT — was born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in a household where faith and music were inseparable. His father is a Baptist preacher at Olivet Baptist Church; his mother, Lady Cynthia Adams, is a gospel singer with two recorded albums. TUT grew up playing the organ and drums in the church, absorbing sounds before he could articulate what music meant to him.

At 13, his father took him into a studio for the first time. He recorded a song. A few weeks later, his father brought studio equipment home. He never looked back. By his teenage years he was rapping under the name Kev Adams, the pen meeting paper every night, Outkast and UGK spinning on repeat.

At Middle Tennessee State University he met Isaiah Rashad. The two became close friends, bonding over Stankonia, Aquemini, and the idea that Chattanooga deserved a voice. Together they founded TheHou$e — a creative collective that became a home for artists like Michael Da Vinci, $hoey, and ChrisP. Both eventually left school to chase the music full-time.

In January 2015, TUT released Preacher's Son — a debut mixtape that earned a 7.3 from Pitchfork and announced him as one of the South's most compelling new voices. The record was rooted in Chattanooga's realities: gang violence, faith, community, survival. It featured live saxophone, soulful production, and verses that carried the weight of a preacher's son who'd seen both sides.

The years that followed brought collaborations, collective projects, and the 2016 breakout single "G35" featuring Isaiah Rashad — TUT's biggest commercial moment, landing on Billboard and cementing his reputation beyond Tennessee. In 2021, he appeared on Rashad's acclaimed album The House Is Burning on the track "Chad." His debut studio album In My Head arrived in 2022 on Same Plate/Sony, followed by continued prolific output: I'm Back (2023), Turn It Up and Face Down (2024), and the EPs WASH MY HANDS and I NEED $ in 2025.

TUT raps with economy and intention — no wasted syllables, no performance for its own sake. His music is Southern hip-hop rooted in jazz sensibility, personal narrative, and the hard-won wisdom of someone who grew up inside the church but learned to survive in the street.