JKYL & HYDE - Creating A Memorable Brand In The Dubstep Scene

Jkyl & Hyde is a dubstep producer who’s been consistently climbing the bass music ladder and making a powerful name for himself in the industry. After touring with Excision this summer, he’s now on his own headlining tour and playing shows all over the US.

In this episode we talk about how to bring emotion into your music, the challenges on life on the road and what has helped him build his project and become a full-time artist.

Follow Jkyl & Hyde here:
https://www.instagram.com/jkylxhyde

Follow Nik Cherwink here:
https://www.instagram.com/nikcherwink

And visit my site to join the mailing list or book a free coaching call:
https://www.nikcherwink.com

Episode Transcript

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (00:00):
to really gain someone as a fan, sometimes it

(00:03):
does take coming to a city twodifferent times, or them seeing
you release new music five, six,seven times.
So not putting the pressure onmyself of being like, this needs
to be like, exploding, but justconsistently growing has been
probably the way.
secret,

Nik (00:34):
What's up, everybody.
Welcome to the headliner mindsetpodcast.
Today's guest is a powerhouse inthe bass music and dubstep
scene.
He's currently on his ownheadlining tour.
He just finished touring withexcision and his brand and his
audience just keeps gettingbigger and bigger every day.
This is Jekyll and Hyde.
welcome to the show, bro.
I am pumped, pumped, pumped,pumped to have you here.

(00:57):
I was just saying before we goton that, uh, You know, this is
going to be one of thoseepisodes where I get to catch up
with, uh, you know, an oldstudent.
You went to icon collective manyyears ago.
This is happening very oftenwhere I'm just opening up
Instagram.
It's like years since we've seeneach other.
And then all of a sudden I'mopening up my Instagram and I'm

(01:17):
just like, Seeing you play infront of fucking thousands of
people, playing shows, killingit, touring and stuff.
This has happened with a handfulof artists.
I'm just like, oh shit,something went down over the
last few years.
Like, this guy, this guy's beenfucking grinding, this guy's
been working, making shit popoff.
So, I'm very excited for thisepisode.
I have no script, no questions.
We are just gonna dive in and,uh, and get to catch up over the

(01:39):
next hour.
So, welcome to the show, bro.
Happy

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (01:42):
Absolutely a pleasure to be here.
I have been quite the fan sinceepisode one.
So it's awesome to get onmyself.
And like you said, catch up.
Um, it's been far too long.
And even thinking back when, um,the other day, just kind of, you
know, When you texted me broughtback the thought of when we

(02:05):
first ever met and I don't evenknow if you'll remember this but
before I went to the icon inspringish of like 2016 I came
out and visited and actually satin on you teaching a music
business or art of flow class,not even a music business class.

(02:28):
And Scott from slander was justin that class.
So to come from Colorado andjust the one I sit in on was
just like, in terms of thecontent you were talking about
and I feel like that was one ofmany things, but one of the

(02:50):
things that really was like, Iwould say it was an
instantaneous know that I neededto be out there after coming and
seeing the campus, seeing thevibe, and

Nik (03:00):
Yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (03:01):
cool to build that and see that, I mean,
obviously I had you as myteacher in ICON, both for, I
believe, Artaflow and MusicBusiness, if I remember right.

Nik (03:14):
Yeah.
Yeah.
I was doing both.
And so just to give some contextto the listeners, you know,
we're talking about the, uh,famous Icon Collective Music
Production School.
If you're listening to thepodcast, you probably know what
that is, but at Icon, they teacha class called the Art of Flow.
And that was, uh, A class about,it's about creativity, how to

(03:35):
tap into your authenticexpression, how to tap into the
moment.
I always describe it as a classthat was kind of a combination
of psychology, philosophy andspirituality, right?
That taught you really aboutyourself and about your mindset,
your ego, how to get that out ofthe way and, and, and be a real
true authentic artists.
And for me, everyone kind of hadtheir own flavor.

(03:56):
I was the first one that startedteaching it outside of the
owner.
I really leaned on the spiritualside of it.
I like, I wouldn't like heavyfucking woo woo.
Cause that's just, you know,y'all, y'all know how I roll.
We get down with the woo wooshit, but that's really where it
came from.
Now here's the, here's a funnystory as well.
I haven't shared this on thepodcast, but, um, almost kind of
similar to you.
That was actually how.

(04:17):
I got involved with icon in thefirst place was this was back at
the the previous location notthe original location But I
think it was like their secondlocation.
This was probably 2011 2012 andMy buddy was signed up to go to
a different production school hewas gonna go to I think the LA
Recording Academy or whateverthat's

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (04:39):
Mm hmm

Nik (04:43):
Icon that like my friends have been telling me about I'm
hearing about it like Before youlike fully commit to that.
Let's go check that school outAnd so I went with him to go do
his his tour and similarly theysat us down in the art of flow
and it was like they had justdone like a meditation, you
know, they were like meditatingin class and I was like, what
the fuck is this place?

(05:03):
I was like, I thought we weregoing to a production school.
These guys are in heremeditating.
And I was like, this is kind ofmy vibe, you know?
And then

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (05:09):
Mm

Nik (05:10):
how I met.
I met the owner and, you know,ended up working there later.
But, uh, yeah, similar, similarstory.
Just like, Ooh, I think I belonghere.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (05:18):
Exactly.
Yeah, I felt like it was prettyimmediate after seeing just how
everyone was Working and evenlike you said the vibe of the
class like I don't think youguys necessarily had just gotten
out of a meditation But the vibewas on point and like the
questions that were being askedwere really things that just
made me be like Wow.

(05:38):
This is so much more than justlearning how to make beep boops
in Ableton.
And it was a beautifulintroduction and then I mean,
circling back to it was great tothen full circle see you at
Lostlands this past September.
And,

Nik (05:56):
So good to see you there, dude.
That was

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (05:57):
I mean, like you said, too, it's, um, It's a
thing that I feel like Iexperience among some of my
peers as well, and it's reallycool to see people after couple
years of maybe not staying as inconstant touch as we were and
then seeing that they'reabsolutely killing it or doing
something that I knew they hadalways talked about wanting to

(06:18):
do.
So it's really cool to seeeveryone grow and evolve in that
way.

Nik (06:22):
Yeah.
So, you know, you said.
A moment ago that you realizedit was about more than just
making beeps and boops.
All right.
So what else is it about?
Yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (06:39):
a feeling, an emotion, and that like in the
simplest level is kind of whatgot me into it in the first
place, like seeing live musicand being like, holy shit, this
is really moving me beyond justlistening to a song I might know
or coming and hanging out withmy friends at a place to party.

