And suddenly your Thursday just got a little better, welcome to the show! I am Anniken Dahl-Smith and you're with me here on The Dahl Hour! It's been a crazy month, it seems we're having an Indian Summer (since we have lowkey had a December Freeze all of fall) because the music is picking back up and albums are being released! Here to talk about the album that you are obviously most excited about, Austin Nimmo is here ladies! For the whole episode!! Streaming his new album live for us, EXCLUSIVELY! Damn right, our budget has upgraded big time and look at us, pulling strings, making moves. Austin, say hi to the people!*Laughs!* Hey what's up everybody! Really excited to be here with you today, Anniken. Thanks for having me.
See? I told you he was here! This is actually happening you guys, it's gonna be a great show! Thank you for coming in, doll! How've you been?No problem at all! *smiles* I've always wanted to have a sit down interview with the infamous Anniken so it's really good to be here. I've actually been amazing...I couldn't be happier. I've just been working hard to deliver the music I've been promising the fans and I'm happy to say it's finally here.
2015 has been a crazy year for you, 3 #1 singles, a Fan Choice Award, you've sold over 6 million in singles this year ALONE. Dude, what the hell?I know...I know...it certainly has been crazy! Time flies doesn't it? It's already about to be 2016 in like a little more than a week. It's been an eventful year to say the very least, haha.
This is undeniably your year and what a great way to end it all with an album release. I'm a label executive and etc. so I've been lucky enough to hear Unscripted ahead of time and I have to say, what. an. album. The lyrics, the production, the emotion. You've really got something here. Thank you so much. That actually really means a lot coming from you. I see you...*laughs* I see how critical you can get sometimes, not to say that that is a bad thing or anything because that only makes people work harder and you're just being honest. But I've worked incredibly hard on this record so to hear positive feedback is always something great to hear. I appreciate that.
I'm just gonna dive right into this. Real was the first single released from Unscripted, the first #1 from the album, and it is also the opening track. I know when I'm helping my artists sort out their tracklist, the first song is more than just an introduction to the record; it's a synopsis. A not-so-subtle way of telling the listener what the album was going to be about. What do you think Real has to say about this album that makes it perfect for that spot?With Real, I wanted to make a statement with the first song on the tracklist right away. Whenever you put the first single as the first song on an album you're already challenging yourself. I could have easily put it further down but I felt like Real was the perfect testament to what the album was to offer in it's entirety, you know? The song itself offers guitars, it offers vulnerability, emotion, truthfulness but not only that, it also opens the door for everything else to come on the album. Even when listening to the song first, it sounds like an introduction to everything to come. So it was perfect just because it makes a subtle statement of what Unscripted is which is a story of vulnerability, emotion, truthfulness among other topics.
Speaking of the Real's theme, did you write this song with your relationship with Layla from SYNCO in mind?I mean, all the songs that I write include elements of my real life situations. With Real's theme, of course I had Layla in mind. It gave me more inspiration to make the song deeper and more connecting. I can't say
every single song of mine is something that is going on current in my life but I get inspired from real situations stemming from my personal relationships to my favorite movies. I don't know, it's the life of a songwriter *laughs*
If you and Layla were perhaps to break up and you were to question your relationship as you did in this song, would you think what you guys have is in fact "real"?As of right now, what we have is very much so real. We have our issues like any other couple sometimes but if we were to break up, of course questions would raise as she probably would have some too but what we have is real and as of right now, I am not questioning at all. She's a awesome individual.
Here to kick off the live streaming of Unscripted, here is Real!Lets do it!
