(photographer: Aaron Anderson)

As the evolution of Florida’s regional rap scenes continues, a 19 year old rapper from Jacksonville is a walking testament to how rap culture forever changed the American dream. From the forming of his family of artists, We Were Never Friends, to producing and curating his own shows. Nate DAE has been a visionary. Having a dream and planning his route to it since a youth. The release of his full length debut project, Off The Porch, will be his chance to gain another step ahead of his journey. Before the big day comes we were lucky enough to sit down with Nate DAE to chop it up about his collective, his musical background and his upcoming release, Off The Porch.

How did the name Nate Dae originate?

DAE is from video games. U know when Modern Warfare 2 and just on Call Of Duty in general, they let u do the 3 letters on ur clan name. “Destroy All Enemies”.

Music is everywhere obviously. What type of music do you remember being played throughout your home as a kid?

Lots of Biggie & Tupac.  But also lots of music on the smoother side like Erykah Badu, Musiq Soulchild, & Brian McKnight just to name a few.

What was the first song that you remember rapping? How did it make you feel?

Biggie – Hypnotized, that hook is wild! So easy to remember and jiggy as fuck.

Is your family musical?

Nah, none of my OLDER family is musical. My grandmas & aunts sing in church and shit but that’s about it. My 16 yr old brother plays piano & drums by ear & he started making beats about 6 months ago. He fye widdit. He going to be on one of my next projects after ‘Off The Porch’ drops.

Do you recall the moment that you fell in love with creating music. If so, can you paint us that picture?

The moment I fell in love with music was the day I recorded my first song. I was so nervous like I was giving a speech in front of 1,000 people but it was just me and my nigga in the room by ourselves. I did a couple of takes & it wasn’t coming out like I expected it to. He told me “Just chill my nigga, you got this. Just flow on it.” The next take was the take that we put out for the official song & we had Facebook popping the next day. The song got like 1,000 plays in one day. I was so hype.

What was the song that inspired you and drove you over the edge and want to become an “elite” musician?

Fuck… It was one of Lil Wayne’s songs… Well it was a remix he did off of one of his Dedication mixtapes but it was so hard. But I just kept listening to it over and over again, and I was like damn, I’m going to start rapping because this shit is too fye. Lil Wayne is the reason I’m rapping today.

Exactly what were you doing a week before you fully committed to being a full time artist?

Shit… I was in middle school. [Laughs] I was in 8th grade on the football & basketball team. Life was kinda lit, but not really. School so boring and lame. [Laughs]

(photographer: Spencer McMullen)

Can describe the perfect creation day for you? What has to happen for you to begin a track?

The perfect creation day for me is when my dawg Jordon Lumley sends me a beat the night before and I have nothing to do all the next day. I will wake up, eat, grab my headphones & sit down & just study the beat for hours & sometimes even days. It all depends on my inspiration level at the time & what’s going on around me.

I start the track on how Jordon has the beat structured. Some artists like to do the hook first but nah. I can’t do that. That shit is out of order & I can’t be going in hella directions. The song won’t come out right.

Growing up, who played the most significant part in helping you develop your creativity, and how do they affect your artwork and life now?

My brother Henock Sileshi or as some people know him as HKCovers…. I’ve known HK since I was 14 yrs old (8th grade).  He did all of my artwork for me since I’ve started rapping and that shit hasn’t changed at all. I looked up to that nigga because he was older than me & his artwork at the time was so crazy in my eyes. I hadn’t seen anything like it. He influenced my artwork & just my overall appearance when people went to my profile or Soundcloud. He always had me looking right. He still affects my life today on still giving me his opinions & tips on how to keep Shit moving forward & taking things to the next level. He still does most of my art too. [Laughs] I will forever be grateful for him.

Who are your musical influences, as far as producers go?

Kendrick Lamar’s producers. Those are the ones who really got the game fucked up. Live instrumentation is so tight to me.

Who are your non-musical influences?

My pops is a big influence on my life. Good and bad. We have a weird relationship but we are so alike, but different at the same time it’s crazy.

When and where did the “We Were Never Friends” originate? What was the first art piece that you guys as a collective presented to the world?

The term We Were Never Friends has been used by Stokely Carmichael for the longest. Can’t even tell you when it came in his mind. But the team came about last year on some random shit. We all linked one day and it felt natural. Some of the members I had met for the first time that day and it felt like I knew them for years. As a whole, we didn’t present a project to the world for the time YET. But we are working on lots of things to give to the world this year.

How much influence does music of different genres have on your music? How exactly does it inspire you?

