Hanging out at the bar of Loring Kitchen and Bar, decked out in his signature black skinny pants, blazer and fedora hat with enough black nail polish to make Adam Lambert jealous. Most diners are looking over their shoulders whispering “Who is this guy? He looks like he just stepped out of a Motley Crue video”. But most, especially the bartenders know that it’s Minneapolis own ‘male Paris Hilton’ sans the small dog and annoying accent, L.A. Nik.
Born and raised on the East Coast, (born in Philadelphia and moved to Delaware at age 5) Don’t you dare call him ‘Delaware Nik’. L.A. Nik talks to us about attend Catholic school, hitchhiked to Miami, moving to L.A., owning a nightclub, developing a patent on a self-build green screen, the scary drug years, how life and business are “all mathematical”, his fearless ways and how he was “just in the right place at the right time” to becoming a ‘promoting fool’ in Minneapolis.
So grab a cocktail, blast some Judas Priest and get ready for this uncensored Q&A with L.A. Nik.
What are your thoughts on the hip hop scene? I have a problem with hip hop and rap. I like some early rap and I know this sounds stupid but I deeply feel that gangster rap tore the soul in this nation. I’m not racist but I hear white kids talking Ebonics in the grocery store and I just don’t understand that. Music used to grow up. Beatles as kid, Beatles as adult. Today’s music doesn’t grow up, it disappears. Rock is gone in this country. Even rap stars now they are playing for peanuts, I mean Snoop Dogg was playing at The Cabooze last month! Every band is selling out major soccer stadiums with the exception of the United States and Japan. I mean everyone, Brazil, Italy, Sweden, Germany—sell out a whole soccer stadium, 300,000 seats, for $100 a ticket. Big festivals and bands skip over the states, even Axel. I would do the same.
Did you ever have an opportunity to for a record deal? I had a record deal and they said to me “You want $5 million these guys over here want a six-pack and a Big Mac—we’re going with the Big Mac”. That’s what they called The Grunge Movement. Sound garden, Nirvana—played for free. Every band’s deal was about to expire. The only people that skated through is Motley Crue. They got a deal for $50M for 3 years, the day they signed them they said he we don’t want any of your albums—go ahead take the money. That money got them to start Crue Fest, that’s dead too now because they didn’t sell out.
On his Facebook posts: I had someone private message me saying, “Lighten up on the posts”. You know what my response was? There’s something on the bottom corner that says “Un-friend”.
You seem like a “Yes Man”. Are you? No, not really. I have my ethics and morals. I have a ton of people trying to get me to wear their brand, but if I don’t like it. I’m not going to do it. That goes with anything. Women, work. I have to really like something to do it. My biggest problem is I have no filter. That’s a big problem for the Midwest. I will let everyone know how it is, if I don’t like something I’m eating-I’ll spit it out and tell you that I don’t. That’s just how I am. That’s the East coast in me and I’m a little guy, I’m surprised I haven’t gotten my ass kicked yet.
What is was that first turning point that you thought "I was at the right place at the right time?" A day in 9th grade where all of sudden out of nowhere I got treated differently. I was put on a pedestal for absolutely no reason. People just started treating me with total respect and it never stopped. It completely built my confidence. But one day, I decided to run away from home.
Why’s that? Well, my parents had just built a sound proof studio in our basement but there was no bathroom. Everyone would cut school to come jam at my house. One day someone said I have to use the bathroom upstairs. Turned out that evening, my sister’s graduation ring was missing and I got blamed for it. So I got upset that I decided to hitchhike down to Miami. My last ride was a Delta pilot and he asked me to stay with his surfer dude kid. I stayed with them in their mansion for a few months. But being the mama’s boy that I am, I went back. (They actually found out who stole the ring when it turned up in a pawn shop). Back home, I got the role of percussionist at Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey’s Cabaret at Dupont Playhouse in Delaware. Then I got the itch. I enjoyed staying in hotels, getting my meals catered, I liked the lifestyle of the ‘rich and famous’. Then I went to L.A. and got lucky, yet again. I stopped to help this hot blonde fix her car (currently you’ll see L.A. Nik around town with a gorgeous Minnesota blonde, Nancy) and her husband was a wealthy man that owned a lot of clubs in L.A. and he just gave me my own club. Next thing I know, I ran The Pleasure Dome, I had every rock star play in there, Slash, Axel. We gave away free breakfast at 6am. Then I got raided for selling after hours. That was the end of that.
What happened after that? Then I had a couple of bad years and got into drugs, lasted a good 3 years. I’m going to start talking to kids about drugs, become a mentor. I want to tell them, you’re not Charlie Sheen, you’re not a rock star, you don’t have millions of dollars, and you can’t risk losing everything you own. Anyone that starts telling lies-it’s about drugs. You ruin every relationship you have ever formed, because you have to cheat, lie and steal. But I never had to do that because drugs would literally be right in front of my face. Everyday people would knock on my door and offer me an eight ball, or say “Hey man, I just slid something under your door” It was all free and all available 24/7. But, I’ll be honest. There’s nothing glamourous about it. It takes everything good out of your life. A normal person will never get what they lost back. I lived in Palm Beach, gated wall around my house-didn’t come out for a year. I have studied how drugs work, they tickle the pleasure sensors in your brain and receptors close up and they go through your body and you feel like Superman for years and then one day, it dies out. I became paranoid one day sitting in my house staring at the door for 12 hours with a 9mm in my hand waiting for someone to break down the door. It’s a scary, ugly thing. I thought to myself how can I let that happen? I was sober only 2 hours of each day, that’s when I would call my mom, nobody ever knew. I tell everyone now, but no one ever knew. It wasted a couple years of my life.
