NBS. No Bad Sound.
These three words sum up the philosophy of the place. “There is no judgment here. It’s not a question of talent either,” assures Jai Nitai Lotus, artist and director of Studio NBS, which is part of the non-profit organization Chalet Kent.
We provide young people with opportunities and try to broaden their perspectives through art and music.
Jai Nitai Lotus, director of Studio NBS
Mostly from the neighborhood, young people go there for free to record their voices, learn software and techniques, then, often, escape for an hour and a half – or more – from a difficult, even dangerous, daily life.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
The entrance to the Côte-des-Neiges Youth Center where Studio NBS is located
Nitai – everyone calls him that – has been running the program for eight years. It was he who undertook the move to the youth center located in Martin-Luther-King Park, five years ago, when the building previously occupied by NBS, avenue de Courtrai, was threatening to collapse. It also made some changes to the initiative launched in 2007 by the Nomadic Massive collective.
Yama//Sato est l’un des autres piliers de NBS. Le polyvalent artiste qui a produit plusieurs chansons de Skiifall, dont Yuteman Denis avec Charlotte Cardin, confie qu’il serait « probablement une personne avec des problèmes » s’il n’avait pas connu l’endroit.
« J’ai commencé à venir ici pour être un jeune normal. À la maison, j’avais l’impression de grandir trop vite. […] At first I rapped, but I’m an introvert. I found how I could express myself by learning production. » Although he hopes that his compositions continue to resonate with millions of people around the world, what Yama enjoys is teaching others what he learned at NBS. “To be honest, it’s the only thing that really makes me happy. »
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
Yama//Sato in the main NBS studio
The energy here is raw. If someone comes singing about being heartbroken, their heart was really broken just a few hours ago. It’s this authenticity that I look for in music, and I’m lucky to witness it.
Yama//Sato
“A lot with a little”
You have to climb a few steps to enter the Côte-des-Neiges Youth Center. Then, go down a few to access the NBS premises. These are set up in a former changing room. A vestige of the bathroom, a urinal – painted gold to “make it fly” – is a reminder “that you can do a lot with a little”, emphasizes Nitai.
PHOTO FRANÇOIS ROY, THE PRESS
The second recording room in Studio NBS was set up in a former bathroom.
The number of young people aged 11 to 18 who wish to benefit from NBS services is increasing year by year. The two-month waiting list was reduced to one with the addition of a second recording room and the hiring of mentors, Yama//Sato, DonPerry and Killjei, former “clients” become artists capable of transmitting their knowledge.
So that everyone can express their emotions and creativity in the best possible setting, certain days of the week have specificities. Thus, Tuesdays are reserved for girls, “because sometimes, with the boys all sitting there, it’s a little difficult to open your heart and reveal your writings,” notes Marilia Beltrame, media and programs coordinator for Kent Cottage.
Aspiring producers meet on Mondays to have their songs heard. beats and to exchange, “because networking is essential if you want your music to spread,” assures Nitai. It is precisely because he builds relationships with various musicians he invites to the studio that NBS artists opened for the Alaclair Ensemble show last September at Club Soda.
“Like a family”
The first time Jevonte Senior walked into Studio NBS, he was accompanying a friend who had booked a time slot. “He had finished recording and had 20 minutes left in his session. As a joke, I asked him if he wanted me to spit a thing. I was a little nervous, but I did it. Nitai told me to come back soon, and I haven’t stopped since. »
Celui qui rappe sous le nom de Snowside dit qu’il était « impliqué dans de mauvaises choses avant de venir régulièrement à NBS ». « En venant ici, je passe moins de temps dehors à ne rien faire. J’ai pris confiance et j’écris plus. J’écris aussi à la maison, donc je suis moins à l’extérieur où c’est facile d’avoir des ennuis. […] It’s like a family here. I feel accepted and encouraged. Even if it’s your first time, we welcome you and try to get to know you. Coming here helped me grow as a person and as an artist,” mentions Snowside.
Skiifall: Before and after Ting Tun Up
PHOTO AIDAN MATTHEWS, PROVIDED BY MOOSE KNUCKLES HEATMAKERS
Skiifall, with Yama//Sato in the back, at the launch of the video for Left The Trencheslast October 26
The room Ting Tun Up, by Skiifall, has over three million plays on Spotify. It allowed him to cross the ocean to perform in front of a London crowd who knew every lyric, and those of his subsequent songs. This first success was created in one session at Studio NBS, although Skiifall had not set foot there for almost two years.
« Yama//Sato m’a appelé pour que je prenne la place d’une personne qui ne s’était pas présentée. Et, ce jour-là, on a fait Ting Tun Up. On a tourné la vidéo deux jours après et on l’a sortie le 11 novembre 2020. Depuis, toute ma vie a changé », relate Skiifall en entrevue téléphonique.
