The law of attraction is more than a simple explanation of how you are what you attract, or how you get what you attract. Though an important part of this practice is visualization coupled with having an incessant positive outlook, one’s success is actually determined by their continuous and active effort to get to where they want to be. In other words, seeing is believing, but doing – well, doing is more concrete.
And, honestly, isn’t that how we measure success? Achieving the goals we set out for ourselves – reaching new and better heights in our personal & professional lives? Isn’t the dream exponentially better when you make it a reality? Well, our #artist2lookout4 seems to think so. He’s not a man of many words (if he doesn’t know you), but when he sets his intentions, he makes for damn sure to speak loud and aim high.
Say hello to DJ, producer, and entrepreneur, Mike Nash aka DJ Mike Nasty.
Photograph by BXLYFE
As a moderator of Collective Consciousness, a Clubhouse group that helps people speak power into their lives via daily affirmations, intention setting and community building, Mike has helped create a space where Black people + POC can converse freely, openly, and without shame. In these very chaotic and stressful times, having an outlet like this is crucial. We’ve all gone a little stir-crazy, and this club is basically remote group therapy. With over 8k members, it’s definitely a great resource to network, support, and uplift.
Since moving to New York by way of Atlanta, GA four years ago, Mike has established himself as a must-book DJ and event producer, throwing parties around the city and playing tracks that will keep you moving even after the music stops. However, to really understand Mike’s infectious grooves it’s best to start with his early influences growing up in Memphis, Tennessee. Heavily inspired by hometown legends like Aretha Franklin, Isaac Hayes, BB King, Elvis, etc., the sounds of blues, gospel, and jazz guide our artist’s music production.
Photograph by Isaac “Soup” Campbell
He’s worked with brands like Billionaire Boys Club, Adidas, Wilhelmina, Bleacher Report, Vans, and Highsnobiety (among others), and has opened for artists like 6lack, Asap Ferg, Missy Elliot, DMX (RIP), and more.
Self-described as someone with refined versatility, Mike’s not one to shy away from challenging himself or the status quo. From his humble start producing music at the tender age of 12, he continues to evolve and experiment with his sound, blending different genres and curating unique melodies.
When he’s not focusing on music, he juggles multiple passion projects. Most recently, he launched Mikey Tea, a NY based tea company that’s mission is to aid people in leading healthier lifestyles through tea drinking. “I know it’s serving a purpose, as far as health, and it just tastes good and it feels good, you know, so it's just been a part of my life. I wanted to share it with everybody else and influence people to have healthier lifestyles.”
He talks about what informs his music, ways he was personally affected by COVID, his philosophy as an artist, and much more.
Photograph by Isaac “Soup” Campbell
Describe your ideal creative space?
Oh man, I’m still trying to find it. Right now I’m working on getting the feng shui right at my new place, so we’ll see. Hopefully I can have a fraction of it because I’m a person that can create in the place I live, but it’s a different vibe than when you’re in the studio. I thrive in studio spaces. It doesn’t really matter where it’s at just as long as it’s super nice. Like, it has to be top of the line, thousands of dollars worth of equipment, where I could just walk in and hear the low end of bass and hear certain frequencies that I wouldn't be able to hear in my house with my studio monitors.
“My sound has to have that Memphis soul to it.”
– MIKE NASTY
Photograph by Josh Alas
What informs your music?
Jazz. It’s crazy because a lot of my music doesn’t even really sound like jazz, but I literally just go to Apple Music and listen to my jazz playlists – a lot of Miles Davis, Coltrane, etc. I don’t know why, but it inspires these different tones and sounds, so when I go and produce modern music, jazz inspires me to be in a certain key or chord range or minor, you know, things like that. It’s just a certain sound that just hits differently. My sound has to have that Memphis soul to it.
Can you talk a little bit more about ‘Collective Consciousness’? Why is this kind of resource important in the Black community? How do you protect your energy?
Collective Consciousness was started by my friend Brian Freeman in Atlanta. It’s a Clubhouse group that aims to get people to really speak power into their lives, and really allow them to manifest things. We started this first week of January 2021 and now we have over 8K members. I was helping moderate in the beginning, but I feel like I was needing [this space] as much as the people that are attending each day. [It’s important to have something like this] because Black people were always taught that going to therapy is looked at like there is an issue wrong with you or something. There are various forms of therapy and all of them – I feel whether something’s going on in your life or not, you need to go to some form of therapy or tension release. My thing is meditation and, most important, setting daily affirmations because I believe in the law of attraction. So, the things you put out in the universe, they manifest in your life. And we’re literally pulling all of our energies in this Clubhouse, thousands of people in this group putting this together to manifest different things. I’m a living testimony; I’ve literally got everything I said I wanted to get up to this point in my life. I’ve attained it. And how do I protect my energy? I’m not afraid to cut people off if they don’t add value to my life, and if they’re taking away from my energy or just giving me half of what was given. I feel like we have a limited supply of energy each day, so if it’s not being reciprocated, then I don’t mind cutting the interaction. You can’t be afraid to disassociate from different people. I protect my energy by keeping my circle tight and small, even my big circle is small in a sense.
