Photo Credit: Tiffany Kumar
[Nodis](https://www.instagram.com/nodismymusic/?hl=en) is here to tell his story through his music. Whether you label it as pop or Hip Hop, the DMV native is guaranteed to provide you with endless sounds that will have you reminiscing on the nights you can’t remember with the people you’ll never forget.
The songwriter and rapper describes himself as “someone who speaks for the generation, for kids who grew up with nothing around them. I don't act like someone I'm not. I don't act like I got all of this shit figured out, I'm not rich and that's why kids can resonate with it.”
Having grown up in an environment where there wasn’t shit to do except do drugs, Nodis draws from real-life experiences and injects deep emotion and feeling into his records. A lot of his music is inspired by his ex-girlfriend Kim, writing from his heart and going into detail about what exactly transpired.
Now currently signed to Tiffany Kumar’s Beat House, Nodis has released 6 songs over the last 7 months including fan favorite “OFFDRUGS.” His brand new single “All About Cake” is moving with swiftness from a remix of it that went viral on tik tok.
Flaunt caught up with Nodis at the Kandypens house in Los Angeles to discuss overcoming drugs, a recent hookup with his ex, inspiration behind his singles, his fashion style, and more!
**What was it like growing up in the DMV?**
Growing up in Virginia, you have so many pioneers. Pharrell, Timbaland, Missy Eliott, fucking Chris Brown, Trey Songz, The Neptunez, The Clipse, you have a lot to live up to as an artist. It’s not LA or NY, I was in bumfuck Virginia. I had to find the most talented people around.
**Born to an Indian mother and Lebanese father, how does that play into your life?**
Most Indian parents want their kids to be doctors or lawyers. I'm trying to show kids that you can follow your fucking dreams. I was raised by my mom, she was a drummer in a punk band. My mom’s so much cooler than me. \[laughs\] She influenced me, raising me on music from Smashing Pumpkins to 50 Cent.
**How young were you when you started partying?**
I started smoking weed when I was 11 or 12. I always hung out with older kids. I grew up skateboarding, always on some bad shit as a kid. By the time I was 12, my friend gave me DMT.
**At 12?! Who gave you DMT?**
I smoked DMT, so it evolved. The crazy thing is he was my babysitter from ages 7 to 10, then he became my boy. When I was 12, he’s 16 or 17. He had me smoke it standing up, I don't think you're supposed to.
**Omg, I'm glad you're still here!**
It builds character. \[laughs\] I got this feeling from the crown of my head to the bottom of my feet, I remember falling on the ground. I was living in a super shitty apartment with my mom, she’s gone. I crawled to the mattress on the floor and looked at the ceiling, saw shit coming down. After that, I got into more drugs. Honestly, I probably tried everything except heroin, meth, and crack. To tell you the truth, I'm not trippin’ off drugs anymore. I was leaving a restaurant, I looked at a homeless person and thought “damn, that's what I looked like when I was on drugs.” Don't get it fucked up, my life’s still fun. I still have those wild nights with my boys with girls, but now I’m focused on me.
**Was there a point where it was an issue?**
Definitely. It was the worst when I was 19 and I started smoking blues (roxys). They're opioides, it's doctor prescribed heroin. I smoked blues off tinfoil. I remember I blew $7000 in a month. I was selling weed, I wasn't rich. I blew all the money on someone who gave me the money, that's when it got bad. I went to college for 2 weeks then dropped out. Went back to college and dropped out again, then got arrested.
**What'd you get arrested for?**
I sold Xanax and a bunch of prescription drugs to an undercover cop, over the course of 6 months. I wasn’t on no kingpin shit. A fucked up situation, it was damn near close to entrapment.
**How old were you?**
19\. I was over 18, they charged me with a bunch of felonies. It's such a pain because I was applying to a new apartment recently, this building said “it popped up that you sold drugs within a school zone.” I never had problems with it before, but it changed my life. I wouldn't be here with you or in LA if I didn't snap the fuck out of it.
**When you were partying and all that, what was music's role in your life?**
Music was everything, but I wasn’t consistent. In my eyes, I was still a beast at making music. I'm not the person who does drugs and can get creative. I'm way more efficient when I'm locked in the studio, I don't need distractions. I want to be sober to write and rewrite, write and rewrite.
**How long have you been doing music?**
I started writing music around the time I started smoking weed, 11 or 12. Kids would bring the mic and set up in my house, I’d want to be better than them. I thought I was better than them, I stand by that. I started really recording in studios at 16 or 17, really dropping music. I only have 8 songs out now.
