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Sean “Diddy” Combs is not in any danger of self-harm despite being placed on a suicide watch as he awaits trial, his representatives tell Billboard.
“Mr. Combs is strong, healthy and focused on his defense,” a spokesperson for the music mogul explains. “He is committed to fighting this case and has full confidence in both his legal team and the truth.”
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The decision to put Diddy on suicide watch is “procedural with high-profile clients,” the insider told NBC News. Sources also told People that the move was a preventative measure.
Diddy was arrested Monday (Sept. 16) in New York City, and Manhattan federal prosecutors have since unveiled the substance of their case against Combs — accusing him of operating a criminal enterprise centered on his “pervasive pattern of abuse toward women.”
He was denied bail at his Sept. 17 arraignment, and is currently facing up to life in prison for three felony charges. The next step for Combs will be an initial pretrial conference next week before Judge Andrew L. Carter, Jr., the federal district judge who will oversee his trial.
In a video obtained by CNN earlier this year and dated March 5, 2016, Combs appears to shove his longtime former partner, Cassie Ventura, to the ground near an elevator bank, kick her several times while she lies on the ground and drag her down a hallway. The contents of the video mirror an assault allegation Ventura made in a now-settled lawsuit she filed against Diddy in November.
Ventura was the first to accuse Diddy of sexual assault, filing a lawsuit in November in which attorneys for Cassie claimed she “endured over a decade of his violent behavior and disturbed demands,” including repeated physical attacks and forcing her to “engage in sex acts with male sex workers” while he masturbated. According to the complaint, after she attempted to separate from him in 2018 after an on-and-off public relationship for 11 years, Combs allegedly “forced her into her home and raped her while she repeatedly said ‘no’ and tried to push him away.” The case was soon settled, but Combs was then sued by multiple other women who claimed they were sexually abused by the hip-hop mogul.
If you or someone you know is a victim of domestic violence, please call the confidential National Domestic Violence Hotline toll-free at 1-800-799-7233, or go to thehotline.org.
On this week’s (Sept. 6) episode of the Greatest Pop Stars of the 21st Century podcast, we take a look at a pair of enduring all-time greats: the Queen of Latin Music Shakira and the rap GOAT Jay-Z. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news First, host Andrew Unterberger is […]
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez dissed Nicky Jam and Anuel AA when the subject turned to Donald Trump at a recent congressional hearing.
While questioning Mark Krikorian, the executive director of the far-right Center for Immigration Studies, during an Oversight and Accountability Committee hearing Thursday (Sept. 19), the Bronx representative asked him whether he remembered the Donald Trump administration’s rumored desire to “sell” the island of Puerto Rico.
“I don’t even remember that one,” Krikorian replied, to which AOC countered, “I suppose that puts you and Nicky Jam and Anuel in the same boat.”
Nicky Jam was born and raised in Massachusetts, but has lived in Puerto Rico most of his life; Anuel is Puerto Rican. Billboard has reached out to reps for Ocasio-Cortez, Nicky Jam and Anuel AA for comment.
The hearing was dubbed “A Legacy of Incompetence: Consequences of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Policy Failures.” It came with 46 days left to go before the 2024 presidential election, in which both Latin music stars mentioned by AOC are championing Trump.
Anuel formally endorsed the Republican candidate at the former president’s rally in August, appearing on stage alongside fellow reggaetón star Justin Quiles. “The best president the world has seen, this country has ever seen, his name is President Trump,” the “China” musician said at the podium. “I personally spoke with him, he wants to help Puerto Rico grow and succeed as a country. He wants to keep helping Latinos in the U.S. Let’s keep doing things the right way and let’s make America great again.”
The following month, Jam appeared at Trump’s rally in Las Vegas, where the twice-impeached ex-POTUS mistakenly referred to the “X” singer as a “she.” “Do you know Nicky? She’s hot. Where’s Nicky?” Trump said while introducing the artist.
Despite the faux pas, Nicky Jam gave a passionate endorsement of the billionaire upon taking the microphone. “It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. President,” he told Trump. “We need you. We need you back, right? We need you to be the president.”