From Miami to L.A., how did you end up in Minneapolis? I have been in Minneapolis for a little over a year in a half, spending time in Kauai, Vegas and L.A. But it all started with a patent I developed for a Green Screen Live Moving Video Booth. I built this booth, called GoHollywood Live, and I was trying to sell it to MGM Entertainment. They wanted to test it 2 weeks before Christmas. I called malls in LA and Vegas-everyone had a 4 month block out period for the holidays. I started calling malls all over the country and Mall of America said “Bring it, we’ll take it!” It was a feat to move a 2,000lb machine by myself in the middle of the night in the tunnels of the Mall of America. (Ask him to tell you the story-it’s ridiculously entertaining, like most of his stories). The booth stayed there for a year, we audition for 5 different TV shows and hit every demographic group you can imagine from 14 to 85 year olds auditioning for reality shows.
How did you come up with the idea for this booth? At the time, I was living right off Santa Monica and Hollywood Blvd on Wilcox behind a store called the Blind Party store-I met 10 girls a day, they all claimed they moved to L.A. to become an actress or a model. And honestly, none of them had a shot in hell. They were wasting their parents’ money, wasting years of their life. And most of them get in the wrong crowd: drugs, porn industry. (There’s a huge porn industry there for the fact that it has an endless amount of women looking to become famous). With my booth, they could try becoming famous in their hometown first, to see if they had any chance or anyone had any interest before them moved. The machine worked, but there’s so much red tape in this country. I pulled the machine out and went out to Vegas. I had no business to come back to Minneapolis. But I love it. (I love the free perks I get as well). You know I’m a big fan of the W Hotel . The W is so good to me. I’d give them everything I own. It just rocks! I love Parasole-great company with super cool people. Also when I first came here and discovered downtown Minneapolis, I stayed at the Hotel Minneapolis, easily the most beautiful hotel in Minneapolis; I was their longest staying guest (1 full year). I’d come home at 4am and they would bring me hot chocolate chip cookies and I’d take them over to Sheik’s and feed all the dancers.
You have your signature look out here? Has it opened up or closed doors for you? I got a lot of prejudice here, especially Uptown and Northeast. I’m just some scumbag there. I’m totally out of my element downtown too, but the difference is, everyone’s really approachable in Downtown. They stop me in the street and ask “How ya doing?” You won’t find that anywhere else in Minnesota. That’s why I live, drink, eat and party Downtown.
I’m not an egomaniac, but I’m just super confident. I get so flustered and aggravated when people don’t get it. I’m looking to reinvent myself, I’m not going to tour anymore and I’m the only rocker I know at this age that still has the look. The other guys are fat, balding old men with a horrible wardrobe. I’ve never had a job. I own my house in Palm Beach and L.A. but never had a job. My income came from playing and my club. My motto is “Throw $hit until it sticks” So, I’m going to keep throwing. I have hosted The Oscar Party for the Smile Network as well as Starkey, the biggest fundraiser in Minnesota, held yearly at the St.Paul RiverCentre with guests like Bill Clinton, Steve Martin, and Letterman. I keep trying to reinvest myself, pitching ideas to Metro Transit and Trojan condoms. I have a lot of tricks up my sleeve right now that I’m going to pull in Minneapolis; I’m going to start branching out with L.A. Nik’s Favorite People Party and Rockinthistown.com.
Tell me more about Rockinthistown.com? I’m a stickler for details. I wanted to get my own website to educate people on myself and all my past and upcoming events. The websites all about me, I’m not competing with anyone or trying to step on anyone’s toes. But remember, I’m not an egomaniac (he laughs). A PR firm ran by Sam Soza, who I met a year and a half ago, went home the first night after he met me and bought www.lanik.com. They had the foresight and believed in me. He called me a few months ago and said “Hey, I want to build you a website.”
Tell me about your upcoming shows My June 3rd show, tickets are only $20 which is basically free. The reason why they are only $20 is because the band is playing for free. I’m not allowed to make any money on this show. It’s just enough to cover their rider: flights, hotel, dinner and a few drinks. I didn’t want to put tickets on sale because scalpers would buy them and take all our hard earned money. That’s not going to happen! I said, if I have a party a month before and only sell them to the people that show up, I kill the ‘scalping’ problem. (FYI: Pat’s Blue Ribbon will give away free beer). Halfway to Halloween Party, this Saturday, April 30th will be hosted Comedy Central’s Daryl Homer with Church of Cash, FuckKnights and Chosen Robot. Cash prize for most creative sexy costume. (Costumes are optional). It’s non-stop entertainment. There’s always someone playing or something going on. It’s about complete entertainment.
L.A. Nik's last statement: “I’ve lead an unbelievable life! To be a rocker at 46 years old and sleep until 2pm and go get a cocktail at 5pm. Everyone wants that!"
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