If you have not heard about NFR Podcast you need to tap in! Based in Montreal, Canada, the podcast is hip hop-based and is run in-house by 21 one year olds, who are longtime best friends. You can find them on YouTube, Instagram and Tik Tok @NFRPodcast. It is currently the biggest hip hop podcast on Tik Tok (With over 650 thousand followers) and is one of the biggest upcoming podcasts out of Canada. Their video podcast was launched not too long ago in November of 2020. Before then, they were an audio-only podcast for a little bit. Even though the podcast has only been up for about a year, they have garnered many great achievements and co-signs. Earlier this year they got a big co-sign from global superstar Drake, by receiving a follow from him on Instagram. I got the chance to ask them about it and they simply said “It was a very cool moment”. In addition to this they have also received a co-sign from YouTube star Anthony Fantano. He is one of the biggest music reviewers in the world.

After hearing this, we were very curious about how the podcast went from an idea to a movement. So we decided to ask the boys at NFR, “How did you first start your podcast?” They had this to say. “As longtime friends, we thought about wanting to talk and share about our love for hip hop. This led to the creation of the Audio Podcast. As we saw potential with our quality, we felt as if taking our content to the next step was the smartest move. After coming together and discussing everything involved in the process, we began to elevate our quality with video that we can share through multiple platforms. This allowed us to increase our potential to build what we wanted.” We found this to be very interesting and we like the fact that they started the podcast from a place of passion and not anywhere else. NFR Podcast started because they truly love the music we call hip hop. Different people enjoy different things about what they do. For the guys at NFR they enjoy expressing love for the genre and the honor of putting people on to new music. It is priceless to them. “Being able to express our love for the genre to a community is absolutely priceless. Being able to put people on to new music and perspectives is an honour. As hip hop heads ourselves, nothing brought us more enjoyment than being able to share it with a strong community. This also allowed us to learn from the community. That is definitely an enjoyment as well; just being able to be knowledgeable, while at the same time, being taught through other perspectives of the art. We feel as if this is what helps move the genre forward in a positive light.”

Throughout the Pandemic, many creators have gone one of two ways with their passion and craft. They either have been going “all gas, no brakes”, since they have more time to create or, they have postponed what they were doing; some have even stopped completely! NFR is, without a doubt, the first of these two options as they have been working nonstop through the Pandemic to grow a bigger following and better quality of content. “The Pandemic really gave us more time to put our efforts into this all. It made us realize that this is what We wanted to pursue. We’ve learned consistency, amelioration, and quality throughout the whole journey through the pandemic. And if it wasn’t for this process, we wouldn’t be able to sustain such an idea.” This really shows the transformation that not only the podcast but the people running it have gone through throughout the Pandemic. They have learned to work harder and stay consistent towards their goals and that is why they are on the way to reaching them. Everybody has inspirations for what they do. It can be a person, place, feeling, etc.. NFR Podcast has been inspired by many other podcasts that are hip hop-based and others that cover a wide variety of podcasts. “In terms of podcasting in general, Joe Rogan has inspired us to create dialogue that’s informative, entertaining and genuine. He laid out the blueprint for how a podcast show should flow.

Another inspiration would have to be the Dead End Hip Hop channel on YouTube, a platform known for album reviews. Their free-flowing style is refreshing and has allowed us to see the art of podcasting in a new light.” Joe Rogan is the King of podcasting and it is great that they studied his craft and applied things to their own podcast to give the listener the best experience possible.

We, like everybody else, do not know what the future holds but we do know that it is important to have a plan or an outline for the future so that you can work towards it. This is why we asked the guys at NFR, “Where do you see yourself in five years?” They responded with this. “We envision NFR to be one of the most accessible hip hop platforms that showcase nothing but quality and positivity. With a strong community, we believe that we can truly set a path for hip hop listeners to broaden their knowledge and taste in the genre, while also feeling interconnected with one another to continue to spread that message.” We found this to be very interesting as they do not mention numbers but things they can do with their community and content. Number goals are great to have but after you hit a certain number of followers, you will just be hungry for the next set of numbers. On the other hand, building a strong and interactive community is something that will bring satisfaction for a long time and is better than pretty much any number you can have. To end this off, we decided to leave NFR Podcast’s main goal. We wanted to leave this statement competently unedited for there fans or anybody else reading this to enjoy. “Our goal is to connect the world to hip hop, as we like to say. Not only this, but to do it in a positive light. NFR is all about spreading positivity through the art we love. We feel as if this is the best way to connect with people who share similar interests, and create such a strong community.”