We had the good fortune of connecting with Nikki Glaspie and we’ve shared our conversation below.
Hi Nikki, how do you think about risk?
My motto is: high risk, high reward. I’ve taken quite a few risks in my career that have defined my career. The first risk was leaving school and moving to Brooklyn NY with just rent money in my pocket. GOD said to go to NY so I went. I auditioned for Beyoncé six months later. I had $50 to my name and I needed money. I actually turned down 2 gigs to go audition. A week later I got the gig. My next risk was when I left Beyoncé. I had no idea what I was going to do, but I wanted to get back to my roots. Within 3 months I joined Ivan Neville’s band Dumpstaphunk. While in Dumpstaphunk, I played with all of The Meters, the Neville Brothers, many incredible musicians and learned how to run a business. I left Dumpstaphunk to start my own band; The Nth Power. That was a huge risk, because I was stepping out on my own, using my own name, music and ideas to generate income for me and my band mates. I now have started two other bands in addition to The Nth Power. Pre Covid, Nikki Glaspie & The Homies played once a month at The Mint on W. Pico blvd. Last November KAMANI came to fruition because a lot of people were starving for music and we were happy to give it to them. I think the goal as a musician is to play what you want when you want. I am happy to say I have achieved this, but it took a lot of risks along the way.
Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I play music because I love it. I play music to help others. I play music to see the joy on people’s faces. I play music to make people feel. I play music to spread love, truth and understanding. I play music because I have no choice. I play music with people that aim to do the same thing I do, which was why The Nth Power was created. Our mission is to spread the healing power of music throughout the land. There are a lot of people that play music to become rich or famous. We do not. We play to heal, and that is what we do. I will share one example with you. One night we played a show in Chattanooga TN. A young man came up to the merch table and told us that our music changed his mother’s life. His mother had a terrible stroke and went into a coma. The doctors said she had a 20% chance of waking up, and she would never walk again. He would go to the hospital and play our music for her. We have a song called “Right Now”. At the exact moment of the song that says “celebrate what you’ve been given, this life is so worth living right now” she opened her eyes. She woke up from the coma and made a full recovery. She is now walking on her own. This is what sets us apart. We truly care about mankind and are doing what we can to help. Is it easy? No. Absolutely not. Anything worthwhile isn’t easy. We have learned to persevere. It’s the only thing we can do, because as I said earlier we don’t have a choice. We want to leave this place better than we found it. And that’s what we’re going to do.
Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
My favorite thing besides good music is good food. I would go to Sugarfish by sushi nozawa for lunch and The Izaka-Ya by Katsu-ya West Hollywood for dinner. Because I love music and the people at the Mint I would go by there and have a couple of drinks. Good food, good music and good people. That’s all I need to have a good time, and that’s what I would do with my best friend!
Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to shoutout my teacher who is like a mother to me, Angelamia Bachemin. She has given me guidance over the years since I was a freshman in College. She has been a huge part of my development over the years and I definitely would not be here without her. Angelamia is a hero in my eyes. She swam around and saved nine people, (including a 2 month old baby) during Hurricane Katrina, rebuilt her house after Katrina, taught her cousins how to build and they started rebuilding New Orleans after being devastated. But above and beyond all of that she is one of the most sincere and giving people I have ever met in my life and I am proud to call her family.
Website: www.NikkiGlaspie.com
Instagram: Nikkidrums
Facebook: Facebook.com/nikkiglaspieboc
Other: www.Thenthpowermusic.com
Image Credits
Josh Timmermans Michael Weintrob David Novin Gregg Roth