Meet ATM Nikko | Musician & CEO of ATMBANDOMEDIA

We had the good fortune of connecting with ATM Nikko and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi ATM, let’s start by talking about what inspires you?
I am inspired by the environment in which I grew up in. I grew up in northside Chicago. Life was not easy for me and my twin brother, James. Growing up in a rough area of Chicago was definitely a critical point in my life. Being adopted at 11 months old by an African American family, all while dealing with both sides of racism, molded me to the artist I am today.

I am inspired by the situations that came with being a byproduct of an interracial adoption. I was born into a world full of stereotypes against me and forces pushing me to choose between my skin color and my heritage. Having to prove that my personality is truly genuine, and I am in fact, one person made of many cultures, gave me the drive to think bigger than what I was limited to in my childhood foster home in Chicago, Illinois. My goal is to gift artists and entrepreneurs currently in my shoes, inspiration to reach out and touch the sky, which is the muse to our fuse. The sky is NOT the limit and success never come without pushing through the failures.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
What really defines me apart from other rappers is: my traction compared to my length of time. I just started rapping September, 2021…no prior artist experience. I could not perform, record myself on a software, or write. I could barely even make my voice sound good on a mic. I did not know anything about studio equipment and software. Cadence, delivery, and music theory knowledge were all skills that were severely lacking, only six months ago.

Within six months of working on being an artist, I have gained incredible traction. It was NOT easy however. It was a lot of dedication and sticking through the failures, subpar songs, and building up against the inevitable social media “vultures”. Most of it was perseverance for learning how to market myself and my company and implementing these strategies. As an artist, it was incredibly helpful that my fiancée and co-owner is unbelievably intuitive at marketing, social media, and trends. Equally incredible, our other co-owner, is most proficient in software and hands on creativity rather than social work.
I am most proud of our trifecta and ability to grow together. Most artists cannot “make it” in the entertainment industry because it requires so many facets just to get monetized or even recognized…the basic… is the best equipment, visual work, marketing, distribution, etc. It costs a lot of time and money to do by yourself as a new rapper. This is the lesson I had to learn. It is less about the talent or perfection of rapping, but more so the amount of money and marketing you invest in yourself. Even more crucial, is the confidence you carry.

ATM Nikko is remarkably on a different level compared to others coming into this industry, despite the sheer mass of musicians in Atlanta. I am extremely advantaged through working hard. I will use that to power me straight to success. I have worked countless dead-end jobs, hard labor, and hours spent working for someone else, doing something I hate. My drive? How I felt during those times. My fiancée and I were bouncing between rented rooms, did not have food to eat, no car. Often times, we had to settle. There was a breaking point. At one time, we had no way out of poverty and were living at a small duplex style 2 bedroom home…with twelve people living in it. Rotationally. Horrid people who were all actively addicts. It was truly traumatizing, seeing all this disease and filth around me, wanted no part in it, and yet had no way out. Eventually the property manager became an addict himself and no longer had the income to file evictions for the rest of the people living there. Shortly after, the power got cut off, then the gas, and then the water.
Imagine what happens when there is twelve junkies with one toilet with no running water…the overwhelming putridity when I walked into that bathroom is the one memory I will never forget.