Photograph by Isaac “Soup” Campbell
You recently extended your brand into the tea business. What inspired you to launch ‘Mikey Tea’?
I've been a tea drinker for quite some time now. I guess since I moved to New York I got into it a lot more. I feel like it's a ritual – I'm motivated to get up in the morning, you know, play some smooth R&B and jazz, I have this playlist, ‘Tea Tunes’, and just brew some tea. I know it’s serving a purpose, as far as health, and it just tastes good and it feels good, you know, so it's just been a part of my life. I wanted to share it with everybody else and influence people to have healthier lifestyles. Also, there’s a lot of Dr. Sebi’s teachings that inspire me. I'm a big advocate for sea moss, the power of different plants and herbs, and other things Dr. Sebi talked about before he passed, and I just know that sea moss is the most nutrient-dense food. Your body is made up of 102 Minerals, sea moss has like 90 or 92 of those minerals. So just knowing that I was like alright, I could turn my love for tea into a business and [start by selling] sea moss as a case study to just learn the Shopify world, Facebook advertising, and all of that. [Starting off by selling sea moss] just helped me understand how to run an e-commerce business. So, when I was ready to transition to a more serious project (i.e. Mikey Tea), I would be ready. I’ve been studying the art of growing herbs, what different herbs and plants do for the body. I currently have five different blends of loose leaf tea that serve a specific purpose and health benefit for the body. I'm happy to have started this and I have a lot of dope plans for Mikey Tea. I'm probably going to be throwing tea parties in the future, so stay tuned for that.
2020 was a difficult year for all. Like many industries, nightlife took a massive hit. How were you personally affected? Any lessons learned?
It’s crazy. I wasn't more so upset about the finances, I was upset about the momentum I had going into summer 2020 pre-pandemic. I felt like last year was going to be my year. I was already, I guess, popular on the scene, but I had plans, events, and contracts already set up in February for the summertime, basically going into September. Last year would’ve been the year that Mike Nasty was going to make his mark in New York as an event producer and curator – further proof of what I’ve previously done, like my party I do at Chelsea Music Hall called ‘We Like To Party’ and ‘Nights Like This’ I do at Le Bain. So, yea it was kind of lame because I had so much momentum, but it's crazy because I utilized the time to...not rebrand, but drop a lot of content; I was just content heavy. [Along with selling Mikey Sea Moss + Tea], I dropped my first couple mixtapes on Bandcamp and used that as an income source. I also had a Serato commercial drop last year, I've been getting into Twitch more, I did a live stream from Red Bull, and other cool activations. I don’t know, I feel like I've maintained my relevancy through the entire pandemic just by posting dope content, dropping dope remixes on SoundCloud, and just constantly working with different brands. I went to Atlanta a couple times and did a couple gigs, but, if anything, the pandemic retaught me to be versatile and always be pivot ready, you know. So, I’m thankful for the lesson. I feel like this year is going to be even more lit because I got my music, etc. where I want it to be.
Photograph by Josh Alas
Speaking of playing in Atl, you received some criticism for DJing those parties last year. In hindsight, would you have declined to play? What message (if any) would you like to relay to those upset with your actions?
I would not have declined to play. Sorry, I had to do what I had to do, you know? In hindsight, I probably wouldn't have posted as much of what was going on, but what's the entertainment industry without a little controversy? I mean if I have to relay a message, it would be that everybody has to choose to live their life how they want to live it. I did what I had to do to pay my bills, and I'm happy that extra money came in. This is what people have to understand: Atlanta was legally open; I was legally allowed to DJ those events. I broke no laws, I broke no COVID restrictions, and I had my mask on at the party. But it is what it is. I learned a long time ago that everybody's not gonna like you in this industry. My family and my friends know my heart, they know I have no ill intent, they know I wouldn't throw a big ass pandemic party. Even my mom was calling me when I went down there. She was like, “You going down there? You've got to get paid, pay your rent.” So, I apologize for it, but at the end of the day, if the event doesn't say ‘Mike Nasty presents’ then I have no ownership of it. I just did what I had to do. I'm a kind-hearted person and my people know my intentions.
Photograph by Isaac “Soup” Campbell
What is your philosophy as an artist?
Make the art you want to make. Politics – there’s always a way around politics. If you build your own campaign, then what can people tell you? I've never needed anybody to put me on to anything. I've never had a cosign or nothing. Like everything I've built and earned, I've literally got it on my own or by networking with the right people. Who can cancel somebody who throws their own events or releases their own music without a label? I could care less about other DJs hating me. It is what it is.
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Interview by Rahel Tekle