He and Anuel are two of several musicians who are backing Trump’s re-election bid this year, alongside Jason Aldean, Kid Rock, Kodak Black, Lil Pump, Sexyy Red and Billy Ray Cyrus. Democratic opponent Kamala Harris, however, also has a litany of A-list artists on her side, from Taylor Swift to Billie Eilish, Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, John Legend and more.
Watch AOC call out Nicky Jam and Anuel AA below.
K-pop girl group aespa blast off into space with a new Grimes-assisted remix of their hit single “Supernova.” The song from the four-woman group’s debut studio album, Armageddon – The 1st Album, gets an intergalactic brush-up as part of a six-track remix EP that dropped on Friday (Sept. 20), iScreaM Vol. 33 ” Supernova / Armageddon Remixes.
In an X post, Grimes explained why she stepped out of her typical lane for the project. “I normally don’t do remixes but I could not resist messing with this accapella even tho the original production on this song is undefeatable,” Grimes wrote. “I went back to cyber twee for this and even had @angelfir_e sit behind me and stop me every time I tried to overthink the production so… it’s very grimesy.”
She’s not kidding. While the original track from KARINA, GISELLE, WINTER AND NINGNING was a snappy, hyper dance pop banger, in Grimes’ hands it gets a firmware update with chilly, metallic beats, Grimes’ signature alien chirp sped-up vocals, celestial harmonies and new wave keyboards.
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In addition, on Instagram Grimes said sorry/not sorry for changing the song’s alluring chorus and drilling down on a lyric she was entranced by. “I know I changed the hook but I was so shook by the lyric ‘bring no light of a dying star’ that was casually in there. Felt like it needed a moment,” she wrote. Grimes also posted a series of pics with the group in which she rocks a futuristic jumpsuit and sparkly red glasses. “rip the old grimes she wud have loved dis,” she wrote alongside the snaps.
In addition to the Grimes “Supernova” remix, the EP features three new remixes of the album’s title track — by Flava D, 2Spade and Mount XLR — as well as the original versions of the title track and “Supernova.” On X, Grimes revealed that she did her own “Armageddon” remix as well, noting, “idk if they want it but I could ask. I also have a second supernova remix that’s kinda good but my baby destroyed the computer it was on so it’s unmixable.”
iScreaM Vol. 33 is part of a four-year-old series from SM’s EDM label ScreaM Records featuring remixes of songs by SM artists that has perviously featured revamps of tracks from NCT 127, SHINee, Red Velvet, Taeyeon, Girls’ Generation and others. Armageddon – The 1st Album debuted at No. 2 on Billboard’s Top Album Sales chart in July, marking the quartet’s fifth project to debut in the top 10 on that tally.
Listen to Grimes’ “Supernova” remix and see her statement below.
I normally don’t do remixes but I could not resist messing with this accapella even tho the original production on this song is undefeatable. I went back to cyber twee for this and even had @angelfir_e sit behind me and stop me every time I tried to overthink the production so… https://t.co/Tz9qya39Ri— 𝖦𝗋𝗂𝗆𝖾𝗌 ⏳ (@Grimezsz) September 16, 2024
Diddy’s federal indictment has sent shockwaves throughout the hip-hop community. TMZ caught up with Method Man earlier this week and asked the Wu-Tang Clan rapper about Sean “Diddy” Combs’ arrest contributing to the possible downfall of hip-hop as we know it. “How? I don’t think that it has anything to do with hip-hop as far […]
Sean “Diddy” Combs has been placed on a suicide watch as he awaits trial in federal custody on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, NBC News and People reported on Friday (Sept. 20). The move is “procedural with high-profile clients,” the insider told NBC News. Sources also told People that the move was a preventative measure. […]
In London, New York and Los Angeles this past spring and summer, Jamie xx played 20 shows in a club of his own making, The Floor. Happening in warehouse spaces in each city, the nights featured a rotating cast of friends and fellow producers playing on lineups that each also included the U.K. producer, altogether bringing to life the nightclub of his dreams he’d long envisioned. The shows went late, with Jamie typically playing well after midnight, even in the middle of the week. Every show sold out.
