Check out Nico Collins

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nico Collins.

Nico, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
I’m a 22-year-old singer, songwriter, and producer based in Los Angeles. Music has been and always will be the foundation of my life.

My musical journey started when I began my classical training in piano at three years old. My parents own a bar and ran a karaoke show, so I was always singing around the house with them even though I didn’t understand much of what I was actually singing at the time. I wanted to be able to accompany myself with an instrument, which is why I took the initiative to learn so young. Concurrently, I was always obsessed with pop music, and so on those car rides to my lessons, I would intently study the hit songs on the radio using my knowledge of musical theory so I could go back home and perform them to an audience consisting of my bedroom walls, and anyone else in the house haha. I’m fortunate enough to have perfect pitch, so by 7/8 years old, I could identify the chord progressions of any song, and learn them immediately. I credit my piano instructor, Lora Konnaya, as my musical mentor. I took lessons with her once a week for 15 years up until I was 18 and eventually moved to LA to further my career. That knowledge has been the core of why I think it was easy to teach myself how to song-write, and eventually produce.

Starting in middle school, I started posting your typical bedroom covers on YouTube and slowly throughout my childhood built an online audience which eventually got me discovered by an industry songwriter/producer in my senior year of high school. I had already left traditional school at that point to finish online, so I crammed through my final year, graduated early, and moved to LA to sign with him in March 2015. I was with the company for two years, and although the relationship didn’t work out, it was my first genuine experience and insight as to how the music industry, well, actually works. My biggest frustration was that I felt my creative input was not being taken seriously because of my age, and the company was essentially doing everything BUT producing my music. At the time, I wasn’t a producer, so out of pure frustration and low-key spite, I took it upon myself to learn the skill. I’m one of those corny people who believes everything happens for a reason, and I’m nothing but thankful for that experience because now I’m in complete control of everything I make. I took the next few years to hone down on finding my sound as an artist, and once I felt confident enough, I launched my artist project in January of 2018. I started posting one song every two to three weeks on all platforms, and eventually throughout the year gained a new audience who was engaged in the music I was creating as an artist, which was super exciting! It eventually grew noticeably by the end of 2018 and made its way through the pockets, music channels, and sub-genres of YouTube, Soundcloud, Spotify, etc. Nowadays, I spend most of my time literally just sitting in my house singing, writing, and producing music constantly. My biggest creative collaborator is my sister, Chelsea, who is extremely talented and a huge source of motivation for me to continue to work hard. Whether it be a song for me, her, or someone else, the two of us pretty much just pump out music like a machine. All my life, I’ve always been so grateful to have such a clear everlasting passion for music, as it is the one thing that truly makes me happy, has gotten me out of my darkest times, and led me to the path that I’m on today.

We’d love to hear more about your music. What do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I’m a singer, songwriter, and producer, so essentially I’m responsible for creating all aspects of a song from start to finish. I would classify my music as pop at the core, but with noticeable influences from several other genres, including alternative rock, hip-hop, and R&B. I even have a little bit of a country vibe in one or two of my songs. Growing up in the 2000s, I constantly listened to all the music that surrounded me — everything from pop/punk, pure pop, rock, R&B, hip-hop, country, you name it! My musical ADHD has never allowed me to consistently listen to one artist or genre in particular, so my own sound is inspired by multiple people across the board.

My favorite kinds of songs, regardless of genre, are the ones that have specific concepts, stories, and/or messages that evoke some sort of emotional connection within me. This is the approach that I take when forming concepts for my own songs. I almost always have something to say and know exactly what I want to write about before starting the musical process. Once I have that down, I’ll go to the piano or guitar and come up with a chord progression to my liking. From there, I’ll usually create the entire melody first, sometimes interspersed with phrases and lyrics, but mostly it’s just a bunch of “na nas” and “la las.” After that, I write the lyrics. This part of the process usually takes longest for me because I’m very particular with the words I choose. I always want them to “sing nicely” and flow effortlessly within the melody I’ve created, and that sometimes can be the biggest challenge. Once the song itself is done, I then open up my DAW, Logic Pro X, and start producing a rough shell of the beat. Then, I record all my vocals, edit/comp them to completion, and then build the rest of the production around them. Lastly, I mix and master the project, bounce it, and then post it for the world to hear!

