Rapper Nick Taldi looks forward to the future with the release of his first EP “Farewellcome Vol. 1.”
The album, which dropped last August, is named for Taldi’s desire to leave the past behind and open a door to the future, he said.
A Bellmore native and SUNY New Paltz class of 2012 graduate, Taldi is more commonly known by his rap name Nikmoody. He majored in English while in school and is currently a student in the school’s graduate program.
Before transferring to New Paltz, Taldi attended C.W. Post Long Island University for a year where he was involved with the slam poetry team. He began rapping after some encouragement from his friends.
Nick Vitale is one such friend who encouraged Taldi to rap.
“The first time he ever rapped for me, we wanted to see what he could do because we knew he could write poetry,” Vitale said.
When Taldi transferred, he joined the New Paltz slam poetry team. While he was on the slam team, he met Mike Crow.
Their common interests brought them together to form a pop group called One Way. During the two years the group was together, they made three mixtapes and held local performances.
“We had a nice thing going and then last summer, we kind of went our separate ways,” Taldi said. “We’re still friends and he was on my mixtape.”
When the group split during the summer of 2012, Taldi launched a solo career as an artist.
Once he went solo, Taldi changed the stage name he used when he was a member of One Way, from Niko, to Nikmoody. The name originates from a name his mother used to call him.
“It started with basketball,” Taldi said. “I would never be satisfied with the way I played. I’d come off the court and I’d be pissed. I’d never be happy. [My mom] would say I was so moody. She started constantly calling me that.”
The mixtape started out as an idea of a 20-song master, Taldi said. When Taldi’s manager, Mike Epstein told him to cut the amount of featured songs, the final product was cut down to seven songs and a bonus track.
Taldi incorporated his personal experiences in the material produced on the mixtape.
“I went through a lot of changes in the past year, I was in a real bad place,” he said. “I kind of went somewhere that I am normally not associated with…and a lot of people thought a lot of things about me and it kind of inspired me to reveal a truth.”
As Taldi continues to work on his craft and brand, Epstein remains an intimate part of the process by offering his perspective and viewpoint in addition to helping Taldi build his fan base and brand.
“I am able to give that viewpoint of taking a step back and looking at everything as a whole,” Epstein said. “I look at it as art. I look at ways to market it and bring it to the fans’ ears.”
Epstein refers to Taldi as someone who takes his time and takes care of his art. He said he views him as an artist rather than just a rapper because he is multi-talented.
Taldi will be releasing “Farewellcome Vol. 2” soon.