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After it was all wrapped, the producer then traveled to the woods Norway, where he posted up on a mountain four hours from the closest city. He had no phone signal, and every night for dinner, he ate the fish he’d caught earlier that day.
It’s the type of urban/rural balance the London-born artist has carved out over the last nine years, since the release of his last album, In Colour. Jamie’s second studio album, the project reached No. 21 on the Billboard 200, becoming an essential of the era. Making it after a period of heavy touring with his band, The xx, when he was longing for home, he calls the project “sort of my fantasy version of U.K. dance music history.”
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Nine years later, the producer, now 35, is more focused on the present. Now living between his homes in London and Los Angeles, he’s today (Sept. 20) released In Colour‘s long-awaited followup, In Waves. Out on his own label, Young, he calls the project “a lot more current and about now,” with the 12-track project toggling between dreamy, cerebral IDM and equally smart but also joyful, extremely danceable tracks like the previously released singles “Baddy on the Floor” and “Life,” which features vocals from Robyn. The album also features his bandmates from The xx, Romy Madley Croft and Oliver Sim, with whom Jamie has recently been in the studio with.
Speaking to Billboard from London the week before the release of In Waves, the artist, born James Thomas Smith, is days away from going on tour behind the album, with the run including standalone shows in Europe, the U.S., Brazil and beyond, along with festival sets at San Francisco’s Portola, Las Vegas’ A Big Beautiful Block Party, FORM Arcosanti in Arizona and Miami’s III Points.
However, release day will be the last time he’ll listen to the album he’s spent the last nine years making in its album form. Here, he explains why.
In Colour is obviously considered a masterpiece of the era. Did you feel pressure in making its follow up?
Yes, there was a period of time after I finished touring for I See You, the third xx album, there was a period of time where I was so sure that I was going to come home off tour, and I had this whole plan of what I was going to do to make my second solo record. I did exactly what I thought I should do, then the music just didn’t turn out to be — I think basically I had too much of a plan, and it was rigid. It seems to take me just having fun and not really thinking about the end game to be able to make music.
Did you ultimately use any of the music you were making in that more rigid plan?
No. I mean, it exists, but I don’t think it’s worth hearing. When I really started getting into the album, the pressure of In Colour seemed to disappear, and I was just enjoying making it. The only thing I was aware of was trying to be as un-nostalgic as I could be. I mean, I’m quite nostalgic in nature, but I wanted this album to feel a lot more current and about now, or maybe about the future, rather than looking to the past.
Going from In Colour to In Waves, it sounds like you’re in the same narrative. Does that feel fair? And if so, where are you now that you weren’t in 2015 and how has the story progressed?
Well, when I was making Colour, I was on tour, and had been for seven or eight years nonstop. I was really homesick, and I was dreaming up ideas about the U.K. and music in the U.K. and the dance scene there and everything that has happened since the ’80s in dance music in the U.K., which is a lot. It was sort of my fantasy version of U.K. dance music history. Because I was missing home, it made me feel more like I was at home, I guess.
This time, I bought a place in L.A., I live between London and L.A., and I’ve really grown into being transient, and I enjoy being all over the place. I feel very lucky that I get to do that and explore the different scenes. I don’t really miss home so much anymore. So this one is more about just enjoying where I’m at currently.
How have you made being transient more palatable and sustainable for you?
I think it’s more of a change in mindset than anything else. I also feel like maybe London has changed, that the scene was so vibrant when I was a teenager to like 25 [years old] in London and dance music was kind of London/U.K. centric, so it was all coming from where I grew up. I didn’t want to miss out on any of that. Whereas now, scenes that pop up are so global instantly because of how music is shared and how everybody is everywhere at once on social media and the internet, that it doesn’t feel like I need to be in one particular place.
That said, are there cities that feel particularly exciting or fresh to you right now?