1. REAL
2. SUPERHERO (feat. Dae Ho Park, Brandon Grey & Jordan)
3. DANCE
Those were the first 3 songs off of Unscripted and I have to say we are off to a great start! Everyone's mind is probably on the catchy joint with all the sexy voices on it. [laughs] If you guys out there didn't know, that song you're probably googling right now is Superhero featuring Dae Ho Park, Brandon Grey and Jordan. What a mouthful, how did that collaboration even come to be, Austin?It was so cool to get three of my favorite guys to get on a track with me! I was planning the collaboration like for a while actually. I wanted something playful, something that people could dance to and I made sure this would be one of them. After Real, that's mainly slow and vulnerable, I wanted the next track to offer another vibe, something that really starts the party off right and that's where Kuk Harrell and I came together to create something that offers just that. I had been talking with my boy Dae Ho Park for months about working on something and we never got around to it until maybe months after we spoke, we were both extremely busy. Kuk Harrell sent me this crazy beat, it was minimal in production but I thought that was perfect because it would give us a chance to each show our strengths. I hit up Dae and he came to the studio, he heard the beat and was so down for whatever so we just joined together and started writing, throwing eachother ideas and just penning them. When it was all set in done, the way it was written and the way I sung it to myself just made me think of a 4 piece superhero team and I was "yo, we gotta get two more people" and I just thought let me bring in Jordan who I've been good friends with for years who I told I'd want to work with on my album and Brandon Grey, another friend of mine. Soon as they were contacted, we all planned one day to just hit up the studio in LA and got it done!
So basically Superhero is a song straight from a boys night out? [laughs] You seem to have a lot of friends in the business, especially with males in your very own genre, does that surprise you? We always hear about Hollywood being a dog eat dog world, do you feel the same way about the industry?It basically is a boys night out, but we also have our girls with us.. type of thing *laughs*. As for Hollywood friends, luckily I have met many really cool people in the industry with some being really close friends. It can be a dog eat dog world if you don't have the right people around you. There's many snakes, and that's why you must keep your eyes peeled because it can get very un-trusting because many people are seeking their own benefit. As long as you keep the right people and you have a good support system, you'll be fine.
Let's talk about Kato for instance. Every fangirl on Twitter always pits you against each other, I imagine it must be hard to not feed into it. How do you maintain a friendship the world sees as a rivalry?It's actually very easy not to feed into it anymore. At first, I was so bothered by it because it got incredibly annoying because he is like a brother to me and all people do is compare us and want us to fight and compete with one another but really all we wanna do is just work, make music, chill and do us. We're so regular about it, we don't even pay it any attention anymore, we sort of try to laugh it off or not pay any attention at all. There's times where we've had to set people straight because ridiculous rumors but other than that, we maintain our friendship by not letting any of that dumb stuff phase us. We're there for each other if we weren't true bros we'd let all of it get to us but it doesn't, and it won't.
The internet, man. Nowadays when people fall in love with an artists, they love them as their own and it's the same when people come to hate an artist. It's crazy, there's an unhealthy amount of passion involved [laughs] what do you think about crazy fans and even haters from social media? It's reaching a scary, scary peak. I love my fans dearly and they know it, but there comes a point where it becomes borderline scary. It's flattering in a sense because it shows that we've really hit a person emotionally and they have passion but when it reaches that other side....when it becomes self harming and personal...that's when I really don't like it. As for haters, it comes with the territory. People love to love, but love to hate even more.
Have you ever felt like you've been bullied by laptop thugs? I mean jesus christ, every week there's a new picture circulating, claiming to be your ass! Why do they do this to you??I've definitely been on the receiving end of some internet bullying. In the beginning... when I first started becoming known and people use to come at me it use to really hurt and stress me out, but over time I've become numb to it. It doesn't even bother me, nor do I bother replying back to it. Most of it is stupid anyway. *laughs* In the past I'd let my emotions get to me and I'd lash out but now? I realize there's so many other things that I could be doing then to be getting in "twitter wars" with people. As for the butt pics, no comment....just no comment. I've seen so many photo shopped pictures of me on other peoples bodies *laughs*
You really do seem to open up and get vulnerable about love on this record which is something men never do..outside of pop. [laughs] Did you perhaps fear getting the Drake treatment and becoming the poster child for bitch-waffles? Have you seen any good memes lately?Nah, I wasn't afraid of people giving me the "Drake" treatment or judging me, hence why I named the album unscripted. It's completely stripped down and I wanted to give my fans the truth an there's emotional. It's nothing wrong with showing your sensitive side, especially when you're a musician or a celebrity. I just wanted to show my fans that I'm not a robot, I'm human and I've got feelings too!