Avant de raconter la suite, remontons un peu dans le temps. Shemar McKie a rencontré pour la première fois Jai Nitai Lotus au Studio NBS alors qu’il n’avait que 12 ans. Bien qu’il ait aimé l’expérience, il n’y est retourné que six ans plus tard. Entre-temps, il a cultivé son talent à J2K (Jeunesse 2000), qui offre des services semblables à ceux de NBS et qui était plus près de chez lui, à Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.
« Quand je suis revenu en 2018, je leur ai fait écouter la musique que j’ai enregistrée à J2K et ils ont aimé. Yama et moi avons ensuite fait un projet de trois chansons qui nous a inspiré de continuer à faire ce qu’on voulait faire dans la vie », mentionne Skiifall.
L’artiste a tout de même pris une pause de plusieurs mois. C’est au bout de celle-ci qu’il a reçu l’appel de Yama qui allait changer la trajectoire de sa vie.
Vol. 2 et la suite
Certes, la carrière du Montréalais originaire de l’île de Saint-Vincent a pris son envol, mais il fait les choses à son rythme. « Dans les deux années suivantes, j’ai collectionné plein de sons et de petits moments de ma vie. Je ne savais pas ce que ça allait donner quand j’enregistrais. Puis, j’ai choisi sept chansons que j’aime beaucoup, qui parlent de trucs que j’ai vécus, de beaux moments et aussi de moments plus difficiles. » Le résultat fut le puissant Woiiyoie vol. 2 – Intense City EP, lancé en mai dernier. C’est sur ce microalbum que se trouve Yuteman Denis sur laquelle on entend Charlotte Cardin.
À la fin de novembre, Skiifall a diffusé une vidéo pour le morceau Left The Trenches. Il a enregistré celui-ci une semaine après Ting Tun Up, en 2020, et le gardait en réserve en espérant en faire un vidéoclip. En juin dernier, il fut l’un des trois lauréats d’une bourse accordée par Moose Knuckles et le prix Prism, administré par l’Académie canadienne du cinéma et de la télévision, lui permettant de réaliser son projet.
L’artiste de 22 ans ne désire pas dévoiler ses plans pour la prochaine année, bien qu’il ait « un projet déjà tout fini ». « En ce moment, je suis en train d’écrire toutes les questions que je me pose, puis je vais répondre à ces questions quand je vais les relire. […] When I think of the young people who go to NBS and others, I know that the best way I can inspire them to pursue their dream is to keep going, because if I can do it, they can too,” Philosophizes Skiifall.
Killjei: Take it to another level
PHOTO CHARLES WILLIAM PELLETIER, SPECIAL COLLABORATION
Killjei at Studio NBS
The year 2023 was particularly significant for Sadrac Jr. Acceus: he completed his first year as a mentor at Studio NBS and launched Endworldhis first album under the name Killjei.
The 29-year-old artist has been active for almost 10 years. “When I was called Jei Bandit, I was more into experimentation. I released six or seven projects, and each one was different from the other. There were things that I loved in music that I had not learned to do or that I did not have the skill to materialize,” he says.
By attending and working at Studio NBS, Killjei developed new skills and made connections with musicians that allowed him to realize his artistic vision. In addition to “filling up on energy” by meeting the young people who use its services. “By being here every week, I boosted my skills as if I had XP points and I used them to create my album,” he illustrates.
Launched in July, Endworld is an album with trap sounds of rare depth and great cohesion. Co-produced by Killjei, nimbustwokay, Wizurd and WYLN, the work is guided by the jazzy strings of Swede Oscar Johnson and the mournful keyboards of Londoner Zorc. The atmosphere continually evolves, going from dark to bright then taking the opposite path thanks to skillful rhythmic transitions. A host of artists with varied styles assist Killjei on the microphone: Crypt999, Trei Ochi, Gxlden Child, Lewis Dice, Kevin Na$h, DO, the Outcast and his NBS colleagues Yama//Sato and DonPerry, to name a few -there. The latter recently released the poignant microalbum Without sun.
Killjei presented pieces ofEndworld on stage since its release, but is busy putting together a small orchestra to enhance the live experience. He is also working on a new album called Vertigowhich will benefit from the productions of Yama//Sato.
A childhood in two languages… and two countries
Sadrac was born in Quebec, but the moves followed quickly. “In first grade, I got kicked out of school. My mother sent me to my father in Florida and that’s where I learned to speak, write and read in English. I came back for my second year and learned to read and write in French. I moved back to Florida in fourth grade,” Killjei said.
He did not return to Quebec until high school. It was when his family moved to Laval that he “connected to Montreal” and began to nurture his passion for music. Although he is bilingual, Killjei raps in English, as it is his “first language”. However, he does not rule out recording one day in French, but promises that it would be “a truly Montreal shit”.