_: March 2011

One is a skateboarding DJ turned vocalist from the Bronx, who gets much of his inspiration from political attributes and is focused on the synergy and energy of the group. The other is a Brooklyn lyricist who only wants the respect that the group deserves, and his passion radiates in every word he speaks. Meet Jah Jah and Telli, or as they're collectively known, Ninjasonik. The New York based…Punk? Rock? Hip Hop? I’m not really sure how to describe them, but they somehow combine various elements of music into a fuse of something that works. It works quite well actually. This year, I had the pleasure of sitting down with the two SXSW veterans to discuss how their music, their story, and their future.

BA: How many times have you guys been to sxsw?

Telli: This is like our 4th year.

BA: Any other shows coming up this weekend?

JJ: We got maybe two later on tonight...and we gotta couple of shows [this weekend].

BA: Okay, how are you guys enjoying Texas? I'm sure it's hotter than yall probably expected.

Telli: I love it. For me personally, this is the best music festival to me.

BA: I couldn't argue with that
Telli: Everytime I come down here it’s like a family. Like a family reunion. We do our job and what we love to do and just meet beautiful people.

JJ: Yeah our fans become friends. A lot of artists don't hang out with the fans. Like...fans are friends. We end up meeting people and we come back out again and end up hanging out with us and part of the staff.

Not very hard to imagine, once you meet these guys. But they don’t plan to stay in Texas for long. This group not only has a fan base that runs from New York to Austin, but they’ve been across the pond on a few occasions as well.

BA: So where else have you guys been performing? I know you think SXSW is the best but at what other festivals have you performed?

Telli: We did Europe twice last year. We've done paris, we got a lot of close friends in paris. Everything has been fun. Like say if you don't like us you're not gonna come. So when we go out people like us and they come with the intention to party. They come out to have fun

JJ: Yeah they're there to relieve stress. Like there were some dudes passing by and they turned and said "Yo that's Ninjasonik" and they ran and they didn't even see us but they heard the music. And came up front just to say hello.

Ninjasonik comes nowhere close to fitting into one genre of music. They are literally all over the map with their style, and that’s exactly how they intend to keep it.

Jah Jah: We're not like stepping outside of the box either, we're trying to widen the box and make it three dimensional and let people know that we're not trying to just...fit into one category. It's not just one thing. It's about being yourself. We just talk about how we feel.

Fitting for a group whose inspirations include a legendary hip hop storyteller and a 1970’s English punk rock band. Jah Jah and Telli come across as yin and yang combination; very different in styles yet it blends together seamlessly. It’s hard to wonder how they even came together to from their sound, but it wasn’t as complicated as one might expect.

BA: I was reading your artist page and checking out some songs, and I couldn't define your music in a certain genre. For instance you listed Slick Rick and the Sex Pistols were your influences. What about those artists do you admire the most and what do you take from them and put into your music?

JJ: Like slick rick was a great lyricist and story teller. When he talked, you wanted to hear the end of the story because it was so interesting. And the sex pistols had this rebellious thing about what going on in Britain, and for them to basically say fuck the Queen was kinda crazy. That's nuts; especially in their time.

Telli: I feel, like musically, when you travel so much, you get introduced to so many sounds, so anything that catches my attention musically I like to incorporate it into what i do because everything has inspired me to be [that]. The more and more you evolve it’s just more shit to round up. This kid listens to punk rock indie shit, I listen to rap shit. I grew up in the church...playing drums so gospel music has this thing that touches my heart also. So it's [that] we're very musically and emotionally driven artist

BA: So how exactly did you two link up?

JJ: We met through skate boarding. Literally

Telli: Our old bandmate Teenwolf, the DJ, already had the group and I met Teenwolf on another occasion. He told me to jump on a record, and I jumped on the record and he was like you should meet Jha Jha, the other dude on the record. And i met him at the crib and I was like "Oh shit it's Jha Jha!"

BA: And after you met and came into the group was it originally hip hop or what exactly?

Telli: It was just a bunch of electronic shit. Not even really just rapping, but just saying shit. Then i came along, and i was so influenced by the punk culture and the rock culture that I started to verbally explain and put out there what we go through every day and that's how it all came about.

And that’s what Ninjasonik is about. Instead of trying to fit into one category, they just want their stories to be heard. As they will tell you, it’s about being what you want, when you want. And by these standards they are creating a revolution that has attracted an eclectic range of fans and supporters. It is because of this range that they are able to collaborate with punk/electro pop group Team Robespierre, yet still be more than capable to add a hip hop twist to their song “Daylight” with Matt and Kim. As Telli explains it, the music is just about every day life. And that is the message they want those who aren’t informed of their music to know.

Telli: Basically…if you're looking for some shit to dance around to...to have fun and that's new. We're like one of those videos you see on Youtube where you watch it and its' so fuckin obscure that you put everybody you know on it because it's so dope. That's the kinda shit that happens with us.

If i tell you it's a fantasy, you're gonna know it's a fantasy. But my shit is so crazy sometimes, But then i can just talk about what we go through. We talk about what we go through. We don't advocate nothing, we just trying to explain to you what we our life is about sometimes. Like we party a lot. Shit might be about girls and she might be fucking but these are things we constantly do.

BA: I understand you were able to collaborate with Matt and Kim. How did that come about?

JJ: Yeah we're great friends

BA: How did you guys meet?

JJ: I met Matt and Kim years ago on my birthday. We were friends from [years ago]. And it was their first show and I was like, “What is this?” And I remember when Kim couldn't really play her drums that well. And to see them progress and see where they are now and for them to give us some love as fiends. To see them going from playing in a kitchen to going to where they are now is crazy. And we met through friendship. It wasn't even about the music, it's because we're friends and I'm gonna come see you play.

Ninjasonik is only looking forward to moving onward and upward. Set to release The Peter Pan Syndrome in June following the release of the upcoming single “Moshpit” produced by the Party Squad. After listening to their performances and talking to them, it’s hard not to like these guys. As we toast a few beers following the success of the showcase they had just finished, the guys’ ultimate goals are simple, yet ambitious. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear them creating a lot of noise in the industry very soon.

BA: What's your personal ultimate goals for yourselves individually and then as a group?

JJ: Take care of yourself your family and friends

Telli: Cultural wise, I think we've created something new that's never been done before, and I just want respect and for the world to open up the doorway and bring the new breed of music for individuality and to let it spread like wildfire; and after we're gone, hopefully we'll leave a legacy.

For more music and inside information on the group, please visit www.ninjasonik.com

-B. Austin