Mic Nickels on Collab with Rah Digga & Rockness Monsta

Mic Nickels’s Two-Decade Hip Hop Journey

Mic Nickels (Mic is pronounced Mike) is a blazing fire of pure Hip Hop spirit. Few are as dedicated to their craft—as an emcee, rapper, author, and more, he has spent over two decades honing his artistry, sharing the studio and stage with award-winning artists across the globe. His previous project, Bars for Days —a traditional beats and rhymes album paired with an acclaimed ethnography/memoir—gained widespread attention, especially following the release of “El Matador” featuring Wu-Tang legend Method Man. After nearly nine years performing the most extended weekly residency in New York City history, offering live original Hip Hop music with a band, Mic has been laser-focused on writing and recording his next wave-maker. Collaborating with Serbian producer Kiza, he unleashes a masterful mix of eclectic boom-bap, channeling the quintessential golden era of Hip Hop with a wickedly fresh edge. With a follow-up album on the horizon, Mic is well on his way to becoming a legend in his own right.

Boom-Bap Revival with Producer Kiza

Though The Impressionist is Mic’s first fully-produced album with Kiza, the duo has been collaborating for over a decade—and it shows in their sharp ear for transportive sound. Their partnership wraps vintage sampling techniques in modern production, creating a sonic bridge between classic boom-bap and contemporary Hip Hop innovation.

Rah Digga & Rockness Monsta Feature on “Against the World”

On this standout track, Mic joins forces with two of his heroes—legends in their own right—Rockness Monsta (one half of Heltah Skeltah from the Boot Camp Clik) and Rah Digga (female superstar member from Busta Rhymes’ Flipmode Squad). Each verse stands tall, spotlighting each artist’s distinct voice, vibrancy, and star power—backed by the razor-sharp scratches of DJ Keef Wookie. Yet, it’s Mic’s opening verse that sets the tone, commanding attention from the start. While echoes of ’90s Hip Hop greatness may be heard—Mic’s lyrical prowess is at full force, delivering bars that are traditional, fierce, and unmistakably his own. The “Against the World” sentiment may be a well-worn theme—but it feels more relevant and resonant than ever—beaconing a thrilling revival of gritty East Coast Hip Hop.

’90s Hip Hop-Inspired Video Sets the Scene

The “Against the World” music video is a nod to old-school ’90s Hip Hop—perfectly capturing the essence of its street-driven style. Directed by filmmaker Jamal Hall, the visual places Mic and his crew in and around a gritty New York warehouse. Flipping between desolate, hazy rooms and a rusty, bolted railway overpass—the setting feels like the true underbelly of the city. After all, “this music stands for rebellion,” and this is the perfect backdrop to spark the fire. For those expecting a touch of Wu-Tang martial arts action, Mic delivers, proudly sporting a bold, Bruce Lee-inspired sweatshirt—a fighter that deeply inspires him. While he leads the charge, the chemistry between this trio is undeniable—suggesting this collaboration shouldn’t be their last. Regardless, viewers will be swept away by its vintage charm and raw, authentic energy—further cementing Mic Nickels as a creative force in Hip Hop.

You’ve spent several decades in the game writing and performing—what keeps you inspired to make music today? 

It gets to a point when you’re at the stage of your career where you’re just doing this cause it’s what you do. You know what I mean? So when you’ve recorded as many songs as I have and had so many different incarnations that are so different in terms of style of music, style of hip hop, and subject matter…You find yourself searching for something new to say sometimes, to bring something different to the table, and for me, I think that’s what pushes me. I’m always pushing myself to take it to the next level. I want to get interstellar with this. You know I want to continue to rise above each and every time. When I hear my next album I want to be able to look at myself and be like damn you thought you were dope back then.. you know? So that’s what inspires me. Just don’t stop. The act of creation itself, you know, is inspiring.

Tell us about your writing process for this track. Do you always follow the same method when writing a new song? 

I always let the music kind of speak to me first. I’ve talked about this in different interviews before. I feel like the music, in terms of just the notes, the scale progression, and the rhythm. It all has a kind of feeling, you know? A message. So I always try to tap into what that message is. So when I first heard the beat for “Against the World,” it was just like (growling sound). It was just like this kind of feeling, like I’m about to just crush everybody and anybody. You know? Not so much like battling. More like I’m just a force, and I can’t be stopped. It’s a constant crushing, bruising kind of feeling, the way that beat hits, I wanted to attack it like that. And I knew I wanted to come with a lot of metaphor, word play stuff. I mean, honestly, every song, every beat is gonna talk to you. I don’t ever really write lyrics first. Maybe I might hear a hook or something in my head, but I never just sit there and write bars before I hear the beat. You know? I come from the days of freestyling. Most of the time, we would freestyle so whatever came on, you know you? I always try to capture that with my verses.

What inspires your gritty, 90s hip-hop sound in your music? Do you feel that a revival of this style is on its way?