It's The Dahl Hour and I'm about to play Passenger next but I have just one question to ask, have you ever been with a "Passenger" before, Austin? And I don't know, a name would be nice! [laughs]We've ALL been with a Passenger before. That person was such a passenger I don't even remember their name *whistles*
4. PASSENGER
5. BECAUSE WE'RE YOUNG
6. MAKE THIS WORK
7. CITY THAT NEVER SLEEPS (feat. ELIDIH WARD)
We're back and halfway through this amazing album by Austin Nimmo that is out on iTunes right now! You've competed half the battle, now just go get it! Unscripted is available everywhere, and from what we've already heard, I don't think I need to convince you it's an album worth buying. [turns around to Austin] See, this is what I love about albums that come from the heart. Behind every great record is an even greater story and it's taken you 2 years to come to a point in life where you could complete this album and release it. Tell us a bit about that journey, what did you have to go through in order to open up like this?It took a lot of getting used to. With the first album, I feel it was rushed out and was really just an album fully of catchy tunes but it never got deep down into who I was and I wanted to challenge myself with the new album I would come out with I'm 18 years old now and I'm reaching a moment where I am not a young adult and I've faced triumphs and some mishaps and I wanted that to pour into the new record and my future albums as well. The journey was a long one even though the first album came out last August and a lot happened before and during the initial processing of Unscripted. I just sat down whenever I had the chance to take the time out to write about everything I had been going through, I trained myself to be comfortable enough to not be afraid to open up and once I learned how to do that, the writing came easy to me and then the tracks just started flowing like water, straight from the heart.
As I mentioned before, you started working on this album in 2014 and we all now that was a pretty rocky year for you. You got arrested, your father got arrested, Layla got stabbed, you went missing, then you come back and start storming out of interviews when it was way too early for all of that. Do you think those events had a huge impact on this album?Yeah, definitely. It definitely made me a stronger person and made me feel determined to deliver. I didn't want people to just refer to me as the troubled star. I wanted to make sure to deliver great music that people can enjoy so they can look past all my hardships and enjoy my artistry and they can see that I've made mistakes and been through a lot but grown from it nonetheless.. I do agree that it was too soon, it would have been nice to take a break from a while to collect myself, and my thoughts. But its the business you have to keep pushing forward.
What do you think drove your world to such a crazy point?Me being young and just...rebelling and not thinking before I was doing certain things. There was one point where everything was moving so...so fast that I started to feel like I was lost in transition. I felt that I was chained in. I was having family issues and at the same time...I felt that I had no where to go. So that tended to take a toll on me and I just was at a crazy point.
How did you feel about all the coverage on such a hectic period in your personal life? The media can be very microscopic sometimes and I know it takes it's toll.Definitely. I think it was the media that drove it all. When you're not in the public eye, you can deal with situations at your own time and not have to worry about whats going to make it on culture uncut that would cause a whole nation of people thinking something that is completely false. It all happened so early in my career and at a young age that I wasn't really prepared for it all.
Do you sometimes wish that you weren't as successful as you are or are you one of those celebrities who enjoy the pros and cons of fameI don't wish that I wasn't as successful because I wouldn't trade in this life for anything because this was what I wanted and what I signed up for so I enjoy the pros and cons because the pros outway the cons for me. The smiles that I put on peoples faces each and every day, the lives that I changed and the people that I've inspired is so much more important to me then the downsides of the media trying to break you down. You know?
With everything that you've learned this past year in mind, what do you take most from the making of this project?Don't be afraid to let loose and show people who you really are and to be candid with your music. Write something that means something to you because in turn, it will mean so much to the fans and that's who really matter because without them we'd be nothing. That's what I've really learned through everything, they've been a major force for me not throwing my hands up and saying "I quit!" *laughs*
In the lyrics of Tide you confidently sing, "Sometimes you're riding high/Sometimes you're falling low/But you'll reach your destination/Just go with the flow". When I first listened, all of the ups and downs of the last 2 years for you were the first thing that came to mind, was that you're intent as the writer of the song?*Claps* Exactly! I'm really glad you've picked that up. I wanted people to feel that connection on Tide. Definitely one of my favorites from the album.
Up next we have Tide playing exclusively straight off of Austin Nimmo's album, Unscripted. It's Monday night and you're watching The Dahl Hour, don't change that station.Yeah!