(07:03):
And I feel like there were afew, honestly, Zedd's Dead was a
really pivotal one the firsttime I ever saw them and just
seeing how the set was So, sothoughtfully constructed and in
a way that like, as a naiveteenage music listener, I was
like, I know they didn't justplay only Zedd's dead songs,

(07:25):
like they're playing otherpeople's music, but it sounds
like those could have all beenZedd's dead songs.
And like the universe they builtwithin that hour, like changed
my life and was like, wow, Iwant to evoke some of this
emotion.
And feeling beyond just thesurface, I guess, of it.

(07:45):
And I'd say I had a little bitof interest in music growing up,
but it was really thatconnection that like, Whoa, this
can be an emotional.
experience and really like bringthe listener to a beautiful
place while you're doing thatthrough say your productions,
your live shows, your brand initself.

(08:08):
And I think that that's kind ofbeen like a driving force for me
from day one is just that I wasimpacted so strongly in a way
that I want to be able to givethat to my fans and make it a
show that is a bit more Toremember than just like, Oh, it
was a random concert and there'ssomething about it that makes

(08:29):
you feel.
And that's, I would say on the,on the surface of it, kind of
where I come from being aboutmore than beeps and boops.
Cause it's definitely tough indubstep and bass music too.
When I would say a driving forceis like the technology or the
like technological side of itand being a great sound designer

(08:50):
and whatnot, but there is reallyso much more.

Nik (08:54):
yeah, yeah.
Well, first off, I love that youreferenced Zedd's dead because
I'm actually not a basshead,like, Really at all, like I, I'm
learning, I'm, I'm warming up,you know, but like I've always
been way more of like a houseguy and a lot of the, especially
the sound designing bass musicis like, is a little much for
me.
I'm going to be honest, I'll behonest.
But when we were at Lost Lands,Zed's Dead's set was the outside

(09:19):
of Sippy, who I went with, thatwas the one set that I actually
like, Watched beginning to endright fucking you know in the
middle of it, and it was like Soobvious how it was a true piece
of art And it was very differentthan just like just an hour of
you know Just bangers and justlike real aggressive stuff.
I was like, oh these guyscreated like you said a fucking

(09:39):
universe These guys created a areal true piece of art.
So I they won me over at lostlands.
Hell.
Yeah Now i'm curious from yourperspective You know How do you
find that balance of, you know,the heavy sound design, bass
music, but also like actuallyreally bringing in emotion.

(10:00):
How do you create feeling andemotion in your music?
Because I think it's easy for alot of people to, you know, go
on splice or just get likereally down the rabbit hole of
serum sound design.
And, and, you know, there's kindof like the production wars,
like the, the sound design, youknow, dick measuring contest,
right?
But it's like, how do youactually.
You know, you personally, like,how do you bring emotion and

(10:22):
feeling into your music?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (10:24):
I would say one, big way is going in with,
like, very strong intention whenI'm writing something.
So, uh, there's definitely,like, pluses and minuses to just
fucking around and twistingknobs, but I do feel like my
strongest ideas and the onesthat do convey more of an

(10:47):
emotional feeling Are somethingwhere I intentionally went in
and it doesn't even have to betoo crazy But just be like i'm
going to make a really sick 32bar orchestral intro And i'm
gonna have a melody in therewith plucks that stands out to
me And like that is as much as Ineed almost to give me the the

(11:10):
kind of like Setup for my map tothen make things rather than
just coming at it with like ablank Ableton project.
I feel like a lot of producerslike don't really talk about
that particular moment Like alot of the shit on youtube and
stuff is like tutorials of fullArrangements full songs But

(11:32):
there's not really a lot talkingabout the moment from in your
head wanting to create somethingto When you touch the keyboard
and like how you best do thatand almost set yourself up for
success So I think that going inwith like such intention and
sometimes it's like I just needto write a melody that's one bar

(11:53):
long that, like, makes meremember it.
Or, ooh, I really want to makehip hop drums today.
And like, having that tiny bitof a guide, almost, I feel like,
has expanded the life of mysongs, in a way, and made them
feel so much more like anactual, like, record, for lack

(12:15):
of a better word, and not just a32 bar Ableton dubstep drop that
I like just shit out in a day.

Nik (12:25):
Yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (12:26):
And also, I think, aside from the intention
going into it, what I put intomy own brain and like, the
energy I'm feeding myself isvery important into that and
what my like, influences are, Ihave for sure noticed the more
like, If I'm only listening todubstep bangers that my friends
are sending me, or that's likethe poppin songs, my writing

(12:51):
deteriorates a little bit, andit definitely, like, goes in
that direction of, like, makebangers, whereas if I'm
listening to things that are oldmusic, outside of electronic
music, um, pop music, because Ifeel like the writing is so
strong in most pop music, thatThose things kind of almost

(13:13):
subconsciously carry over to myproduction and I noticed that
I'm like writing moreEmotionally when I'm not
listening to sound design y bassmusic.

Nik (13:23):
yeah a thousand percent.
I think that's a trap I see alot of people fall into is it's
like yeah You're a dubstepproducer and all you do is
listen to dubstep and it's like,okay Well, you're kind of then
just living in an echo chamberor or you know a house music
producer All you do is justlisten to house music all day
long.
I was like, okay, where are youever going to?
Crack open new neural pathwaysin your brain to create anything

(13:46):
new and fresh.
Right.
And this is probably thestruggle for so many artists is
like, how do I create somethingunique?
How do I create something thatdoesn't sound like everybody
else?
We'll stop listening toeverybody else.
You know, I've, I've heard ofpeople also sometimes like, just
stop.
I'm just not even going tolisten to anything and just be

(14:07):
so in touch with myself and myfeelings and my thoughts and my
inspiration.
Like imagine if you just didn'tlisten to music for three
months, you

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (14:16):
yeah, and that's like almost sounds
impossible to people on the onthe rip But it's like I truly do
wonder what something like thatwould do.
I find myself listening to a lotof non music as well,
ironically.
Like, And I mean, your podcastis one of many, but I am a huge
podcast person.

(14:36):
Like when I'm driving and whenI'm traveling for shows and
tour, definitely is like whatkeeps me busy brain during a
flight is just like throwing ona four hour podcast,

Nik (14:49):
Yeah, hell yeah.
What are some other ones thatyou, that you enjoy, that you
want to shout out and recommend?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (14:56):
um, Tetragrammaton with Rick Rubin
is a great podcast and very likein depth.
And just crazy creatives.

Nik (15:06):
I just found out that Rick Rubin had a podcast literally
like, like a month ago or so Iwas like, how was I sleeping on
this?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (15:12):
Uh huh.

Nik (15:13):
goat.
Like literally like, likeeverything that we taught in art
of flow, like once I got hisbook, the, the creative act and
I read it, I'm like, Oh my God,I'm like, this is literally the
fucking curriculum.
You know, I was like, he put itin a book.
Uh, he, he's just.
Crack the code on that.
He's the

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (15:31):
Yeah.
I read that this year and itfelt like a refresher.
Tetragrammaton.

