SHOOTING THE BREEZE CATCHES UP AND TALK TO WRITER RAPPER FROM LONG ISLAND NY NIK MOODY
Who is Nik Moody?
When did you start doing music?
Who inspired you to do music?
What does music mean to you?
What do you think of the direction of the music game?
What do you think is missing on the music game?
Where do you see yourself going in 10 years? )
) nikmoody is a writer and rapper from Long Island, NY.
2) I started getting into music a little later than most. I didn't write a song until I was 18 years old but I've been writing since I was 6. I compiled notebooks of stories and poems for as long as I can remember and it was only natural that eventually the words turned into lyrics and stories into songs for I loved hip-hop.
3) My cousin Anthony took me to a Linkin Park show back in 2002. At the time, I was a punk rock kid living in Brooklyn and I didn't really listen to hip-hop. I enjoyed the head banging music much more. But at the concert Linkin Park brought out Jay-Z out to perform "Encore" and the crowd absolutely erupted. The energy in the arena was so palpable you felt like someone was lifting you up. I fell in love with that vibe immediately. I became addicted right then and there.
4) Music for me is the purest art form there is. It's the universal connector. For me, it's a way of expressing emotion. The right song can turn a sunny day gray and a rainy sunny. There's something magical about that. It's unseen but essential.
5) Unfortunately, music has become extremely over-saturated. With millions of artists promoting themselves independently I feel like there's a lot of talent going unheard. That being said there's a lot of meaningless music spewing from the airwaves. I think somewhere along the line marketing companies stuck their fingers in the game and turned into a dollar sign. I hope the new generation can steer the ship back to the course of pure soul.
6) Specifically for hip-hop, I don't think enough rappers understand the meaning of the word artist. Yes, they're making catchy songs. Yes, the production is cathartic. But there has to be more depth to the lyrics. The game is missing innovators. Artists who pour their heart and soul into a song, people who bleed on the page. People who live their art. Kendrick Lamar, J. Cole, and Chance The Rapper are the people I look up to in hip-hop but rap needs a Kurt Cobain. Someone so individual that he's universal.
7) I see myself gaining a platform to create. Music is not the only art form I'd like to explore. I see myself making films and moving on to novel writing. Any chance I get to create I will take. But it will all start with a platform and a fanbase who believes in me. I'm working on that now.