**What was your intention behind that?**
I curate each song. I write and re-write. I’m not just putting out a bunch of bullshit. My manager Tiffany Kumar linked me with so many great producers. This producer Avedon is my spirit animal when it comes to music. He did a bunch of shit for Trippie and Russ, who I'm also fans of. KyleYouMadeThat and I hit the jackpot collaborating on “All About Cake.” He’s so fire.
**How did you meet** [**Tiffany**](https://www.instagram.com/tiffstarrkumar/?hl=en)**?**
I DM'd her. I was mad excited like “yo, this is crazy!” She created Secret Genius at Spotify. I study music, the game of music I'm interested in. I watch interviews, so I knew who Tiffany was. She said “meet me at SoHo House tomorrow.” I met her, the next day I went to her house for 10 hours and we talked about music. Definitely I owe everything to Tiffany, she pushes me harder and works relentlessly at this shit.
**How does mom feel about the music?**
My mom’s lit. My mom will send videos of her smoking joints, listening to my song singing lyric for lyric. My mom will be at every show, she's a huge supporter.
**What inspired your new single "All About Cake"?**
I’m bringing you into my real life scenarios. Young Crush Lord shit. Shit that people my age have experienced, details that girls and my friends will recognize. “It’s all good, it’s ok, she throw smack then she throw shade, where you at girl, on my way, snap me pics she my top 8, tell her friends that we best friends but yes I hit like yesterday.”
**The hook says "shorties love Drake” what made you say that line haha?**
My ex and I were mad toxic. Scratches on my face, phones broken, cheating and all that shit. 2 years after we broke up we got back together for 1 weekend and as soon as she left she told me Drake Dmed her.
**Does your ex know your songs are about her?**
She does. \[laughs\] It's crazy because we were not speaking and I randomly posted a pic of her looking bad and shouted out Juice WRLD’s quote “"why do evil girls have the prettiest face?" This girl robbed me. We had a super toxic relationship in the past. My post swiped over to an account she created because we had each other blocked. The account’s called @imsorryirobbedyou, it said "hey Sidon, I miss you so much you're my best friend." She saw it and flew out here a couple weeks ago, I got bored during quarantine.
**How did it go?**
We don't talk anymore. \[laughs\] We hooked up, chilled for the weekend. A little getaway and she went back to Virginia. Then told me Drake DM'd her.
**How long were you guys together for?**
2 or 3 years. We didn’t talk for a minute after we broke up. she’d hit me up and I wouldn't answer. My pride wouldn't let me, she robbed me.
**What did she take?**
Weed. Her friends and some dude set me up and robbed me in Virginia. You might dead someone for life off that right?
**Are you looking to date in LA?**
My boy Charlie Heat called me YOUNG CRUSH LORD in the comments of one of my IG posts with a girl and it stuck. I'm having fun. In an alternate universe, I’d wake up and get up out of my bed extravagantly in a silk robe. How it really goes is: I get abruptly woken up by calls from my manager Tiffany who's already awake for X amount of hours, waiting for me to wake up. She hits me with a list of shit to do. There might or might not be a girl in my bed. If there’s a girl in my bed – because she knows how I act, I act different through FaceTime. I'll be quieter because I don't want to wake the girl up. She won't even ask, she'll say "when is she leaving?" Alright, I got shit to do.
**Bring us back to the studio session for "All About Cake.”**
Some songs take me months to finish. I re-write so much that I’m burnt out. I went to the studio and wrote and recorded “All About Cake” in 2 hours.
**What’s your creative process for this project?**
I was writing the project living in LA, but flying back to Virginia to take drug tests because I was on probation. For 2 days out of the month, I’d pay for flights to pee in a cup and come back here. I write, rewrite, write, rewrite. We might be on version 17.4, but I might release version 3. It was fucking fire to link with KyleYouMadeThat for “All About Cake.” We are definitely doing more. I like being by myself, I don't like having distractions. If I have girls in the studio, I'm not focused on making the song. I'm trying to fuck the girl.
**How would you describe your fashion style?**
I’m like Elton John meets Punjabi MC. I rock my Young Crush Lord shit. You can go to my instagram and see me rocking it. We have a clothing line in development.
**Are you shy? \[points at neck tattoo\]**
Nah, that's my aunt's name. I was raised by my mom and my aunt, so I had to get my aunt's name.
**Does that start a lot of conversations?**
Yes, it does. I'll be in the elevator, people will say exactly what you said "are you shy?" In my mind, I think “what? What did I say to you?” It does start a lot of conversations, I knew that getting it. I thought “what’s my aunt’s name? I'll get it on my neck, perfect!” But nah, I'm not shy.
