French producer Nebbra first caught our ear back in 2015 with his incredible remix of Party Thieves & ATLiens ‘Chief’. Since then he’s pumped out a wide array of incredible remixes for everyone from Selena Gomez to Diplo and Zeds Dead and his massive rework for The Great Escape, which has clocked over 4 million plays. His consistency and quality not only caught our attention, but the the attention of Zeds Dead. In addition to remixing their work, Nebbra released his first EP You through their newly formed Deadbeats imprint. The incredible four track release showcased his innovative production abilities while pushing the bounds of future bass and trap. 2017 is already shaping up to be massive with Nebbra set to tour with TroyBoi as well as Whethan in March, and support fellow French icons DJ Snake and Tchami.
We had the chance to catch up with Nebbra to discuss his EP, how he connected with Deadbeats, touring with Zeds Dead, his aspirations for 2017 and more. Check out the full interview below.
Can you tell us a little bit about your upbringing in France and what got you into music production?
I spent my childhood in southern France, Nice to be exact. I’ve always been surrounded by music because my mom and my sister used to listen to it all the time: in the car, at home, there was just music all around me.
Later I got interested in the music itself; I was always hearing people talking about the singers, but I was fascinated by how music was built, the structure. That is when I really got into music production through some programs that are not real music productions programs, like Dance Ejay or Hip Hop Ejay.
Then of course I started working on real DAW, professional software and then of course synthesizers and real equipment for mixing and mastering: and this is how it all started.
For those who don’t know anyone in this industry, I think it is a good way to get some recognition and attention.
You made a name for yourself off a slew of incredible remixes. This is a story that’s become quite common in the electronic scene. Can you speak to the benefit or reason for starting off with remixes vs. originals?
I won’t say that it is better to start with remixes, let’s say that it is easier to do that with your basic status: when I started I didn’t know anyone in the music industry and I had no help. Creating original tracks would have been quite risky at that time because an unknown artist releasing original tracks won’t have much visibility.
By participating in remix contests, you can have your name associated with people bigger than you and with more influence, so this opens a lot of doors, and those remixes gave me opportunities, people I’ve met and of course my Managers.
For those who don’t know anyone in this industry, I think it is a good way to get some recognition and attention.
How did your process change when creating all original music for your new EP?
I think in general it is more “surprising” to work on an original because you can let your creativity take you wherever it wants, and on top of that, you have the surprising pleasure to hear a singer trying to match your work, if there is a vocal on the track of course.
With remixes, there are some demands that the people who want the remix have. Let’s say that you lose a bit of your freedom because you need to adapt to what they expect, and not the other way around.
You was released on Zeds Dead’s new label Deadbeats. How did it land on the label? What was it like working with them on the release?
It all started thanks to my Management Team who gave me the opportunity to do a remix of ‘Collapse’ for Zeds Dead. They are artists I’ve loved for quite a long time. They happened to love my remix and the work I delivered (That’s why they released another remix of mine for ‘Blame’ the Diplo and Zeds Dead collab).
We started communicating through social media and we connected. Then I heard about their label, and the question of being a part of there label’s releases came, so I thought it was logical for me to release ‘You’ with them. Everything just fits perfectly.
About the release, everything was done quite naturally, and it happened while I was on tour with them.
There was no better experience than this adventure.
Speaking of your tour with Zeds Dead, what was the best part of the experience? Any crazy stories?
There was no better experience than this adventure. It was just great because it was my first “tour,” on top of that in the United States, and with Zeds Dead and their entire team. I couldn’t have dreamed of a better way to introduce myself. Everyone there, Zeds Dead, their team or even the other artists on tour just welcomed me as if I was already a part of their family. If I had to mention one bad thing about it, it’s that it was too short…I just didn’t want to come back home.
There is a kind of funny story I have. When I was in France, I had a friend that came from the United States and he was always talking to me about In’N’Out, because we don’t have them in France. He told me I had to try it one day, and when I was there, Dylan (Zeds Dead) mentioned it. So I remembered my friend telling me about it, so they took me there for the first time. I felt like a kid…
A lot of your artwork features an almost X-Men inspired visor. What is the significance behind this?
I hope I can introduce you to more of that soon. As many might have found out that I train aside of making music and keep extremely fit. I wanted to kind of mix the comics and anime inspirations I have and also think of the bigger picture. My team and I are working on a bigger experience for myself and the stage. I want Nebbra to become multidimensional and increasingly interesting for people with the same love and inspirations I thrive on. Therefore I want to add more ideas to my appearance. Constant involvement to entertain and to inspire.
It seems that exercise is a big part of your life. Can you tell us a little bit about your workout regimen? Does it have any impact on your music creation?
Training is not my main priority, meaning that if because of my work I am not able to go to the gym for a little while, then I won’t. But, after 14 hours in the studio working all the time, I need to release the tension and exercise is a great way to release the pressure and stress that I can get . It has an impact on my mood, because it helps me clear my mind and focus my concentration, so I can create music more easily. Once I saw it had such an effect on my body I realized I seem to be more disciplined then I thought. Now I keep the balance. Work in the studio for 14 hours then go to the gym for 2 hours, go with my dog and have a lil private time and then sleep. That on repeat is me at the moment.
In a recent interview you mentioned having some heavy collabs on the horizon. Can you tell us about any artists that you’ve been working with?
About the collabs, nothing is yet final. So I can’t really speak about it. I’ve been talking with some artists and we have ideas, but until its done I prefer to keep the cloak over it.
The only thing I can tell you is that I have another EP coming really soon with some great tracks. Back to Basics haha.
If you could achieve anything in 2017, what would it be?
I would love to have my own Tour in 2017.
I am already going to be in the United States all March doing some awesome shows like The Buku Project or even share shows with great artists like Tchami, Snake, Troyboi, Whethan. This year promises to be good, and I hope I can release more music that keeps the fans excited. I am all in now!
