Like the rest of the HEVEN and HELL crew, Nicco was raised in East Calgary, home for the majority of the city’s visible minorities. Rap was a part of his life since it first started to become available in Calgary. This was the around time that rap pioneers Whodini released Open Sesame, the first rap album Nicco ever owned. From there, there was only one type of music that existed for Nicco, who describes himself as a rap fan first and an artist second. As a youngster, Nicco struggled in most subjects in school but teachers often encouraged his writing and poetic abilities. Not interested in traditional poetry, Nicco channeled his talent into writing rap lyrics from the age of 12 years old. Says Nicco “I never wrote anything for people to hear at that age, it was always just a way to get thoughts out of my head. Most of what I would write down I would end up losing or throwing away.” It wasn’t until high school that Nicco’s ability as a writer/vocalist was recognized on the local scene. As 1/3 of the group 3rd Degree, he turned heads with his ability to flip words and deliver his creativity over Doc J’s production. Today, the style has changed but the result is the same. He exhibits a unique and melodic flow while sharing the positive and negative life experiences of himself and those closest to him.

Says Nicco: “Hip-hop has been my release ever since I can remember. Expressing my creativity is therapeutic to me. With the things I’ve seen growing up here, the friends I’ve lost to drugs, crime and just life in general, I always think it just as easily could have been me. For this HEVEN and HELL thing, my goals are simple, keep making music, keep writing and keep getting better. Hopefully we can turn some heads in our direction and let the world know what kind of talent we have out here in C-Town.”