It’s a good question. There are places that are always amazing and always have been like Berlin. L.A. played a big part in making me a happier, calmer person in my brain. I spent some of the pandemic there when we were allowed to fly. But L.A. was still in lockdown, so nothing was open, and I was just going surfing every day, then coming back to the house and making music. It’s some of the best memories in my life. I still try to get back to that headspace, then I eventually bought a house in L.A. because of how much I enjoyed it. It’s a very different way of life to London, and it’s been very helpful.
L.A. can be so hectic and so dense, but it sounds like you found a certain amount of serenity here.
Yeah, definitely. It can definitely be hectic, but I love that you can just escape up into the hills or to the beach, and suddenly you’re in wild nature.
It sounds like having fun and enjoying yourself was a driving force in the creation process of this album, which is very fun and danceable and celebratory, and also thematically deep. I’m thinking about tracks like “Breather” and like some of Robyn’s lyrics. On that side of it, what experiences and ideas were you drawing from?
I’ve been very reflective since I turned 30, which I think happens, has happened, to a lot of our generation. With that comes a lot more peace of mind, but also it gets really exhausting and boring, and you also want to be able to have fun in a more sustainable way. It was about finding balance between all those things. I guess with some of the spoken word and the themes on the album, it was both poking fun at that and also wanting it to be meaningful, depending on your mindset when you’re listening to it.
Where is it poking fun?
For example, the vocal on “Breather” was taken from me doing a YouTube yoga tutorial every day during lockdown. The woman who spoke on my yoga video is the person I ended up sampling like that, to either refer to your state of mind, and or taking drugs on a dance floor.
Obviously you’ve been very active in the nine years since In Colour, and also the dance world moves so quickly. I wonder if you ever felt like things were passing you by and thought about how you were going to reinsert yourself when it was time. Was there any doubt in that way?
Yeah. I mean, I still feel like that now. But at least I remind myself that I can get to places where I don’t feel like that. I just went to Norway on holiday for a week, like four hours out of a city, up a mountain to this lake where there was no roads and no phone signal. I had the best time ever. I had to fish for my dinner every night. It was a very unique experience. I kind of got back to that mindset that I’ve been so searching for over these years, of just calmness, really. Just knowing that that’s there is super helpful.
It sounds like nature is a big piece of it for you, in re-centering yourself.
Yeah, it has become that. I never expected that because I grew up in the city, and I always said that I would never want to live in a countryside. I was never really bothered by it, but I think things have changed.
It’s an interesting contrast to a crowded dance floor, which is typically a very metropolitan concept. Coming out of The Floor in London, New York and Los Angeles, did those runs turn out how you envisioned? And what did you take from the experiences?
It all turned out way better than I envisioned. But, I mean, I was quite naive going into The Floor nights, because for so long I dreamed of being able to build my own club, that I never even thought about what it would be like to have to play at my own club every night, which was amazing, but it was exhausting.
But every time I got back into the room, it was so invigorating and just filled me with energy, and then I was ready to go every night. I got to hear people I loved playing, people who I’d never heard playing. Every night was different and inspiring. It was a beautiful thing. I just need to pace myself, because I’m not that young anymore.
When I saw the set times, I wondered how you were sustaining it. It sounds like it was maybe not that sustainable, but you got the adrenaline rush of being there.
Yeah, exactly. I miss it, already. And I probably miss that adrenaline rush too, but I hope that I’ll do some more.
Do you have to prepare differently playing The Floor versus a large venue or big festival?
Yeah, definitely. The joy of playing one of the small ones is that you have to improvise as much as possible, because you’re so connected with the audience — it’s a back and forth between the people that you’re staring into the faces of. At festivals, there’s a certain element of improvisation for me, and I enjoy that, but I have to play my songs, and enough of them that people don’t get pissed off.
Tell me about like, one peak bliss moment for you in that run of The Floor.
François K in New York. I mean, I don’t like to use the word life-changing, but it was up there. I’ve met him a few times and played with him in New York at his club nights, and he’s always been great and very insightful. This time, I got to hang out with him for an hour before he played and talk about the history of dance in New York and how he’s seen the different waves of dance music over the many years he’s been playing. That was great. Then he went and played one of the best sets I’ve ever seen in my life, and it unified everybody in the room in a way that only happens very occasionally, even though I go to a lot of shows.
