When you believe in young people — the NBS studio's bet

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Journalists: Fatima Bah, Marc Elder Piard

Video journalist: Ramy Berkani

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The NBS music studio is located in a youth center in Côte-des-Neiges. This place gives future talent in the neighborhood the opportunity to record and produce songs for free. More than just a space where young people can make songs, this space is for them a sanctuary where they are listened to and thrive away from judgments and the rejection of society. Between two recording sessions, La Converse went to meet these determined artists.

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A dozen young people are present in the studio. They are sitting relaxed while one of their own, Ghost, raps his new track in the recording booth. Gradually, the young people tell us about their relationship with the studio and thus reveal the reasons that prompted them to frequent this space. What do they have in common? Most of them don't feel valued in the outside world.

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Within the walls of the studio, they find another atmosphere. Young people in the neighborhood discuss their daily lives and the issues that concern them. One of them is mixing. This is where we understand that the aim of the studio is not only to allow young people to rap. The studio program trains young people so that they can one day perform, record, and mix. “We are also a program made by young people for young people; we employ young people who have gone through the studio to become mentors for other young people,” explains studio director Jai Nitai, who is also a rapper and music producer. For many at the studio, Jai is more than a director: he is a confidant and a mentor. “Young people have had to go through a lot during the pandemic,” says the studio director. They have to Dealer with things on the street, at home, at school. I am not going to judge them for the bad choices they made, but rather I am going to see them as people who are capable of improving themselves. So they come to me with all sorts of situations, some more extreme than others. I can't reveal anything, but I tell them that I am there for them and I am using every resource at my disposal to allow them to meet people related to the particular problems they have.”

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With his background in hip hop, the artist and youth worker succeeds in understanding the issues faced by young people in the neighborhood. “I speak the language they speak. Often people just need to be listened to,” says Jai Nitai.

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Marginalization and how to avoid it

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“A lot of young people come to the studio, young people who do bad things outside,” says Ghost, a rapper and studio regular. They come here and, with the energy of the studio, they can't get away from their reality, but the time they spend here saves them from the bad things they might be doing outside.”

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Ghost's speech echoes that of all the other young people. They all agree on two things. The first is that young people in Côte-des-Neiges face many problems in their daily lives. The second is that the studio helps them deal with these problems. “Young people from Côte-des-Neiges have had to go through a lot,” explains TP, a rapper and sound engineering student. Their statements make sense when you consider the socio-economic context of Côte-des-Neiges. There are a lot of disparities in the neighborhood. Access to employment and affordable housing is proving to be a major difficulty for its majority immigrant population.

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Young people in the neighborhood also had to deal with the tragic disappearance of one of their own. Last October, young Janai became stab in Côte-des-Neiges before succumbing to his injuries a few hours later. This is only the visible face of the challenges they face. Because, much more insidious, loneliness sometimes affects some young people. To try to alleviate these problems, the NBS studio acts as a new family for them. “NBS is like a community,” TP tells us. “What we do here... We come and we give to the community of Côte-des-Neiges. It's not just free. We are given a “paradise”, a place where we young people can express ourselves. [...] For me, NBS is a special place, very special,” he said, while his colleagues agree.

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An outlet for young people

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From the city of Châteauguay to the basement of Chalet Kent in Côte-des-Neiges, there is a good distance to go to a studio. However, this is the path taken by the young artist Iqua. Having started singing at the age of five, she now uses her art as a therapy. The young rapper, who is a psychology student, uses her songs as vectors of expression. “A song that I want to record is more about mental health, because I have social anxiety. I don't know how I can talk to you right now,” she laughs. “That's really it. It's really stuff about me. It's really a matter of the heart,” says Iqua.

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“When I was younger, the way I perceived this life made me unhappy, especially living in Uptown, because Uptown is not a good place to live.” The statement of Yama, a sound engineer at the NBS studio, is a cliché. He is sitting in his armchair with a bass in his hands. Behind him, we see a computer turned on; several sound mixing applications are open on the screen. He shares his life with us while playing his instrument and working on pieces of music. As his story progresses, we understand that he perfectly represents the spirit of the studio. Growing up in Côte-des-Neiges, the young sound engineer had a difficult childhood.

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For Yama, the most important thing is to share his knowledge with young people who are, like him, passionate about music. Growing up in Uptown — which is the name given by young people to a part of Côte-des-Neiges — Yama says she did not feel understood by society, more specifically by the school. Feeling that many young people in the room confirm that they also experienced.

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“When you go outside or into a social structure like school, where the teacher is part of the school system and has received an education, an education that your family doesn't have, how can you communicate with someone who doesn't understand you? he asks. “That's why some people don't take school seriously. Because they don't identify with their teachers.” Misunderstood at school and fleeing the problems at home, he himself ended up at the NBS studio. “I just needed a place to escape, and NBS was in the area,” explains the young man. I skipped school because I didn't want to go home or go to school. I was just going to NBS. It's really a place you come to when you're feeling bad, and without knowing why, once you're here, you feel better.” The relationship between Yama and music started before she came to the studio 10 years ago. When he was younger, the artist took music lessons at his school. And like all young people, he also dreamed of having a career as a great rapper. “But rapping was not for me,” he confides with a smile. So I stopped and focused instead on the Beatmaking.”

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Yama frequented the studio for over 10 years. He is working today and is working to make young people benefit from the supervision he received. He is also pleased to have set up the NBS structure with Jai, with whom he maintains a solid friendship. With the young people, Jai and Yama have built a community where “the only obligation is that you give back what you have learned.” The young rappers who enter are supported by alumni, who were there before them, and they support those who are coming in.

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An initiative that is more than necessary

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The NBS studio plays a crucial role in Côte-des-Neiges. Young people who live in the neighborhood need to express themselves in order to thrive and, according to them, NBS is one of the few places where they can do so. With demand far exceeding the studio's supply, NBS is “a victim of its success”. Getting an appointment for two hours of recording is becoming difficult. We are now spending a month on the waiting list to have a session in the studio. Jai and the young people tell us that the studio lacks funds, equipment and space. Moreover, the program only helps young people between the ages of 11 and 18.

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For Jai, this is very unfortunate, because it is precisely at this point in their lives that these young people need support the most. “Life becomes very difficult for young people when they finish high school, and that is unfortunately when we have to separate ourselves from them”, regrets the coordinator. According to him, having more funding would allow better continuation and improvement of the project currently under way.

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Despite everything, young people are optimistic about their future. When asked what they would do if their career didn't take off, they quickly dismiss the possibility. Many people say that they will soon break through thanks to their music. They don't give up. Most say they immigrated with their parents. They came here to live in better skies, to have better opportunities. They want to succeed at all costs. The NBS studio changed the way they looked at things. Individual success is no longer the only objective of these young people, as the young rapper KJ tells us. “I'm going to break through and bring all my brothers with me, because it's my family,” he says, talking about the other young people who frequent the place.

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At the NBS studio, a young person is a social and community project.