I vowed since then to never be back in that situation again, no matter what. So I simply turned my life around. We took a risk and moved, and our luck has changed since then. I struggled through temporary jobs until I found a place I enjoyed working at and made enough to support myself and my craft. I am immensely proud of myself for building a foundation so I will never have to fall on that hard of a time again. From the suffering in those times grew an indestructible empire. I was able to slowly build my company from the ground up. I worked hard and bought proper media equipment bit by bit. Honing in on the skills each of my team members has, we bought equipment that would boost those skill sets. I now have an entirely functional start-to-finish personal artist development team that will bring me to success, no doubt about that. I have a videographer, photographer, audio engineer, video editor, graphic designer, social media manager, stylist, writers, and a few cinematographers that work on projects solely for me. At one time, my fiancée and I could not buy a $2 burger to share. Today, I am a published musician with my first “good song” ended at 50k views. I am finalizing an album release to be distributed on all major platforms, expecting to reach well over several hundred thousand views amongst the three music videos, prominent producers (KATO, GI, Cashmoney AP, and Anyway Wells) beats, features, photoshoots, live performances, and press release. I am now fortunate enough to expand my resources to other creators. That was my purpose in founding ATMBANDOMEDIA–I wanted to foster a place for artists to collaborate and grow together.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I have many favorite spots in the city, each a different facet of what makes me, ATM Nikko. As a rapper, I spend quite some time in night clubs and bars. A very common weekend “move” is to just hit Buckhead Strip around 10pm on Saturday. Dive Bar is always the favorite. It is always packed, good drinks, full of people dancing. Get a fishbowl. Right next door is Moondogs, where you can play beer pong and Hole in the Wall if you’re in a Hip-hop mood. Buckhead Saloon is most likely the place we will go though, it is a little less crowded, vibey spot. If you want to go further into the city, we can go to Joystick Bar on Edgewood Ave., for drinks and arcade games, even board games! Joystick is great for just chillin, for a light mood. Mary Mac’s Tea Room is my favorite place to eat downtown. I always get their delicious fried chicken. Wings from basically ANY local wing spot will be delicious, get bone in wings, Hot, or Lemon Pepper.

Even if bars or food aren’t your thing, Atlanta has many amazing hotels, which are always exciting to get and have a small kickback. I personally like Artmore Hotel, Mario Curio hotels, Candler, and Ritz-Carlton. There are rooftop pools on many hotels that would make a great day party or relaxation day. As a musician, I appreciate the High Art Museum for its extravagant installations. For an outdoor adventure, visit the Yellow River Wildlife Sanctuary, a special place me and my fiancee visit often right outside of ATL. There you can see and pet many rehabilitated wildlife and learn a little too. You can feed certain ones! We really enjoy Piedmont Park and Krog Street Tunnel for its aesthetics, we can take photographs there. My favorite secret spot–Decatur Water Works. An abandoned water plant covered in graffiti lies right within Mason Mill Park. It is my favorite places to do photoshoots and have an adventure.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I would like to dedicate this full interview to my dear sister Gela, who passed away in April. When me and my twin were younger, visiting her in Texas over our summer breaks was the highlight of our youth. She was a music-head. Staying with her over the summer meant one thing–I got to listen to music! She taught me everything I know about my craft today, introducing me to classic artists like Twista and Tupac. For that, I owe her everything.

My late adopted mother, Ella, was the most generous person I know. My mother legally adopted over ten children, including my twin and I, as well as several other sibling sets, in urban Chicago. Even though resources were scarce, and life was very difficult, she still found a way to home us. She worked so hard against all odds, including adopting well into her old age. She was an incredibly strong woman. Ella was seventy-nine when she adopted us.

My sister Lamarlo is definitely the strongest woman in my life. After Ella passed away when we were eleven years old, and before Lamarlo reached the age of thirty, adopted both my twin and I so we did not have to go back to foster care. I do not know where in life I would be, without her guidance.
She was the first in our large adopted family that had an upper education and I am grateful to have her picked up her wisdom.

The last woman I would like to give special recognition is my fiancee, Geetha. She is not only my biggest supporter, but also a co-owner at ATMBANDOMEDIA. My biggest dream is to work alongside with the person I love, pursuing music. She provided that for me, and she is also able to pursue her dream. After ten years together, she deserves the world, and I do it for her. She is also a very talented videographer and photographer, and does wonders for our company.

I would like to give a special shoutout to my twin brother, James, who has always had my back. Even though we have our ups and downs, he is very special to me. He never fails to be there for me.

Lastly, I would like to give special recognition to my best friend and co-owner, Natural for his dedication to this company. Although we have been doing music together for fifteen years, I am grateful for the greatness that results of our collaboration. He is a fantastic audio engineer and videographer, and has been the backbone of my image and ATMBANDOMEDIA.

Website: https://soundcloud.com/atmnikko

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/atm_nikko/?hl=en

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ATMnikko/

Other: COMPANY: atmbandomedia.com

Image Credits
ATMBANDOMEDIA