The subject matter of my songs ranges. Some are more light-hearted and tongue-in-cheek, and some are pretty heavy/dark. I write about everything from the ups and downs of friendships, love, and romance, to the struggles of self-acceptance, addiction, and depression. If it’s anything I hope people take away from my songs, it’s that no matter who you are or where you live, all of us humans experience the same emotions and thoughts one way or another and that my listeners are not alone in their journey of life. I aspire to make music that people find relatable in a way they can apply the subject/concept of the song to their own life, allowing them to form a unique attachment and relationship to my music. I know it can be hard to be vulnerable and honest with both yourself and other people, but for some reason, I just let myself get out the most authentic words and feelings I’m having in that moment, no matter how personal. Hopefully, my catharsis can inspire people to take the same approach within themselves.

When creating my songs, everything I write about is derivative from my own experiences. Whether it be first-hand, or a scenario or situation I’ve observed in a family member, friend, or even in some form of media, people and real life are my biggest sources of inspiration.

Artists face many challenges, but what do you feel is the most pressing among them?
There are so many different forms of art, so I can’t speak for all of them, but I think within music, we’re living in a day and age where it’s much easier to create it due to the exponential rise of technological advancements. You no longer have to shell out thousands of dollars to work in a fancy studio, when you can get an identical sounding product using a couple of key pieces of equipment within your own home.

The invention of social media has also completely changed the way listeners discover and consume music, and although it can be hard to initially find a niche and form a fanbase, it’s definitely possible as long as musical artists stay up-to-date with how it works, and most importantly, persevere and stay consistent with content, even if it takes a while to start seeing noticeable results. You can make a decent living as an independent artist, especially if you own most of the master/copyright, so there’s really no need to seek out a major label until the timing and deal is right, and the partnership is equal, not one-sided. The people now have the power to distribute their own material at any time. The traditional strict rules of how to “market and brand” a single/album no longer apply in today’s day and age, which I think is super exciting.

I think that cities like LA, which is colloquially known for being the hub of the Western entertainment industry, can help by embracing, reaching out, and supporting smaller, up-and-coming artists. Whether it be venues allowing them to play shows, media/press opportunities like these to write articles on them, or even business executives taking chances on people who aren’t at a mainstream level of notoriety, any level of support is beneficial to all those involved. Everyone starts somewhere, and it can be hard to navigate the current music industry when a lot of the main focus and priority is on the superstars we’ve all been familiar with for the past decade or the social media influencers with large followings that don’t really have anything to do with music. From a business standpoint, it’s understandable, but I think it’s important to maintain some sort of a balance.

Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
You can find my music on any music streaming/digital platform. Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, SoundCloud, Deezer, Google Play, Amazon, Tidal, etc. Just giving my song a stream or download is enough support. I’m pretty active on social media as well, so following me on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook is another great way to support me and stay up to date with everything I’m currently working on.

I’m playing at Catch One in LA on July 25th at 7:30 PM.

Contact Info:

• Website: youtube.com/nicocollinsofficial
• Email: [email protected]
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1iGwHlKgQKtdrtzmlwZ71U?si=JwVip5wzTziEdsfH_G_aRA
• Apple Music: https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/nico-collins/1318575539
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/nicocollinsofficial
• Instagram: instagram.com/nicocollins
• Twitter: twitter.com/nicocollins
• SoundCloud: http://soundcloud.com/nicocollins
• Facebook: facebook.com/nicocollins
• Other: soundcloud.com/nicocollins

Image Credit:
Brooke Shaughnessy

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