Did you learn anything about In Waves in terms of what parts of it really worked, while you were playing it out at The Floor?
I got to play it in full to all my friends in the London club before one of the club nights started. That was a really lovely thing. It felt like a momentous occasion, at the end of making the album. Then during the all The Floors, all the songs that hadn’t come out yet, people seemed to recognize it was me, which was really nice considering this album is quite different to the last one.
What do you think are your signatures? What are people recognizing that they know is you?
I have no idea, but I guess I would assume that people know my music better than me, because after I’ve finished it, I really don’t listen to it unless I have to.
So you haven’t been listening to In Waves outside of playing it out?
No. I haven’t listened to it since the day I approved the master, but I will listen to it the day it comes out.
Why do you think that is?
I find it kind of excruciating.
Oh, why?
Well, I’ve listened to it a million times in every detail, but also it feels like reading a diary or something from the past, even if it’s not that long ago, like this album. I just find it quite difficult — and that’s why, when I’m playing my songs from In Colour, I try and rework them, to keep it interesting for me and give them new life.
When is the last time you listened to In Colour in full?
I think six or seven years ago, when I was really struggling with what to do about not being able to make another album. I went with my mate to somewhere in Italy, and we did a road trip and listened to every album I’ve ever made, which sounds like torture to me. It kind of was, and I’m very grateful to my friend for sitting through all of that. It was really helpful, and that’s the last time I listened to it.
Can you share any details about that experience, of what was going through your mind when you were driving around Italy listening to your album and not necessarily enjoying the experience?
I remember being really surprised by a lot of decisions I had made as a younger person, and remembering who the hell I was when I made those decisions.
Who were you?
I don’t know. I guess I was drunk quite a lot of the time [laughs], having a lot of fun in my mid-20s. It’s very painstaking, all these decisions you feel are so important. Then listening to them 10 years later or five years later, you can’t believe you made any of the decisions. And you think they’re wrong, or I would have made completely different decisions now, but I guess that’s a part of it.
I guess nothing is ever done. There just comes a time when you have to turn it in.
That is true.
Was there a sense of relief when you turned in In Waves?
Yeah, massive relief. The album was actually meant to come out in June this year, and I had the test pressing made, then it just didn’t sound good enough. That’s why it’s coming out in September. But because of that, it meant that I got to finish the song with Robyn, and I think it made the album better. So there have been several moments where it was almost finished, but it’s been a slow burn.
If it had come out in June, it would have been eligible for a Grammy this year. Was there a thought of getting it out in time to be nominated, or was that not a thing?
No, that was not a thing.
With the album complete, what else, if anything, are you working on? Or is it more about preparing for the live shows?
I’ve been in the studio with the band a little bit. We’ve mostly been talking, not making music. Those [sessions] have been really nice. I’m actually focusing on spending the last two days in my house before I leave it for a year and a half and enjoying London for the last little bit, then really getting stuck into all the live shows.
So you’re going to be on the road for a year and a half, more or less?
If things go well, yes.
How do you mean if things go well?
I mean, I hope I get to tour this a lot, because it’s kind of the only way I connect with the album after it’s done. I’m not looking at reviews, and I’m not on socials or anything like that.
Well, maybe you just answered it — but tell me, what does success for the album look like to you?
Basically, I get a few nice texts from people whose option I appreciate, and I get to keep doing all of this.
Naomi Sharon is looking for the nearest Sephora in New York City. She also needs to find a nail tech before she takes the Radio City Music Hall stage for a show the following day.
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Sharon, who signed to Drake’s OVO Sound label in early 2023, is on the road as part of Tems’ Born in the Wild Tour, and trekked directly from Philadelphia to the Midtown Manhattan Billboard offices earlier in September.
The 29-year-old Dutch singer stuns in a black floor-length bodycon dress matching her carefully curated midnight aesthetic. Sharon steals the attention of any room — and that’s even before hearing her ethereal vocals.
