THE CONEY ISLAND MAYOR: GORILLA NEMS
Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York | Gorilla Nems
INTERVIEW INNOCENT?
The self proclaimed Coney Island Mayor, Gorilla NEMS has become the blueprint to follow for indie rappers, be it his vicious pen game or business savvy. Both his music career and FYL brand have flourished over the years, undoubtedly due to his consistent work ethic and no nonsense approach to business. When asked what the key to his success is, he said ”YOU’RE GOING TO TAKE A LOSS, WELCOME IT. LOSSES ARE INVALUABLE LESSONS. DON’T BE SCARED TO TAKE A LOSS… THE ONLY LOSS IS WHEN YOU DON’T LEARN FROM IT, YOU KNOW WHAT I’M SAYING? AND JUST STAY CONSISTENT. YOU MIGHT DROP SOMETHING AND IT MIGHT NOT DO GOOD, DON’T GET DISCOURAGED, JUST COME BACK THE NEXT WEEK, SHOOT HARDER WHERE YOU KNOW PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BUY. CONSISTENCY IS KEY…”
Validated recently sat down with Gorilla NEMS to discuss his humble beginnings, coming up through the rap battle ranks, entrepreneurship, his new album “Congo” and more.
VALIDATED: Coming from Coney Island, Brooklyn, New York, what is your earliest memory of Hip-Hop culture?
GORILLA NEMS: My earliest memory is the motherfucking—is “Disorderlies”, The Fat Boys movie. I used to rent that shit from the video store all the time and watch that shit. That shit was one of my favorite movies when I was little. I’d just watch that shit over and over. That’s one of my earliest memories.
VALIDATED: You gained a lot of attention early on, on the MTV 2 show, “The Fight Club”, right?
GORILLA NEMS: Yeah.
VALIDATED: You managed a record of like 25 wins and 2 or 3 loses. What can you tell us about that?
GORILLA NEMS: I mean, I always knew that’s how I got my name known. I was never really a battle rapper. All the battles that I did, I was using verses from the songs that I did. But I always knew that that was a good avenue to get my name known quicker than just trying to get on or just rapping. And back then, like in the early 2000s, before social media, that was how you got your name known any way; you ran into somebody that rhymed and y’all just was like, “Yo, spit something,” and then you spit something back and then it turns into a fucking battle without being a battle. It was simple. It was just like, “Yo, I’m going to do these battles, I’m going to get my name known, and then I’m going to get record deals and recognition and all of that,” but it never really was a career path that I wanted, it was just something to get my name out there.
VALIDATED: Speaking of your name, how did your name originate?
GORILLA NEMS: Graffiti… graffiti naturally evil mind state. Never ever miss shots. Now everything makes sense. Fuck around, you’ll be needing emergency medical service.
VALIDATED: Besides music, you’re the president of your own brand, the FYL, how did you get that started?
GORILLA NEMS: Out of necessity, out of being broke. I always made t-shirts and shit though, but I never was consistent with it. I was hustling for a while, and then I didn’t want to hustle no more. I just was like, “Yo, I gotta switch this into some legal shit, because this hustling shit is not sustainable.” And it just so happens that I had a catchphrase, I had a brand already, you know, Fuck Your Life. The only thing that was different is I kept it consistent. I just dropped the hat and I dropped another one and that sold out, and it just became more of a weekly shit and it just transformed into a big ass brand.
VALIDATED: When that happened, obviously, you learned about the business more by trial and error. What could you tell people that are trying to brand themselves or trying to make a name for themselves, as far as merch in this game?
GORILLA NEMS: Just stay consistent. You’re going to take a loss, welcome it. Losses are invaluable lessons. Don’t be scared to take a loss… the only loss is when you don’t learn from it, you know what I’m saying? And just stay consistent. You might drop something and it might not do good, don’t get discouraged, just come back the next week, shoot harder where you know people are going to buy. Consistency is key, that’s all it is, bro, just don’t give up. I don’t do nothing more... I know I rap good, I do this and that, but I don’t do nothing special more than nobody else does. It’s just that I’m consistent with it, and I’m not willing to give up.
VALIDATED: I respect you, period, because of the music, you’ve got bars. You’ve been through your ups and downs but you keep it consistent as far as your material, the merch, and you’re relevant in the game. Do you think that the merch or the music is the better beneficiary?
GORILLA NEMS: Money wise, big time, merch, the music is just the avenue that gets the word out. Without the music, the merchant would be way harder to sell. So, it all forms together but the merch is something way bigger.
VALIDATED: So, speaking of music, you’ve got a project, Beats Music, with Scram Jones that’s getting ready to drop.
GORILLA NEMS: It didn’t drop yet. My parts are done, we’re just waiting on some features to get back, to send their verses back, and you know, Scram is just all over the place right now, he’s in fucking Antigua and Miami, he’s all over shooting, because he’s also doing an album with Jim Jones. He’s also doing one with Ghostface, I believe. He’s mixing all that together. So, you know, he’s all over the place. So, we’re just tying up the loose ends right now and it should be out very soon. But that shit is incredibly.
VALIDATED: I like the “Gorilla Monsoon”, everything you dropped is dope, the Vinny Idol was crazy.
GORILLA NEMS: That’s my favorite song I ever did, bro, you know the fucking vibes. I love that song. I was just keeping it on repeat the other night.
VALIDATED: That’s dope. So is that coming out before this year end?
GORILLA NEMS: No, that’s going to be out probably in the summertime.
VALIDATED: Okay, cool. Are there any producers you haven’t worked with yet but want to?