Nik (15:37):
Tetragrammaton.
Yeah, whatever the fuck thatmeans.
But yeah, rick

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (15:40):
I know.

Nik (15:40):
listen to that shit.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (15:42):
Yeah, that's a great one.
And then he also has one that helike co hosts with Malcolm
Gladwell.
And um, Broken Record is whatit's called.
And then one other host, I'mforgetting his name, I think
like Bruce something.
But that one, similar vibe,kinda, to the Rick, to
Tetragrammaton, and it's justlike interviewing very creative

(16:03):
people.
And it's fascinating to get thatlittle, like, look into it.
I like Hank and John Green aswell, for non music.
They're just like,

Nik (16:14):
Hank and john green

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (16:16):
Yeah, John Green wrote, like, The Fallen
Are Stars, and, like, all these,like, romance novels.
Yeah, and his brother is, like,a science nerd.
And they just do fun, like, lifepodcasts.

Nik (16:29):
Love it.
Love it, man.
Yeah, dude, there really issomething to be said for that of
you know I was just talking toWest End last weekend and like a
big piece of that conversationwas just like, you know Have
other shit outside of music thatyou're into and that you do
especially with your life likehave some hobbies Have a life,

(16:50):
what a concept, but it's like,and I get it though.
It's like when you're just sodriven and you want this, you
know, this dream and this goalso bad, or like, you know, also
if you're just, if you'reworking and you're spending so
much time, maybe at the day job,you don't maybe have, you know,
you gotta put as much time asyou can into the music, but
honestly, it kind of can becomecounterproductive to a certain
point as well, right?

(17:11):
Like you're actually going to,you're actually going to benefit
yourself more Not doing musicfor, uh, at least a little bit
of, you know, your, throughoutyour time and energy throughout
the week of just like fillingyour cup up in these other
areas, because then you actuallyhave something to bring to your
sessions.
You have something to bring toyour art and to your creativity,

(17:31):
right?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (17:31):
Exactly, and kind of like some life lived to
bring to it, in a sense.
Like, there's so many timeswhere I get inspiration or just
motivated from something soexternal from music and it could
be even me like at the grocerystore witnessing a person doing
something and it's like holyshit if i was living in my

(17:54):
studio 12 hours a day and nottouching grass for lack of a
better word like there's a lotthat i might be missing that my
brain could really Get value outof in that sense like

Nik (18:09):
Did you ever read the artist's way?
Or go through that process.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (18:14):
Yeah, i'm i'm pretty sure

Nik (18:16):
the artist's way is Julia Cameron's 12 week workbook.
It's kind of based off of likethe 12 steps, you know, she went
through the 12 steps and waslike, I'm going to create like a
12 step program for artisticrecovery, for like basically
rediscovering your inner artist,filling up your, your creative
well.
Right.
I think I'm going to go throughthis again, cause I've actually

(18:38):
really been feeling the itch tostart creating again and kind of
getting back into my artistry.
But one of the.
Requirements.
I've talked about morning pagesmany times on the podcast and
the stream of consciousnesswriting.
We taught that in the art offlow that comes from Julia
Cameron's book, the artist way.
she has, you do that every day,every day, wake up, write three
pages of just, you know,journaling, whatever comes to

(18:59):
your mind, just Be in the energyof just flow and letting things
come out.
But the other thing that shedoes that she recommends that I
really love is, um, to do anartist date every week.
And that is a date that you goon with yourself, right?
You don't bring anybody else.
It's a date with you and yourinner artist.
It's basically, you know, youand your inner child, you and
your inner creative, and you godo something that is just purely

(19:23):
for shits and giggles, just forfun.
You know, and it's so cool.
Like, it's such a fun thing todo is like, go take yourself on
a date, go, you know, even likewhen you talk about going to the
grocery store, I go to thegrocery store and go buy
something that you've never hadbefore, go make a recipe and
just bring in something new intoyour life that you've never
done.

(19:44):
Because I always say like theopposite or like the antithesis
of creativity is monotony.
Just doing the same thing everyday.
And I'm a fucking routine guy,dude.
I'm like, I like to like, here'smy day.
I plan it out.
I want to go to the gym.
I'm going to do these things.
Like I try, I'm so such aroutine person and that serves
us.
And that's kind of like the, youknow, masculine energy, half of

(20:04):
duality.
But there's also the other sideof it, right?
The, the spontaneity andintroducing novelty, right?
So just a fun little challengefor yourself is like, take
yourself on a date once a week,go do something that is just,
just purely with yourself andfor yourself.
It's like, for me, I remember Iwent to like target and bought a

(20:24):
basketball and went to a fuckingpark and shot hoops.
I'm like, I hadn't done thatshit since I was like 10 years
old.
It was so fun, go buy a Lego setand put a fucking Lego set
together, go, you know, Iremember I took myself to like
an Ethiopian restaurant that wasin my neighborhood in LA, like I
never had Ethiopian food before,it was fucking awesome, you
know, and so there's there's somuch flavor in life.

(20:47):
That we're not tasting, thatwe're not trying, because we're
so zeroed in on like, I'm adubstep producer and I'm gonna
just make dubstep every

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (20:55):
a

Nik (20:56):
listen to dubstep.
It's like, dude, you're likeeating, you know, it's like
going to a buffet and beinglike, I'm just gonna eat this
mashed potatoes, and

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (21:03):
Yeah, like that's what I came here

Nik (21:05):
yeah, but you're at like a Vegas buffet with like every
possible fucking flavor of foodyou could try.
Like, dude, go try some otherthings.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (21:13):
It's crazy and I would say too as like that's
definitely something i've Beenand continue to work on
personally is just that likework life balance a little bit
and especially as things havegotten bigger and The shows have
gotten bigger and there's morepeople following for lack of a
better word even like it issomething I definitely have to

(21:37):
Commit to and just be like heyi'm gonna get out of this for a
second It's good to be likelocked in but at the same time
if you aren't living on the sideof that, like you start to lose
touch with things a little bitand I feel like it drastically
does affect my creativity forsure.
So that, that balance of touringand writing music also

(22:02):
definitely has its hand in handof me coming home and Wanting to
mow my lawn and wanting to go ona walk in the neighborhood and
just breathe and not think aboutmusic, the industry, Jekyll and
Hyde.
And I think that's a reallyhealthy thing to do that.
Is not as, also not as talkedabout, and I think too, the

(22:27):
bigger you get, like, the, theeasier it is to, to not be able
to do those things, when you areon a rigorous touring schedule,
and you have deadlines to meet,or you are flexing your
production muscles so often,like, it's obviously very
important to exercise that andcontinue to produce, but at the

(22:47):
same time, I feel like I haveI've overdone it plenty of times
and been like, wow, I'm makingdog shit right now because I
have been forcing myself toproduce music for five days in a
row.