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Combining the worlds of dreamy R&B and ambient house, Sharon impressed with her dreamy Obsidian debut album, which earned her a spot on Billboard‘s 2024 Hip-Hop & R&B Artists to Watch list. The romantic tug of war found her opening up about the trials and tribulations of love throughout the stirring and vulnerable 13-track LP.
Now she’s turning the page to her sophomore album — and Sharon is excited about what’s to come musically before 2024 expires.
“I don’t want to say too much, but there is a lot of beautiful stuff coming this year. I’m very excited about it,” she teases to Billboard. “When I listen to Obsidian and the songs I have now, there’s some more maturity in it. It’s a nice shift. Hell yeah, the Obsidian project is here and we need to [elevate] now.”
Check out the rest of our chat with Naomi Sharon below, which finds her delving into her conversations with Drake, new music, touring with Tems and much more about her travels on the road.
How has the tour been?
Very exciting. It’s very nice to meet a new audience. It’s good to perform for a larger audience as well. I love it. The bigger the better. It’s a different energy. When I did my tour, people were familiar with me. Now some people are and some people are not. Which is also nice because sometimes you see them react to you. It’s fun to be on the road. I have a very nice team I do it with and we’re all Dutch.
How has it been winning over audiences? It can be a different experience as an opener.
It truly is. As an artist, you have an ego. I do have an ego as well. But I still want to challenge myself so I see it more as something testing me to be a better artist. I’m really focused when I’m [performing] for a new audience because I gotta draw you in without forcing it. I received a lot of messages from people. I think it’s important to build a relationship with your audience. By reposting their [Instagram Stories] you’re kinda showing them a thank you. I’m not sure I can do that forever.
We do meet-and-greets after and some people come with stories. One time it made me cry. I was surprised by it. Some girl came to the show and her father was the one who put her on my music, but he passed away in the months leading up to the show. I felt very grateful but at the same time I was like, “That’s what music does to people.” That’s how I listen to music as well.
Where did you built your whole aesthetic from? I’m assuming this is very intentionally done.
It is very much intentionally done. I think it started at a very young age. I had a moment in time I wanted to be a designer. I was very much into fashion. I’m pursuing that. It’s important to dress however you want to dress, but as an artist I want to be visible. I think it’s fun to dress. As an artist, you kinda have an excuse to be extra. The latex kinda represents obsidian. The black, maybe I’m a little gothic.
How did you connect with DJ Snake turning “Myrrh” into his own rendition of “Goodbyes?”
I know DJ Snake but I’ve never been in contact with him. I think it kinda came through the label. He liked it and said, “Let me do something to it.” When I heard it, it’s funny to distance yourself from the original song. I liked it and it grew on me. I was like, “Yeah, let’s do this for sure.”
What’s inspiring you creatively? Who are you listening to?
Life situations in general. That’s the most beautiful part about writing lyrics for me. Sometimes I’m like, “What’s next?” But there’s always something. That’s what I’m writing about. Sometimes a place can inspire me. For instance, I love Bali. It’s a place that sparks something because I’m at peace.
I listen to Sting. That’s something that never changes. I listen to a lot of old school music. New school, I love Yebba. I think she deserves her flowers. Feels stupid to say this, but I also listen to Drake.
Do you have a favorite Drake record?
One of my favorite albums is Honestly, Nevermind. I think that’s the European in me. I don’t think other people understood the assignment when it came out in the U.S. A lot of people aren’t used to that type of music. People were [comparing] it to Love Island. That’s our stuff in Europe. I love that album. I think it’s beautifully done. One song not from the album is “Passionfruit.” I think that’s one of his best songs.
I love seeing other artists show you love in your comments, like SZA or Snoh Aalegra.
I’m pretty good with both. One I see and speak to and the other one is supporting. I just love that in general with women in the industry supporting each other. Some are not as keen as others to do that. I think it’s so good. You don’t have to be afraid. Everyone has her own lane and I believe nobody can steal your path.
What did you see as success for your debut album? Would you have done anything differently?