It has a lot of influence. Structure, the way sounds are put together, and even what sounds are used. Tame Impala is hard as fuck. My niggas put me on & I been sleep for so long. I do need to listen to more genres though because Hip hop saturated as hell these days. We need change.

Where did the title for your upcoming project, Off The Porch, originate? Was the recording process over when the title was chosen or did it hit you while you were creating?

It just hit me on some real life shit. I leave the house so much to go and make something happen for myself. It’s just a real life phrase that applies to me and hopefully lots of people.

Is there a specific concept or story line behind Off The Porch for the listeners to follow?

Yes. The story line behind Off The Porch is my every day thoughts, feelings, actions, and even real stories. On the second track called “I’m Out” (Prod. Jordon Lumley) I talk about how I don’t fuck with kids who like to drink lean and shit because they see other niggas doing it, and how my pops kicked me out of the house and how that shit deadass helped me get my mind straight to move forward.  All truth, no lies on Off The Porch.

How would you describe the sound of Off The Porch?

My sound. I don’t think anyone in the industry sounds like me or I sound like anybody. It’s all me. I wouldn’t call it a Jacksonville sound either because I’mma be straight up…we don’t have a sound nor will we have one. We have so many influences from other places that combine with our original sound, so we just have a very long wave ahead of us.

Exactly what does the city of Jacksonville mean to you?

I love my city.  Born and raised here. There’s no better place for me. I moved around a lot as a kid but when I came back to Jacksonville, I can feel it in my body. I’m connected to it.  Jacksonville is just home.

What’s your favorite part about being an artist from Florida?

The fact that Florida is the best state in the country. We’re so fye bruh like…no one can fuck with us. We on top as fuck right now. All of the artists that are getting shine right now deserve it. We’re coming up and Florida is taking over 2016.

(photographer: Spencer McMullen)

With Atlanta’s rap rebirth headlining all sorts of trends, top music charts and lists, it is being reported that Florida is next in the trendsetting line. What would your advice to your homeland music peers be, for a better chance to preserve Florida’s spot in rap legacy?

KEEP FUCKING WORKING. Do not stop until you are dead or got millions of dollars in ya bank. But don’t even stop after that. Stop when you are content but just know that everything you do could be better.

Are there any Florida artists that you feel are on the right path to pushing this culture forward?

Definitely. Stokely Carmichael, Wifisfuneral, DoLA, Robb Bank$, Denzel Curry, just to name a few.

What has been your biggest challenge as a musician, so far?

Not getting frustrated about these rappers that blow up over night that don’t have any substance in their music or that aren’t different. That shit makes me so mad but I know all those dudes have an expiration date on them and I’ll surpass them very soon. I just brush them off and keep working.

Do you play any instruments?

Nah man. [Laughs]

Describe your musical style and what it is like to see you perform live.

A Nate DAE show is all energy. Don’t come to my shows expecting not to get sweaty, gassed & possibly elbowed in the face or rib area when you’re there. Don’t come to my shit if you’re going to stand in the back or be on your phone the entire time either. I will definitely tell you to leave if you do that. Not on some rude shit, but why are you even here?

What about contributing to any other forms of art like painting or photography, etc?

I take pics of my homies on my phone and they think they’re fye but I’m sticking with music though. [Laughs]

Exactly what is it that you are on this world to do?

I’m on this earth to show people that anything is possible. That might sound cliche but me and my homies are going to put north Florida on. And if it doesn’t come true, niggas can laugh all they want and I’ll be fine with it because I said it. But I know what I want to do and how I want to do it & I won’t stop until I have it.

What was the first rap album that you ever bought? What was the most recent rap album that you bought?

I’mma be honest – I was boring in 96 and I have never bought a hard copy album ever. I got my first iPod when I was like 13 or some shit. But the closest to me ever buying an album was when I was with my mom in Best Buy. It was a Jamie Foxx album. [Laughs]

Who are the artist that you haven’t worked with yet that you dream about collaborating with?

Wifisfuneral, Denzel Curry, Rae Sremmurd & Travis Scott.

Are there any people that you’d like to shout for offering creative or emotional support?

My family, all of WWNF, my manager Eric, & Hk. They have gotten me through most/the entire process of this project & I couldn’t have done it without them.

Any last words?

OFF THE PORCH COMING OUT TOMORROW NIGGA. DO. NOT. SLEEP. NORTH FLORIDA & ALL OF FLORIDA ON THE RISE IN 2016. FUCK DONALD TRUMP, BERNIE SANDERS ALL DAY NIGGA.