Nik (22:59):
Mm.
Yeah.
Yeah.
You know, now that you've beenout playing shows more and more,
like, what's your life looklike?
What's your schedule look like?
Like, especially when you're outon tour and you're, going out on
the weekends, you know, what'sthat been looking like and how
have you been, juggling andbalancing that lifestyle?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (23:18):
Yeah, absolutely.
Um, I am currently in the middleof a headline tour right now.
I have about four shows left.
So when it's like this, it'spretty consistently every
weekend, one to three shows.
And with this, I am luckybecause it is like a fly tour,

(23:40):
so I'm not bussing, and that iscool in its own right, something
I'd love to do, but just like,logistically, doesn't make sense
for an act my size, but I do getthe privilege of being able to
fly home on the weekend, so Itypically We'll leave Thursday
or Friday, get to the city I'mplaying, try and relax, try and,

(24:03):
like, kind of like we weretalking about, do non music
stuff, like, give myself a walk,familiarize with the area, try a
new restaurant that I've, like,never seen before type of thing,
play the show, typically if Ican, um, a later flight so I can
sleep that night, travel to thenext city around like noon to

(24:24):
3pm, get there, same routine,kind of like, try and go on a
walk, get some sun, um, yaddayadda, sound check if it's in
there type of thing, play theshow, and then like come Sunday,
fly back home, and I, Usuallyuse that day to just like
recover and then back on MondayI try and as well stick to like

(24:49):
a pretty good routine and mygirlfriend who I live with works
a like Day job where she startsat like 6 a.
m so that definitely helps withher being on like a pretty
consistent schedule and Justliving normal life from there.
I would say during my four daysoff definitely will like to the

(25:11):
set every week, try and writesome new music.
I put a little less pressure onmyself when I am in like heavy
touring mode and I care so muchabout the live sets that I put a
lot of time into that ratherthan like writing a ton of new
music every week.

Nik (25:29):
Will you just produce if you kind of feel inspired or do
you have, you know, like a timeblock on certain days that you
try to show up for?
Or is it a little bit moreloose?
Yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (25:42):
and not as busy with shows, I do try and
time block it a little bit moreand do try and like give myself
from x to x time on this dayyou're gonna work.
At the same time though I, if Ifeel like inspired, I will not
hesitate to run in here and likeBop out whatever I'm trying to

(26:03):
do super quick and even if it'slike 15 minutes That's another
thing.
I'd really like feel like I'vegrown with In the past.
I was definitely a one shotthrough finished the project
type of vibe But I felt likethat had negative side effects
where I wasn't necessarily,like, thinking about the idea in

(26:23):
a clear space always.
So now I've really, like, gottencomfortable with the idea that
just because I'm startingsomething, it doesn't have to be
perfect.
And I actually was answering aquestion someone asked yesterday
about how do you produce on theroad?
And, like, similarly, hand inhand, Biggest tip for me is just
like, don't put pressure onyourself.

(26:45):
It's like, I can start an ideain my hotel, spend 20 minutes on
it.
And just cause it's not playablethat night for the show doesn't
mean it was like a waste oftime.
And then it's like, if it isreally an idea of value.
There's no problem with megetting back home on Monday or
Tuesday and like cracking itopen with fresh ears with a

(27:05):
fresh mindset And being likewhoa, I made this sick ass beat.
That's like 16 bars in the hotelNow let me flush this out and
like really expand on it so justnot putting that pressure on
myself to like have to finishand crank things out while i'm
Busy with shows has been verygood for my production.

(27:27):
I would say

Nik (27:28):
Yeah.
Yeah.
And so I imagine you're probablyflying out by yourself, right?
Like you don't have a tourmanager, anyone you're traveling
with, right?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (27:37):
Yeah, um, Ashley, my girlfriend, does kind
of like double act as the tour,the TM role, if she, uh, and she
does, she only works four days aweek, so that makes it nice with
being able to travel like onFridays and stuff,

Nik (27:50):
Oh,

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (27:51):
um, but aside from that, she is really, and
like, she's my girlfriend, welive together, so, it's, it's
not exactly the same as likemeeting a TM in a different
state, but,

Nik (28:02):
But, but I was just wondering about how that is if,
you know, just spending time onthe road, you know, flying
around, being in hotels, youknow, by yourself, like how you
handle that and, what that'slike for you.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (28:12):
Yeah, that has definitely been a part of this
job that I was not quitethinking about at the beginning
when I first got into this anddidn't quite realize it.
I would say it has been Quitethe trip sometimes to go from a
thousand people in front of youscreaming There's lights
flashing in your face to emptyhotel room traveling by yourself

(28:33):
for the next 12 hours

Nik (28:35):
Yeah.
Ha ha

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (28:37):
makes a lot of time for people watching when
like at the airport and justkind of taking things in and
just like really getting to Bein the moment almost.
Um, I don't love it by myselfalways and I feel like that The
worst for me is literally likethe two to three hours before I

(28:58):
head to the venue because i'mjust like in the hotel like What
do

Nik (29:02):
What do I do?
Yeah,

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (29:04):
ready Like let's go.
Let's just play the showalready.
Come on But I've definitelygotten better for sure and like
just found ways to kind ofdistract myself whether it be
Doing something very likemindless on my computer like an
Ableton type of thing and justlike no pressure at all like
trying to just make somethingcool or Finding a movie finding

(29:28):
something to like watch.
I do really enjoy like As, andit's totally case by case, like
some cities are sick, somecities I'm like in the middle of
nowhere.
So it's not really a beautifulplace to like go take it around.
But if that's a possibility, Ido like doing that.
And it's cool to just see alittle sliver into like the

(29:50):
culture of some of these citiesand kind of walk around, catch
the vibe.
So that for sure helps pass thetime.

Nik (29:56):
And I actually haven't thought about it from this
perspective because I do hear alot of artists talk about like,
man, it is, you know, there'sthat sort of lonely side of
being like, all right, I'm onplanes, you know, maybe by
myself or whatever.
But also I know people that willgo backpacking for a fucking
three months by themselves.
And there's something to be saidabout like solo traveling and,
and actually having theexperience of like, cool, I get
to just go explore the city onmy own.

(30:18):
And like that, that's actuallyreally cool too.
Like I know people that lovetaking solo trips.
I haven't really done too muchof that, but I also can see like
there's a little bit of sense offreedom there too to just sort
of like bop around and you know,like you get some kind of some,
some meat, some me time is alsoa good thing too, right?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (30:37):
It's almost like taking yourself on a date,
but a long, a longer date.

Nik (30:43):
A date for like a weekend.
I'm taking myself on a littleweekend trip.
Yeah, out of town.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (30:48):
Yeah.
It's, it's definitely somethingthat has taken some learning
too.
And, um, I think something that,Will always be a little weird
like going from the contrast ofit for me is what's so crazy Is
that you're like dead alone?
And then you're like the life ofthe party you are the person
people came to see And then it'sback to nothing.