Being proud about my own project that’s a big accomplishment. As soon as you go on and move on from it, and you grow into a bigger artist, you listen to your fans a little bit more. Then maybe you start to make music for your audience a little bit. I always try to stay a little bit true to myself. I’m the one that needs to perform it. I’m the one who needs to deliver it.
You put your entire life into your debut album. Is it like, “Where do I go from here?”
It’s a taste thing as well. People would say that about me as well with the new songs. But it’s an ever-evolving thing, right? In years, I’ll look back at Obsidian — I have already with other songs — like, my voice is even different. Not that I’m not sounding like myself, but you know you can hear that someone’s going through something. It’s a little lower, a little higher. When I listen to Obsidian and the songs I have now, there’s some more maturity in it. It’s a nice shift. Hell yeah, the Obsidian project is here and we need to [elevate] now.
Creatively, what’s next for you?
I don’t want to say too much, but there is a lot of beautiful stuff coming this year. I’m very excited about it.
How about potentially working with Tems since you guys are on tour?
I would love that. I think you don’t need to force anything. I think that will happen naturally. Of course, I’m on tour with her now, but I don’t feel the need to knock on her dressing room and be like, “Hey Tems, do you want to make a song right now?” That’s not gonna happen, but I do manifest it when I feel the timing is right. But I would love to.
How painful was your back tattoo? What was the inspiration behind it?
This was seven hours. Putting a tattoo on your body was kind of a thrill. This one was special because the artist is from Berlin and he’s doing this intuitively. So I was sitting in front of him and he goes with his pen first and he’s just drawing it on my back. After a few hours, I can look at it. I think it’s so beautiful. We had a conversation first and he takes a day per person to really sit with you and get to know you. He made this — seven hours, one break. It was painful. I think I have a pretty high pain tolerance. He showed me his work and was like, “What is your favorite?” Everything is very much his style and I had a few people coming up to me asking if it’s this artist. I love that. I want to have more from him. It’s a special person.
What’s the most surprising thing you’ve seen about American culture since you’ve been traveling to all these cities on tour?
Now you’re touching the nerve. I’m always joking about this. I think in general American culture is very different from Dutch culture. One thing is so funny is you say, “Hi, how are you?” In one sentence and it actually means, “Hi.” It’s not a genuine question… That’s one thing I find funny. It refers to you guys being very open and happy to greet everyone. It has something beautiful as well. Dutch people in general are very down to earth. Too much sometimes. Whenever you go to a restaurant you kinda get ignored.
In comparison with Americans, it’s different. It’s not like, “Hi, how are you? I’m Steve and I’m gonna take care of your table today.” In Holland it’s like, “Hi. You have a table for two? It’s over there and I’ll walk you to it.” There’s no introductions. Dutch people are actually pretty straightforward and genuine. It depends where you go. I also know that native people from L.A. are different from transplants. People are straightforward in Holland and I think we come across as rude.
Have you picked up any hobbies on tour?
A couple went through my head. One hobby is going to Sweetgreen’s. I wanted to do horse riding in Texas and it didn’t happen. We wanted to go to the shooting range — didn’t happen. I do not support guns by the way, but it’s kinda nice to do it where you can do it. Those were the fantasy hobbies. The real hobbies are going to the gym three times a week and Sephora. I was just looking up where Sephora is. My phone said, “Visited yesterday.”
I feel like you’re always by some body of water. We see you surfing too. How about that?
How about that. I’ve been to Bali three times. The second time I was there for a month to do it properly. With surfing, you have to do it everyday. If not, twice a day. Last time I was there, I was like, “I’m gonna try it again. Not on a foam board, but a real board.” Then it happened and I was pretty good on it. I went to a spot where they take photos as well. They took it and was like, “This look good.”
Water is my element. I’m a pisces. I love water and think someone asked me that on my page about blue having a particular meaning. It’s just a color that calms me down. Sometimes I can be annoying about it because everything needs to be in the color range.
It was funny when you asked people to Photoshop the horizon clear out of your picture on Twitter.
I knew what I was doing. When that happened, it was funny and became a thing on Twitter. That went viral.
