For Nokz, Music Is A Family Affair

Whether it was following in his brother’s footsteps by beginning to record music, signing with his longtime friend’s Lisi’s record label, or changing his style so that his family could enjoy his songs, for Brisbane rapper Nokz, music has always been about family.

Coming from Forest Lake, Brisbane, a place that he describes as “pretty rundown,” Nokz and his brothers—one of whom is rapper Amu Tha MC—did their best to avoid the well-known traps that kids from marginalized backgrounds often fall into. Luckily, a music program made its way to Nokz’s school when he was 16, altering his path for the better. “Thank god we made the decisions we made back then,” he said to Complex AU. In his own words, getting a chance to make music in a studio as a teenager kept him away from trouble, even if he was stealing lines from Jay-Z.

That music program sowed a seed that wouldn’t bear fruit until 2020, when he decided to pursue music seriously and ended up recording what went on to become his breakout single, “Warm Up.” He would later go on to sign with Castille Records, the label started by childhood friend and fellow Brisbane rapper, Lisi. He also became a father around that time, which strengthened his resolve to pursue music. “When you become a parent, you want to do anything to give your child a better life,” said Nokz.

In the four years since his fateful decision to pursue music seriously, Nokz has released a string of successful singles. While 2023 was a quieter year, 2024 marks a fierce return that’ll be filled with “bangers only,” as well as a string of other projects outside of music. One of those projects is starring in JD Sports’ latest New Balance campaign. In an interview with Complex Australia, Nokz discusses his latest JD x New Balance campaign, Brisbane’s rap scene, and the recurring theme in his work—family.

When did you start experimenting with music? How did that journey start?

When I was 16, I started recording music at the local youth centre, just hearing my voice on a mic and stuff like that—having some fun with it. But I didn’t really start taking music seriously until about 2020. That was when we went into a proper studio session and really got to see what it was all about. So yeah, it was kind of two journeys, I guess? But yeah, professionally it was only in 2020. I think that those kinds of youth programs that kind of let you go crazy with what you wanna do are good. We just experimented and had fun with it—stole some lines from Jay-Z and stuff [laughs].