(31:11):
And then it's like, oh, thesepeople who came to see me are
probably like, back at homepartying still?
And I'm on my way to the airportat 5am to make

Nik (31:21):
Totally.
Totally.
Yeah.
You know, I bring that up withpeople who, you know, obviously,
getting caught up in theexcitement and the party, you
know, when you go in apromoter's like, Hey, here's a
whole fifth of alcohol just foryou.
You know, like what, what, likefull out of, you know, bottle of
alcohol.
Do you want to drink by yourselfin your green room?

(31:42):
There's

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (31:42):
Yeah, you have two hours!

Nik (31:43):
yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (31:45):
Smash it!

Nik (31:46):
Yeah.
And, you know, we see people getcaught up in that and, you know,
we've talked about that a lot onthe podcast, uh, but I think it
is good to remember just thedifference of like, yeah, when
you're there, you know, you're,you are there as the artist to,
you know, for one, you'regetting hired, you're there to
be a professional and provide aservice.
This is your job.
This is your business.
You are.

(32:06):
I provide a service as a lifecoach.
You know, like when I show up,it's like, that's the service I
provide.
I'm there to be a hundredpercent focused on my clients.
Similarly, as an artist, you'rethere to perform, to deliver the
promoter's job.
Is there to like.
They're there to party and havefun.
They don't have to wake up andget on a fucking flight the next
day.
And just something I always liketo point out when like the
promoters like, yeah, dude,let's take some fucking shots.

(32:27):
Let's go.
It's like, yo, they don't haveto get on a flight.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (32:30):
You live here, bro! Like, I don't!

Nik (32:34):
they're doing their job.
So just like keep that in mind.
But you know, this whole aspectof.
The highs and the lows.
I'm so, I would be so curious tojust strap on like, like a brain
scan on an artist when they gothrough the journey of, I'm
playing in front of thousands ofpeople and literally like,

(32:58):
Dopamine and serotonin, allthese neurochemicals are being
released in my brain and now I'mback in a hotel by myself or I'm
in a shuttle for, two hoursgoing back to some other city
and like, yeah, I've heard a lotof artists talk about that, you
know, just that, that rollercoaster.
And I do, I really do think likethere is a, there is a, um, a, a

(33:19):
chemical, biological thinghappening in your body, right?
Not to mention like.
Travel and travel fatigue andexhaustion and all of that.
And then coupled with likeliterally just this massive
release of dopamine andserotonin, and then also
followed by total isolation.
It's like, there's a reason whythat, that can be really, really
hard.
And I just think it's soimportant for, you know, for

(33:41):
artists to be aware of, for usto start talking about, and also
hopefully as we have this.
Conversation as a community andas a collective and actually
start really like helping figureout how can we do it in the most
healthy way, you know?
Cause for a lot of people, it'sjust like, well, I'll just take
some fucking shots and not worryabout it.
And, you know, just to go beable to pass out and just be

(34:02):
hung over on the plane and thenlose half my week.
And, you know, that's a, it'sonly going to work for so long.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (34:07):
exactly.
Takes a toll.
I definitely, about two yearsago, made a pretty conscious
decision to not be drinking atshows.
And I have loved every second ofit.
And I feel like one thing youjust said, but I actually heard
from Funkcase long ago, likewhen I first started touring and

(34:29):
I think he was like the firstshow I played in LA at Academy
was like a Funkcase headline, aDPMO thing.
And he talked about it.
He was like, it's your job.
You don't get fucked up and gowork your job.
Like, what would you do if youwent to Walmart and the
cashier's just loaded?
Like, something's up.
And he's like, why would I dothat?
Like, all these people arepaying me, and I'm getting paid

(34:52):
to perform my art.
So I want to do that in the bestability possible and like give
the best performance possibleand that really resonated with
me and also he's been a verysuccessful act for over a decade
and that speaks for itself whereI'm like the longevity is not
something that comes withGetting super fucked up every

(35:14):
night.
Like it just doesn't really itdoes take a major toll
physically mentally Not tomention all the other like
negative side effects that cancome from that But I I've
definitely noticed an insaneBenefit from not drinking during
shows and it makes the travel somuch nicer Not being all hung

(35:35):
over on an airplane.
It just makes my evening nicer.
I feel like I get to You Trulytake it in a little bit more and
Definitely something that I willnot be changing anytime soon for
any reason

Nik (35:52):
probably the 10th artist that I've talked to that's said
the same thing, and it's like, Ithink, as a young artist that's
just starting and you're justgetting your first shows and
you're just getting your firstfree alcohol, it's like, okay,
you're gonna have to figure itout, you

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (36:06):
have a little fun.
Yeah I did try it

Nik (36:08):
little fun, but it's like, I think it's like after anyone's
been doing it for a couple yearsand especially as the touring
starts to pick up, it's like, Ithink everyone I've talked to
has really made that decision.
You know, there might be someoutliers where they're, they're
just, they're just, you know,there's those guys that are just
made of fucking steel andthey're like, I could, I'm going
to, yeah, I'm going to fuckingparty until I'm dead, you know,

(36:28):
like cool.
But for us other mere mortals,you know, like we, if we want
to, if we want to survive, weprobably got to tone it down.
Um, now.
When you were going to Icon, ormaybe shortly after, like when
you started Jekyll and Hyde,there was another You were a
duo, there was another

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (36:44):
yes Luke and Duke

Nik (36:47):
Luke and Duke, yeah, what happened to Duke?
How did this become a soloproject?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (36:51):
Um, it was a pretty mutual splitting of ways.
There was nothing really crazyand it was kind of in the works,
I would say, for a bit, like sixmonths to a year prior to it
happening.
We both kind of felt like thingswere like coming to just a
creative head.
in that regard and I mean I'veseen it with so many other duo

(37:15):
projects that then turned solowhere it just wasn't necessarily
working like creatively and Iwish Duke the best and love him
still to this day but we justwere not supposed to be doing
this together and I think weboth were not even necessarily
like losing interest but It justwasn't working the way it once

(37:38):
did, and we both kind of knewthat, and just went our own
ways, and I continued theproject.
Um, I would say I definitelywas, like, doing a bit more of
the head production when we werea duo, which I think is very
common, too.
Like, I don't think I'veactually ever met a duo where
it's like, Oh, yo, we're 50 50work split on everything we do.

(38:03):
So coming from that, it was abit easier for me to be like,
okay, I'm going to continue thisforward.
As well as with the actual brandside of it, the true like old
Jekyll and Hyde story is likeone guy who's Dr.
Jekyll then turns Mr.
Hyde, that's his evil side.
So I kind of was like, Oh, well,I can like really play on that.

