The days go by, new artists come and go, but I still continue to find diamonds in the rough. Niko Villamor is that 'diamond'. Last month I was catching up on news from our favorite affiliate 2WhiteGirlz.com, and they had a feature with Niko. Of course I checked it out, and I'm oh so thankful. Niko's latest mixtape 'Inertia' is showing up all over the place. Niko had this to say on his Tumblr the day he released Inertia...
"It’s finally here. I recorded this during the first week of July and decided to drop it on my birthday. My computer crashed and I had to re record all of the records besides “The Unknown”, but I still dropped it on my birthday because I wasn’t going to let anything stop me from doing so…."
Interesting. That's true art. Dude is mad talented. Next In Show presents to you an Exclusive Interview with Niko Villamor.
First I would like you to give a brief background of your career in music?
I'm pretty much an outsider. I was signed to a company called noontime a little while back that managed Lloyd (the R&B singer) but for the most part I have been on the outer rings of "the industry".
What is your nationality?
I'm American, but my mother is Black and my father is White and Filipino.
What music did you listen to as a young Niko?
My moms was always playing Madonna and U2 around the house, and my father was playing a whole lot of Jazz, and I was playing a lot of R&B. But during these times I never thought I'd be doing music so I was just a fan.
What music do you listen to today?
I still listen to a lot of the same music now, I would just say that it has expanded more. I also have gone back to listen to groups that I missed. Like The Smiths for example.
A lot of people don't know this, but you are a ATL rapper. Were you born in Atlanta?
Nah. I was born in Berkeley CA, and then I moved to San Francisco. When my parents split up I landed in Atlanta with moms.
Does the south influence your music at all?
Definitely. If it wasnt for Atlanta I wouldn't be making music period. Inertia might not have the "standard" southern sound, but I carry the south with me at all times. I carry the west as well. Pieces of each culture is the reason I am what I am today.
What was it like growing up?
Growing up in San Fran was interesting because it's like a huge melting pot. For an extreme example, it felt like everyone there could say "Nigga" regardless of race and everyone was cool with it. And then transitioning to Georgia where it felt like nobody could say it outside of black people was a real culture shock to me. Opened my eyes a lot.
Inertia is the album out now. A very artistic project. I view it as a raw series of paintings? What inspired you in creating the album?
Pain. Hurt. Loss. The desire to be great. The urge to keep fighting regardless the circumstance. I had to lose certain people in order to create this project. I guess you could say it wasn't completely by choice either. The production that pro created meshed perfectly with what I was trying to express.
Is that a real black eye on the cover?
Have you ever been in a fight?