GORILLA NEMS: I mean, I have worked with Alchemist, but the song that we did, we scrapped it. Most of us was like, “Yo, it’s not the potential of what we want to put out.” So I want to do an official joint with Alchemists. I mean, of course, RZA, Dj Premier. You know what I’m saying, these are just nostalgic people from when I was coming up that I look up to. But right now, we getting to it like Scram Jones, once that drops and it’s going to open up the door for that other shit to open up.
VALIDATED: Let’s say in 5 to 10 years from now, where is Nems going to be when it comes to Hip-Hop.
GORILLA NEMS: I mean, I’m definitely going to have a couple million, I know that. That’s the goal. But that’s exactly where I see myself, just taking everything to the next level. At the end of every year, I look back at the year that just passed and I asked myself, “What can I do to improve the situation?” And two years ago, I was doing everything through the DMs with my merch and then I looked back at the year and was like, “Yo, how can I improve my situation?” And I was like, “Yo, I need to have a website now and make everything legit.” And I put out the website and it hit right when Covid-19 hit and it did very well, the first 90 days hit 6 figures. And I’m just constantly trying to improve my situation, man. If you’re not trying to improve, you’re fucking up.
VALIDATED: I respect the jewels you drop. I pay attention. I catch your joints a lot. You always get some real gems.
GORILLA NEMS: I want to publicly appreciate like, just show you love too, you know what I’m saying? Because I know you’re a dope artist and you’re a spitter. And in this music game, especially Hip-Hop, artist don’t show love to another artists, at all. I was just talking to Crime Face about this. I was like, “Yo, people just—they’ll know who you are standing in the room and won’t say nothing, like they’ll admire your shit and won’t say nothing to you or wait for you to come up to them.” But you’re not like that; you show mad love. Every time I run into you, you’ve been genuine and you’ve shown genuine love and you commented on my shit and like my shit, like, and I just want to let you know that I see it and that I appreciate it. And that’s why I’m doing this because people ask me for interviews all the time, bro, and I’ll be telling them no all the time, but because it was coming from you, is the reason why I did that.
VALIDATED: I respect that.
GORILLA NEMS: Because you’re a genuine person. And I met you through Nutshell, and Nutshell was a genuine person, and that’s my people. You know, it’s just been one hundred ever since I’ve known you, so I want to appreciate you.
VALIDATED: I appreciate it. And that’s why, you know, I got put in this position and I’m trying to give back to all my peoples that I appreciate, it’s long overdue. You’re dope, you’re consistent, and you’re relevant, and that’s it, that’s all that matters, and you’re rare.
So, on another note, I know you’ve got tons of other stuff out, but I’ve got to ask because people want to know, are you an official member of the Coney Island Polar Bear?
GORILLA NEMS: That’s a fact. Well, I am the Polar Bear Club. As a matter of fact, we started our own shit, we’re the Polar Gorilla Club, because for the last 5, 6, 7 years, man, I’m jumping in that water. I’m the Mayor of Coney Island, I have to do it, even there’s been years I don’t want to do it, bro, but it’s like, yo, this is the tradition. I like starting off the year like that because you take all the bullshit from the previous year, jump in that water with it and what I do is everything I’m wearing, when I jump in that water, when I come out that water, I take… I wear sneakers in that water, I leave it right there on the beach. That symbolizes leaving the past year in the past and starting a brand-new year fresh. It’s like a baptism, you know what I’m saying, Coney Island baptism, every year.
VALIDATED: What’s crazy is I’ve got to do that myself, being a Brooklyn Knight myself, so I’ve got to…
GORILLA NEMS: You know, hit me, I’m there, we’re doing it again this year, coming up, bro, God’s willing.
VALIDATED: So speaking of Coney Island, is Nems and family good when it comes to the amenities like the parks… Do you have to foot bills or do you get to enjoy that?
GORILLA NEMS: I don’t really go on the rides for free no more—I don’t really go on rides no more. But back in the days, no, I had to pay for everything. It’s just now, if I bring a little, you know I’m with a shorty, she got a little kid with her, a son, I’ll get them on the ride for free, no problem.
VALIDATED: They got to make a Gorilla ride.
GORILLA NEMS: Fact. Shoot The Gorilla, they had Shoot the Freak, we make Shoot the Gorilla.
VALIDATED: You recently dropped the “Congo” EP, and it’s got NYC going crazy. As an artist how important is it to have the support of your city behind you?
GORILLA NEMS: Thats the most important part. If the people don't fuck with you you're nothing. I don't have faNs I got faMs, LYFERS.
VALIDATED: Your first single/video off the project “Bing Bong”, what’s been the response to it so far?
GORILLA NEMS: Probably the best first single off any project I've released. It made Apple Music's best new song section and we got everybody saying that shit. When me and Vinny Idol get together we make masterpieces. BING BONG! Go watch the video to!
VALIDATED: Which producers and artists did you work with on the EP?
GORILLA NEMS: Vinny Idol, Jazzsoon, Charlie G, Johnny Slash… Ya’ll can go stream, cop, or download the album to see who else produced or who I worked with on it.
VALIDATED: For the diehard Gorilla Nems fans what can they expect from this body of work and to the new fans what are they in store for?
GORILLA NEMS: Growth. Growth as an artist, growth as a man, growth as a human... if you ain't growing you dying.
VALIDATED: Any plans in the near future to tour with the new material?
GORILLA NEMS: Of course, just make sure y’all follow and stay in tune with my social media posts.
VALIDATED: You’ve got to do it. So how can everybody find you on social media or the web?
GORILLA NEMS: You’ll find me at my website, FYL.NYC, just go there and buy something and my face will pop up and thank you personally. It’s @nems_fyl on Instagram and Twitter, Nems on Spotify.