(38:25):
And if I continue the project asa solo act, it won't necessarily
like, Change the branding ofthings in that regard I would
say every now and again someoneasks and is like, where'd you
two people and i'm like youYou've been around But

Nik (38:44):
was, but probably most people now, I mean, you've
probably gained so many new fansnow that like, don't even know
that you ever were a duo

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (38:50):
I would say it has definitely gotten to that
point Um as well as just kind oflike made me realize that not
every fan Like cares to know YouLike, not every fan of Excision
knows what he looks like.
Same with myself, and

Nik (39:09):
I saw him at Lostlands, I would have I would have had I'd
probably fuckin talk to him.
I would have no idea.
I use excision I use excision asa as an example all the time of
like, what we call like, playingthe man versus playing the
brand.
Whereas like, playing the Theman is very like a personal
brand.
It's like a, you know, SteveAoki, Martin Garrix, David
Guetta.
It's like they are the brand.
And then excision is a fuckingrobots and monsters and

(39:31):
dinosaurs.
I mean, I don't even know whathe looks like straight up to
this day.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (39:35):
Yeah, seriously.
So that definitely has, like,came across my mental radar, in
a sense, where I'm like, okay,yeah, like, the people who are,
like, the superfans engaging onsocials and whatnot, like, They
know who I am, they can put theface with it, but like, Some of
the people who are probablystreaming my music more than

(39:56):
anyone, Just don't even care.
Don't even care to researchthat.
And that's totally okay, andlike, There's so many artists I
listen to, where I'm not goingout of my way to like, Be like,
this is who they are.
This is their brand.
This is what their thing is

Nik (40:11):
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (40:12):
So that's been something that I've realized
throughout the years.

Nik (40:16):
So if it's not necessarily the brand and everybody really
knowing who Luke is and being ahuge fan of, the man behind the
artists in the project, whatwould you say have been some of
the biggest contributing factorsto your success being able to
build this project to the pointthat you are touring and doing

(40:37):
it full time?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (40:39):
Yeah.
I mean, one, I would say is justthe consistency with music and
quality of releases.
Like I've always strived to belike one upping myself or like
putting out something that'sbetter.
And I think that people who havebeen around.
Or have even done the duediligence to like, look back on

(40:59):
the back catalog.
I've been like, wow, this iscool growth.
And you can hear from day onewhere the sonic palette has like
evolved to, but it's still allmakes sense.
And you can tell it's like allJekyll and Hyde music.
As well as kind of like.
Really focus on making the liveset something special and making

(41:20):
it like a very well thought out,put together experience, um,
playing to the right crowd,depending on like what the show
is I'm playing and really kindof just like honing in on, I
guess, the art side of it, Ithink has been a huge proponent

(41:40):
of why I've gotten to where Iam.
I think certain things likethroughout the years have just
caught.
Because of the consistency everynow and again, something takes
off kind of, and I'll have likea social media post about a song
that went viral or a song evenin itself that like streams
really well.
And I feel like most of thoseare almost hard to predict prior

(42:03):
to them happening.
And the only reason they happenis because of the like
consistent approach andcontinuing to just be like,
okay.
Maybe the past release wasn'tplayed out by as many people as
I love, or maybe it wasn't,like, received on streaming as
well, but I know I can stay trueto the Jekyll and Hyde vision

(42:24):
and keep putting out X, Y, and Ztype of music and, like, it will
build a loyal fanbase, and Ithink that's something that I
have realized over the past fewyears is just that, like, it's
not really a quick win alwayswith stuff like this.
And for some of these peopletoo, like, to really gain

(42:45):
someone as a fan, sometimes itdoes take coming to a city two
different times, or them seeingyou release new music five, six,
seven times.
Like, some people really justneed to keep seeing something
before they connect, I feellike.

Nik (43:00):
Yeah.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (43:01):
So not putting the pressure on myself of being
like, this needs to be like,exploding, but just consistently
growing has been probably theway.
secret, for lack of a betterword, to how things have just
kept building in that direction.
And I would say as that'shappening, continuing to like

(43:22):
refine what I love and believein and what I want the music to
be has just made such adifference.
And as well as just like pumpingshit out, like having a huge
back catalog of music to be ableto release whenever you want and
kind of move with the pulse ofthings, I feel like has been a
major benefit.

Nik (43:43):
Yeah, you know, it really, this last week on, this week's
episode that I put out with WestEnd, that was a big point he
made too, where he was justlike, I've seen so many people
succeed, and it's like, The onething is that like everybody
just didn't quit and it was likethis they were just consistent
it's just like just keep goingkeep going keep going and To go

(44:05):
even further into that, I thinkjust that like what you're
talking about of like thatconsistency, it's not like okay
I'm gonna let me put out a trackEvery four months and and post
on my instagram once every otherweek.
It's like that's just not thegame, right?
You gotta like you gotta show upbe consistent with your releases
Also, you know, I think probablyfinding that balance of quality
versus quantity as well, right?

(44:26):
Like you have a, I love that youhave a high standard for the
quality and continuing to pushyourself.
But um, but there's definitelysomething to be said for, for
consistency.
I really love the other piecethat you said there as well,
which I've heard from a lot ofthe bigger artists.
And I think a lot of the smallerartists aren't necessarily
thinking about this yet, maybebecause they're not really
playing shows yet.

(44:47):
But.
I can see how much you reallyfocus on your live set.
Making sure, like you said,you're putting together great
sets.
Having the, you know, the visualexperience of your set.
Like, that's the differencebetween just being a producer
versus really being a performer,right?
Creating the art is one thing,but then performing the art.
Are you putting on a fuckingshow that people walk away and

(45:09):
they're like, holy shit.
Like, for me it was like Zed'sZed.
It's like, I've, I've heardsome, you know, Zed's Zed stuff.
I was like, alright, that's,that's cool.
It's dope.
It's cool.
Again, I'm not a huge Bay sack,but seeing the fucking show, I'm
a fan now.
I'm like, Oh dude, yo, this issome next level shit.
These guys are performers.
These guys are artists.
And you know, yeah, I get it.
If you're not.
And maybe you're still in thatstage of, you know, you're in

(45:31):
the studio, you're, you know,you're learning the production,
I get that and start thinkingabout how you're going to
fucking rock the crowd.
You know, start thinking aboutlike, start, start putting mixes
together.
Like, even if you're not playingshows yet, I would say like,
start putting mixes together,learn how to DJ really fucking
well, learn how to get creative,start creating like what's the
vision.

