Ekali’s Breakthrough: From Sleeping in the Van to Sampling Drake.
SUMMARY
Aaron Della Vedova chats with Nathan Shaw, known as Ekali, who is a music producer, DJ, and EDM trap-style artist. Ekali has worked with heavy hitters from his first song out of the gate which was picked up by Drake. He has worked with Skrillex, Zoo, and Wafia, to name a few. His journey to get to the top of the food chain in the music industry and that first confidence boost he got when Drake sampled one of his songs.
Ekali’s love of music started at a young age in Vancouver, Canada. When he was in elementary school a special teacher, Ms. Tomlinson, gifted him a violin that changed his life forever. In high school, he struggled academically and eventually dropped out to pursue music full-time. He joined a band but eventually felt creatively unsatisfied only playing bass.
In the early 2000s, electronic music began to gain popularity, especially in America. This is when the protagonist began to get interested in EDM and started making his own music. His first song was Unfaith, which Drake and Party Next Door sampled, giving him his first big break. He eventually hired an agent in Europe and went on four or five full European tours before becoming a well-known sought-after DJ and producer in America. But it hasn’t all been easy, fun, or pretty.
Ekali gets real about drugs, anxiety, and loneliness on the road as a solo artist, and what, or who, is the catalyst for him to course correct and move into the next phase of his career and life.
Tune in. We hope you enjoy this open, honest conversation with the remarkably talented Ekali.
What we chat about:
0:01:55 A Journey from Vancouver to the Music Industry
0:03:20 Ekali’s Musical Journey
0:06:32 Ekali’s Breakthrough Moment and Early Career Experiences
0:11:09 From Touring in a Van to Making Lemonade Out of Lemons
0:14:06 Touring and Substance Abuse
0:16:34 Touring as a Solo Artist
0:20:19 Balancing a Rock Star Lifestyle with Self-Care
0:21:47 Social Anxiety, Solo Album, and Touring During COVID-19
0:25:29 Impact of the Pandemic on Musicians' Live Performance Income
0:27:25 Navigating Touring and Relationships in the Music Industry
0:28:39 Fiance, Touring Life, Marriage Plans, and AI Art
0:30:21 AI and Its Impact on the Arts
0:32:08 Use of AI in Art and Music Creation
0:33:47 Benefits of Utilizing Technology in Music Production
0:35:23 Exploring AI as a Creative Assistant and His Upcoming Music Project
0:41:04 Meaningful Tattoos and Decorating the Human Body
0:46:11 Upcoming Projects and Tour Plans
Quotes:
I kind of put myself in a box, and the type of music that I make isn't necessarily ideal for dance, which is what these events are all about. Like, really heavy trap and dubstep is really fun and there's a lot of high energy, but there's not as much groove as other genres of music.
There are Instagram accounts with hundreds of thousands of followers, and there are artists who just do AI art, and that's it. And to me, that's a little bit scary because it's sort of eroding the integrity of the art.
I don't think that there will ever be a replacement for human art, but I do think that it's going to make living and prospering off of your art even more difficult than it already is for people who are just beginning, people who are trying to get into the field.
And the environment you're in, it's just like I don't know. I'm sure she trusts you, but I know most women would be like, wow, my husband is traveling around the world surrounded by drugs, alcohol, and women. That's got to be stressful a little bit. Even if they feel completely comfortable and trusting of you, you know, that kind of probably eats at them a little. It would eat on anybody.
It like, at my peak, I was playing, I think, close to 150 shows a year, so it was very busy. And coming out of COVID my first tour back, I think I played about 30 dates on the tour, and that was over the course of two months, so it was show every other day. But I got burnt out real quick the past few years. I'm getting older, and I'm finding that I want to spend more time at home now, and luckily I'm able to have that luxury. I can afford to just play a show here and there and then spend more time at home with my loved ones and making music.
Connect with Ekali: http://www.ekalimusic.com
YT: @Ekali
IG: http://www.instagram.com/@Ekalimusic
Connect with Aaron: http://www.chatsandtatts.com
Aaron IG: http://www.instagram.com/aarondellavedova
Guru Tattoo IG: http://www.instagram.com/gurutattoo