Are you aware when things go viral on Twitter and stuff? I see fan pages or music news accounts reposting.
Sometimes I’m like, “Oh, my followers are going up.” Then I’m like, “What’s going on?” And it kinda freaks me out.
Do you ever consider your brand and things outside of music overshadowing your [art]? Do you look at it as funneling more people toward your music?
That’s just who I am. That’s what I look like. I think almost every artist is doing that. It’s like a business card almost. That’s how I look at my Instagram. That’s why aesthetically it needs to be in place to welcome people in my world. That’s what you’re gonna get. Every photo that I post, I’m not someone that just posts photos.
You’re not gonna hit us with the Dua Lipa 20-slide vacation photo dump?
I can do that, but I’ll take my time. I think she does that as well. I don’t think she’s like, “Oh, I’m just gonna put this up.” You have your phone and you kinda select it. That’s just me and I think it’s fun with Instagram and TikTok and you can play back yourself instead of your label pushing certain photos or publishing things.
I was doing some searching Naomi Sharon on Twitter and a 2016 photo of you with The Lion King NL came up? I was like, “What is this?”
That’s not weird, dude. That’s my f–king job. That’s what I did in the past. I was a musical star. I was broadway — joking. I had a past life before this where I did musicals. I did Lion King then I did Tina Turner The Musical. Then I was like, “I’m gonna do this for myself.” During Lion King, I actually worked on my first song ever and I put it out. It kinda went uphill from that moment. When Tina Turner was going on, Drake hit me up. He was like, “I have a label. Would you [want to sign]?” I was like, “This is a clear sign for me to move on and to take the risk.”
Do you ever send Drake music?
Yeah, for sure.
How does that feedback work?
He’s one of the people that I send music to have an honest review on what it is. He has a funny brain that can pick things up well and make them popular. He’s a really good one for that. I send him stuff — and of course the man is busy, but whenever he replies to it I’m very grateful. I’m like, “This is something I can feel good about or something I need to work on a little bit more.” Of course, I have my own critique. It’s not that I take his critique and be like, “This is the answer.” But I take it very seriously. He’s just being honest and of course it’s nice when he says, “This is f–king great.”
Is there anything specific he gave a critique on that he was right about?
For sure — he gave me very good advice in the beginning, before the album. It was one of our first meetings ever. He was like… when he found me, he was intrigued by my music and the way that I did it. But he was like, “I can see you in different worlds that you can make your own. Why don’t you challenge yourself to go upbeat?” I made neo-soul the first few songs. He was like, “You can do that with your sound and with your world and cross over.” I actually was inspired by that, and that’s why Obsidian has some uptempo things.
You shied away from that typically?
Yeah — but when he said it, I was like, “I think he has a point.” Whenever a person like Drake says it, who’s been in the business for such a long time, you kinda maybe need to do something with it.
Eventually, are we gonna get the Naomi Sharon x Drake record?
Same thing with Tems, I don’t force things. We spoke about it, but it’s also whenever we feel it makes sense. I don’t think it’s gonna be a conversation. We’re both very sensitive people when it comes to hearing music. Whenever he hears something that will be great, then [we’ll do it]. That would be amazing.
What are your goals for the rest of the year?
I like scripting. I like to write things down as if they already happened. Funny enough, I did one a few days ago for 10 years. I think it’s good and I also have a list and it’s funny to go back and it’s funny I forget I have one. I’ll go back like, “Oh, I did this already.” A few years ago I had [Billboard] on the list. Things like this, when you start as an artist you kind of gravitate to, “This would be a good moment if I have an interview with this or that.” You see other artists doing it. I would love to win an award or even be nominated for it. Do a world tour. They’re kind of obvious. I dream big and I believe in that. Everything I’ve accomplished right now is because I did that.
Who else do you want to collaborate with?
We’ve talked about Tems, we talked about Drake. I would love to work with Snoh [Aalegra] as well. That’s because she has such a major voice and sound. Yebba as well. I love to work with female artists. [I] would love to work with Frank Ocean.
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