(45:52):
Let's say you have a huge budgetfor visuals.
What's that going to look like?
What's that going to be about?
It's such a key component, so Ilove that you bring that up.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (46:00):
A hundred percent.
Yeah, I feel like throughout theyears too, I've just learned
more and more from larger actsand people that I have toured
with.
Like, honestly, this past summerdoing the Nexus tour with
Excision, just, Clearly, I mean,hundreds of hours of more have
gone into that production andlike seeing how well it was

(46:21):
executed and how many people areinvolved was something in itself
that was just like motivating tome to be like, Oh, my God, like,
truly, anything is possible ifyou have the vision for it.
And like, if you want to, youknow, Make this the craziest
thing someone's seen and reallygo break some boundaries of

(46:43):
production like it's possibleAnd that is just a motivating
factor In that sense for me,honestly, and something that
like Zed's Dead just really doeshit the nail on the coffin for
like a mixed media experiencetype of set, but yeah, that's
something that I really dostrive to give with the Jekyll

(47:03):
and Hyde project and somethingthat I've always really been a
big fan of is the DJ mix set andlike the, what a set can mean.

Nik (47:15):
I like the saying that the, the music is just the soundtrack
to the movie.
Alright, what is the actualmovie that you're playing out
there?
And I get that from Chris, fromthe Cult Creatives.
You know, he always says, themusic is the soundtrack to the
movie.
Like, what is the universe thatyou're creating?
What is the experience thatyou're creating?
Excision is probably one of the,Best examples.
So cool that you got to be ontour with him and be around that

(47:37):
and see what's possible.
I think that's so important islike, you know, when you're not
really close to it, it's like,it seems so far off where like,
Oh my God, like, yeah, otherpeople are doing this, but I
never could.
But when you start getting a,you're actually like around
people, it's like, no, like thisguy right next to me is doing
it.
You know,

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (47:56):
And he's also just a dude.
It's like, whoa, he's just likea guy and like, he's still, he's
doing this.
So I can also do it.

Nik (48:03):
you know, one of the best episodes that I've done was with
Ben Hogan from UTA, bookingagent for, uh, you know, he's
worked with so many people,Marshmello, Slander, Nightmare,
Jaws, like fucking amazing,amazing acts.
Uh, we talked about Excision onthat episode.
Highly recommend everyone golisten to that if you haven't
yet.

(48:24):
But.
You know, he talked about howbasically excision like didn't
make any money for years.
He made money, but he didn'tprofit because he just
reinvested everything back intohis project.
So he wasn't just like buyingnew fucking cars and shoes, you
know, it's just like, no, he'slike every dollar that he was
making, he put it back into theproduction, put it back into the

(48:45):
production.
And now, I mean, this guy'sthrowing his own fucking
festival.
This guy's like, you know, he'sbuilt a brand and an experience.
That is so much bigger than justbeing a DJ.
And I had a really great callwith Derek from slander, not too
long ago at like a two hourconversation and, um, just went
really deep.
Love that guy to death.
But that was one of the thingsthat he talked about as well.

(49:06):
He, cause you know, being at thestage that they're at and you
know, he's mentoring a lot ofyoung artists.
He's like, if there's really onething that I could get.
Younger artists to like reallyrealize it's the importance of
that reinvesting into the showand into the experience.
And the truth is when we unpackthat, what that requires is a
lot of faith and a lot ofbelief.

(49:29):
Like you have to really fuckingbelieve in yourself because it's
just this constant series oftaking leaps of faith of saying,
like, I'm going to put Thisfucking money.
Like I'm going to take, I'mgoing to stretch.
There's no room for living inthe comfort zone.
It's just like basically justbet.
You're just betting on yourself,betting on yourself, you know,
like promoters are too.
Promoters are like, they'reputting up all the money for the

(49:51):
show.
They might lose money.
It's a fucking gamble.
And the same thing as like theartists that are taking those
risks and they're saying, we'regoing to fucking send it and
we're going to invest this moneyto create this experience.
Knowing.
That this is how we win overfans.
It's not on Spotify.
We're going to have some casuallisteners that like our shit on
Spotify, you know, to a certainextent there there'll be fans,
but it's like you win them overin the fucking crowd.

(50:13):
You know what I mean?

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (50:14):
And I think too, like that confidence
subconsciously radiates to thefans even like they can tell
when someone cares about theirproject.
And even Obviously the averagefan doesn't know the logistics
of like, oh well, they went 10kin the red to make this show
happen and that laser costs thismuch, but like They know when

(50:37):
it's a crazy ass show andthey're like, whoa, that was an
experiment, or that was anexperience that I can't explain
even, and I think they feed offof the artist believing in
themselves so much, and thatgoes from six months in advance
to the artist shelling out moneyto make something happen, all

(50:59):
the way to like, The night ofthe performance and how the
artist carries themselves onstage and how the show goes and
like all those little things.
But I do think that's a hugething that a lot of acts who are
young and starting out don'tnecessarily think about is that
like, it is fine and dandy tomake a quick buck on some of

(51:22):
these shows.
But like, What's the next movethen?
How are you gonna level up fromthere?
And like, how are you gonna takethat?
And I, I mean, the biggest ofthe best are doing that.
So it clearly is a path to take.

Nik (51:39):
One of the sickest shows I've seen in a long time was
seeing Illenium last summer.
And for me personally, why Iloved it, like the production
was sick, but I loved seeing thehybrid of live music and
electronic.
I mean, he had he had the Eightpeople up on stage with him at
all times.
A fucking guitar player, adrummer, like a bass player,
three singers, It

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (52:01):
Was this the stadium show?

Nik (52:03):
this was the stadium.
So this was this tour that hedid last summer.
And I remember reading, youknow, that the tour cost$9
million.
Like they, they put up$9 millionand I'm sure with the promoters
as well.
But like, let's talk whenyou're, you know, you're looking
at these artists, you're goingto these shows.
Uh, if you're an artist, likeone.

(52:23):
It's so good to start learningabout how this business actually
works and like start learninglike what do what is a promoter?
What is a talent booker?
What does it actually take toput these shows on how much did
you know the information's outthere to a certain extent you?
Might have to dig for it alittle bit, but I remember yeah
reading article.
You know he put 9, 000, 000 intothat show, you know, for not

(52:44):
from that show, but for thewhole tour.
But I was also there with, uh, Igot invited.
My friend was friends with hismerch guy.
And I remember the merch guytelling me, he's like, yeah,
just at this one show in Austin,just off of one Jersey, or just
maybe it was just there, justthe Jersey line, not even like
the full merch line, but justoff of jerseys, we made a
hundred grand.

(53:05):
Just off of selling jerseys atthis one show, not including
tickets, not including the restof the fucking, you know, stuff.
So it's like, that's the game,you know, it's like, yeah,
excision.
How many people do you seewearing excision jerseys?
You know, where it's like,you've built a brand, he's
invested millions of dollars tobuild it, but he's also making
millions of dollars probablyliterally just off his fucking
jerseys at this point.