8. TIDE
9. CONTROL
We've blown through 9 tracks off of your newest album and I have to say, you seem like a natural born 80's baby the way the disco and funk is just taking over your production here. Was this new sound something you stumbled upon or the sound you were searching for all along?It really just turned out that way, actually. I love the vintage, yet modern sound of 80s pop and disco that went perfectly with the guitar driven sounds that are presented on a lot of the album. Nevaeh Martinez introduced the idea to me when we listened to some songs in the very beginning of the recording process and she influenced the idea to keep going along with it, she said the sounds mixed very well with my vocals. It wasn't really something I was searching for, but something that definitely influenced the album once I was brought to my attention.
Along with the string of 80's synths, you also seem to have a really magnetic connection with acoustic pop as well. Can you tell us a little about that? I've always had a true love for acoustic pop and always said that once my second album came, I would be playing more guitar and adding a lot of acoustics in my music. Little do people know, I love rock music and playing instruments so I'm so glad I go to do alot more instrumentation for this album and have acoustic pop influence my music some more.
To be honest Austin, it's like every time I see you, you have a guitar attached to your hip. I wouldn't be surprised if you pulled one out right now. Is it a requirement for a guitar to be within 15 feet within you or something? I feel like that's your aesthetic. [laughs]I've actually got one in the car *laughs*. I seriously love the guitar. I've been playing since I was 6 years old so I've really grown with it. Marketing wise when I first got signed, my first management team wasn't really a fan of me having a guitar attached to my hip but now that I've grown up a bit and have been successful enough to call my own shots I always bring it along with me. I'm very random, if the guitar was here I'd definitely start playing during commercial breaks *laughs*
I remember when I first learned the piano and it became my first real introduction to music. I've had such a crazy connection to the keys ever since then, do you feel it's the same way between you and the guitar?Yup, you know the connection then. It's surreal, I love my guitars. My dad taught me how play at a very young age and then I went to guitar playing classes.
Are there any other instruments that you know how to play or would like to learn?Can I say all of them? *Laughs* I actually am a novice at playing the piano and I'd love to learn how to play the bass one day.
What about musical styles? What other genres would you like to incorporate in your next album? Personally, I am perched for your Trap era. I definitely want to try many things but I won't be doing anything to completely exile my audience...I think I'll incorporate little things in moderation as I continue to record music. I think I added a slight alternative influence on Unscripted a long with my known pop sound but I definitely was to delve a bit more alternatively...maybe even more guitars in the future, the electric guitar. It's amazing. *laughs* Trap era? You're a part time producers, send me a track or two *winks and laughs*. Love trap music but I'd probably sound so out place!
Is there anything else you want to say to the fans about the album before you leave and we finish off the streaming?I just want to tell them that they have been my driving force and have pushed me to get where I am right now. It's been a hard time coming and they should know they they totally inspired me to keep looking up and now I am happier and feel more accomplished then ever. I just want to thank them for being so supportive of me.
All throughout this interview we've talked about you opening up but you seem to really peak in your vulnerability with this next track. What Happened is my personal favorite song off of this album and you really seem to get everything right here, the vocals the production and especially the lyrics. What was going through your head when you made this song?Very glad you like that one. I wrote that song at a very dark moment and is the most personal song on the album. I wrote the song in the midst of those times where so much was going on, where I felt like I lost myself and just questioned what happened to the times before when things were great and recalling the moments when I was happy prior to everything. I'm so happy I've gotten past that because when you hear the song, you can feel my pain and even channeling that in the studio was hard for me. It was emotional pulling that back out, but I had to do it to be able to tell my story authentically. So thank you Anniken.
No, thank YOU, Austin. I'm so glad that you came in today and let us share this album with our listeners. Look at what we accomplished today, put rumors to rest, talked about our feelings, played an amazing record. We should do it more often, no? Tune in next week for another callers-only special..this time featuring your faves!! For now, you should all go support this amazing young man next to me and buy Unscripted on iTunes. Until next time, I'm Anniken and you've just listened to The Dahl Hour. Now for the final 4 tracks from this #1 album (look at me declaring it ahead of time), take it away!
10. WHAT HAPPENED?
11. SO (WHERE DO WE GO)
12. LOOKING UP
13. CHANGE THE WORLD