I’m from the northeast. 80s and 90s. That was a time when gritty hip hop just was the essence of what you were. That’s just our DNA. You know? We all just had that feeling. We lived it. So for me, it’s not any kind of revival. It’s a continuation. If you listen back to my earliest lyrics, I was always coming from this direction. Over time, I progressed as an artist, as an individual, so my lyrics became more and my wordplay became more technically sound, but it’s always gonna be New York. You know? Northeast gritty hip hop. Tri-state area. This is just the sound that we live and I’m just doing me at the end of the day, I’m not doing anything where I’m like, “Oh, I gotta bring this back now.” This is it. I heard the beat, and it talked to me, and the words came out. That’s how that works

“The Impressionist” is your first fully-produced album with Kiza. What makes your musical chemistry click? 

Kiza and I have always had this connection. Since the first time we jumped on wax together. I think the first official track we did might’ve been “Dirty Bastards,” from my “The Disease, The Cure, and The Promise” album. And that to me is still one of my favorite tracks to this day. We also did “Busy Man’s Playlist” on that one, and honestly, to this day, those are still two of my favorites. If you line up all the stuff we’ve done, whether it’s the MHB collaborations, there’s some unreleased stuff to him and Keef, wOOkie called the K antibodies, which I pray someday comes out. Some of my best verses ever exist there. There is just something about my style that complements his and vice versa. He is very much in the swing of hip hop, the type of hip hop that we do. The way he puts down the drum patterns, but that’s only half the game when you’re a true beatmaker. He’s also very musically inclined and eclectic the way that he puts together his samples. So for me, it’s fun because he’s an artist. I’m kind of the same way. I’m hard-hitting boom back, but I also like to come from an eclectic standpoint in the sense that I’m not necessarily talking about what all the other rappers are doing. So when you put the two of us together, this magic symmetry is beautiful, musically speaking.

Tell us a little bit about the “classic” style for the music video. How does the setting and atmosphere complement the track?

“Against the World” just has this vintage vibe about it that was completely natural. It wasn’t premeditated. The beat just has this late 90s gritty vibe. I could hear Nas and Biggie on it in their prime. And then you talk about what I bring to the table, and then include two legends like Rock and Rah, who also are bringing that same style, New York hip hop, boom bap hip hop, that’s been lost, you know? And like I said, I’m not here trying to revive it. I’ve been making it. Then there’s Keef wOOkie with the cuts. A lot of people don’t use DJ cuts anymore, but I love it. I still love that sound. Keef WoOkie is one of the dopest of all time. So when I made that video, I knew it had to match. I knew it needed to be industrial. I knew there needed to be this darkness to it, you know? And we were blessed enough to go to Long Island City. Shout out to one of my friends and supporters. Big up Elliot. He let us use his building. And we were able to shoot that whole thing inside on a very cold day in January. Which was a blessing. When we pulled up, we knew we wanted to do an outdoor shot, and we saw that backdrop under the pedestrian bridge, the city skyline behind it, and graffiti and everything, and it was just like it was just meant to be. It was really just felt like the universe was saying, “We’re gonna do something dope here,” and that’s how we got to the final product

What was it like to work with your “heroes” on this track? Do you see yourself working with Rockness Monsta and Rah Digga in the future? 

Man, it’s been a trip the last several years in general getting to work with a lot of people that I’ve considered heroes between Meth and Kurious, and now of course to be on a track not just with Rock from Bootcamp Clik, Duckdown, Heltah Sketah, but also Rah Digga who I consider to be the single most dopest female MC of all time and one of my favorite MC‘s period. And to be on a track with both of them at the same time? It’s just an honor. Sometimes it’s a little surreal, but you know, at the same time, I’ve been doing this a long time and I’ve achieved a lot. So I feel like I earned it, and I’m proud of these moments. Because I worked hard to get here. But yeah, I’m also super grateful for Rock and Rah. They were both super cool on set. We had a good vibe. We were all laughing. So yeah, I hope I get to work with them again..

What excites you most about the direction your music is heading?

Man, I’m just happy to be making music the same way every day I’m happy to be breathing. I mean all of it is a blessing. You never know. So it’s been a trip man. It’s a beautiful thing to still see. You know, having more fans finding me and being excited about this, and getting more opportunities to work with rappers and producers and different artists that are at a high level. That means a lot. For me it means the sky’s the limit. When you’re working with the best of the best, the type of creativity that can come out of that is unlimited and I feel like a lot of that is still untapped. Even though you see the things that I’ve done with Meth and Rock and Rah, and artists like Jean Baylor and all these great people.. It’s amazing, but a lot of those were situations where the music was pre-written. And I spoke to them afterwards like,“I’d love to have you jump on this.” What I’m looking forward to is the next opportunity, where I can go in the studio and maybe call someone like Rock back up and be like, “Yo man I can hear you on this. Where are you at? Can you swing through?” I bust out the pen, he busts out the pen, puts on the beat and twists one up… That’s when the real spontaneity starts to show up and that’s when the really special creative moments are gonna occur.

Tell us about your upcoming album. Should fans look forward to more star-studded collaborations? 

Can’t spill the beans on that one man. (laughs) But I will say that “The Impressionist 2” is already in the works. I’m gonna try to knock it out super quick and have it ready for you by the end of the year. And yes, some special guests have expressed interest in joining in. I can’t say who yet, but it’s gonna be epic when it comes together. The whole thing will be produced by Kiza, of course, and it’s gonna have the same feel. It’s going to be a continuation of what the first one was. I get emails with gems and gold nuggets from him every other day. Kiza’s sending over some heat Hip Hop Nation, so stay tuned!

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