(53:25):
So it's like, it's such a biggame.
And you know, obviously it takesa while to get there, but it
starts with having that levelof.
Vision for like if that's whereyou want to be, you know That
was also something Derek said inthat in that conversation too is
just deciding about like Wheredo you want to be on the totem
pole?
Like is your goal reallyactually to be that level of an
artist because if it is Itreally requires that Super crazy

(53:50):
delusional belief and

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (53:51):
Then you gotta act like you're that level of an
artist.
Long before you are that levelof an artist, in my

Nik (53:58):
And it's also, that's, that might not be your path.
You know, also, you know what Imean?
It's like, you don't have to bethe biggest artist in the world.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (54:04):
And not everyone is gonna be Marshmello.
Like, it just is how it goes.

Nik (54:09):
No, it's impossible.
But also to be like, if youreally do want to be, to like,
start, getting realistic aboutwhat that actually takes and
learning.
You know, there's a lot of,there's a lot of dreamers, but
it's like to actually know whatis the strategy to get there,
there's a strategy you're goingto have to take.
Yeah.
For you.
Uh, what's the vision for, youknow, five years down the road

(54:31):
with Jekyll and Hyde, like, tellme a bit about where you're
taking things and what thatvision looks like.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (54:36):
Yeah, a hundred percent.
Um, I would say in the longerterm game, like the five plus
years down the road, definitelydo want to be doing branded
events, ideally, and obviouslynot like, probably the scale of
like, three a year, like fuckingExigeon is, but like, dream goal

(54:58):
would be to do like, A Jekylland Hyde two night event where
the first night is like Jekyllvibes and a little like happier
lighter And then the secondnight is like heavy, high, scary
shit kind of, and like reallyplaying into the duality of the
brand and the light versus darkkind of contrast.

(55:22):
And then within like the shorterterm, like year to two years, I
would say really kind offocusing on, you know, expanding
my Horizons a little bit beyondlike the hard dubstep fan base
so i'd say I produce any genremore or less and like have never

(55:44):
had an issue with that And i'veloved playing out multiple
genres and like kind of flowingin that regard through my set
but now just a little bit moreon the like back end focus of
like, okay, so Here's the fansthat I want to target.
How do we get myself in front ofthose fans?
Whether it be like certainbookings and looking to be

(56:06):
playing support for certain actsor playing certain events that
are catered to a certain marketa little more like festivals
that are a little more on thelike experimental side than the
heavy dubstep side, um, as wellas collaborations.
There's definitely some peopleI'm working with now that are a
bit outside of my typical realmand I'm very excited to like

(56:31):
continue with that.
While still catering to All thepeople who have been there from
the start kind of like SomethingChris from Colt says is like
talking about like you're arestaurant how do you serve each
individual person at your tableand that's kind of something in
the next like year or two thatI'm Driving a lot of focus to is

(56:55):
like how do I still keep mycurrent customers happy and fed?
And eating what they want whilealso being able to cater a
little bit more to some of thesemore, uh, expansive universes of
bass music, whether it be likeweird experimental stuff, like,
I love all the walk on stuff andwhat Liquid Stranger is doing

(57:18):
with that.
Um, I love kind of the, Some ofthe trappier experimental guys
something something icon Alumlove his shit.
Um, and like easy baked kind ofthat vibe is some stuff.
I've been really diggingpersonally Immersive tape be

(57:38):
obviously are like killing itright now in that lane So kind
of just trying to like includethose areas of my production and
Really like tie that togetherfocus on my audience and then
You Just grow and expand, um,with that goal of like in the
future doing more brandedevents, more themed type of

(58:02):
experience things.
And there's even some stuffwe're working on now, just
making certain shows a bit morespecial and a bit more of an
experience, whether that be likedecorating the venue, giving
some sort of secret thing,Involved in to participate in
whether it be like scanning a QRcode or having a certain merch

(58:25):
item that you can only get ifyou do this combination of like
things type of stuff almost likevery kind of experiential type
of things for the live eventsand just bringing it to be a bit
more than just a show you'regoing to at a venue and kind of
something where people will belike, whoa, I'm gonna remember

(58:47):
this night.
That was really cool.

Nik (58:49):
Hell.
Yeah.
Yeah, you know, I think thatCollaboration strategy is such a
great way to introduce yourselfto new markets.
You know, I think talking ofMarshmello, like he did such an
amazing job of like, Oh, I'mgoing to hit the Latin market.
Let me do a song with J Balvin.
And now it's like, boom, I'vegot my stuff over here.

(59:09):
Like, let me.
Collaborate with these hip hopartists.
And now I'm like, I'm, you know,he's cool with every fucking

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (59:14):
Literally did a Rhythm EP, like,

Nik (59:16):
Yeah.
Yeah.
You got sudden, You know, he'sdoing his sudden death thing
also.
And that's something I've beenseeing more where it's like,
even like deeper projects withpeople from other genres.
It's like not just one song, butI'm seeing, you know, it's like,
it's a full EP or an

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (59:30):
like a collab.
Exactly.

Nik (59:33):
you know?
Yeah.
Again, the, the mellow deaththing was really great.
Like, think about how.
Happy a lot of you know originalmarshmallow shit is is very
poppy is so poppy and he's doingliterally like pop
collaborations But then to alsobe like, oh no, I can do a
fucking gnarly dubstep, you knowshow

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (59:48):
Go play in the mall of America and rip Rhythm
to these kids.
Yeah, it's crazy

Nik (59:54):
it's it's genius and just such a great way to um, you know
one I think have funArtistically like cool like yeah
again back to our originalconversation.
It's like I don't just YouListen to one genre of music.
I'm not inspired by just onegenre.
I don't just eat mashed potatoesfrom the buffet.
I like, I like to try it all.
So artistically I can see howthat would be so much more

(01:00:14):
fulfilling, but also just in thebigger kind of chess game of
like, yeah, let me expand intonew markets.
Like that's the best way thatyou can do it right there.
So I love that.
Yeah, man.
Well, dude, I'm so excited tosee what you create.
I'm so happy that our paths haveintersected.
It was really, really great tosee you out at Lostlands.

(01:00:34):
Get to see you in person.
That was such a pleasantsurprise.
And appreciate you taking thetime to come on and hang out
today, man.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (01:00:42):
I'm so glad I could like I said been such a
fan since day one So it'sawesome to be on here myself and
get to chat and i'm sure we'llbe seeing each other quite often
soon, too

Nik (01:00:56):
Let me know if you ever make it out to Austin.
There's stuff happening outhere.
And so I'm sure it will happenat some point.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (01:01:03):
next month

Nik (01:01:05):
Next month, you're coming to Austin.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (01:01:06):
Yeah, for the haul tour that I am doing as
well right now.
That one is at Kingdom, Ibelieve, like November 8th.

Nik (01:01:14):
Boom.
I'll see you there.

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (01:01:16):
I'll see you there.
We'll talk.

Nik (01:01:18):
Hell yeah.
Alright brother, have a good

Luke/Jkyl & Hyde (01:01:20):
Great talking to you, Nick.
Thank you so much.