Niko Villamor

If you asked Niko Villamor in the past if he ever thought he would become an MC, he would probably laugh at you. “I never thought this would be my profession, music is the last thing I thought I would do.” Many people choose what they would like to do in life, and sometimes they’re chosen. Niko was chosen.
Niko (Dominic Sterling Villamor), an only child, was born in Berkley, California. His mother is African American, and his Father is Caucasian and Filipino. “My mom said I was so bright when I was born, that when we left the hospital, people didn’t think I was her baby.” He says with a laugh. When he got a little older, he and his parents moved to a one bedroom apartment in San Francisco’s Mission District. “That’s where I learned to protect myself growing up. I used to get bullied on my way to and from school. It toughened me up.” His mixed background caused his fellow peers to pick on him more. “They called me names like whiteboy, oreo, pisscolored and “Fligger” (Filipino Nigger). Whatever you can think of, I’ve probably heard it.” Niko says, “First it made me hate what I am, but as I grew up, it made me proud to be what I am.”
The Villamor home was a small one, but a creative one. His Mother graduated from the California College of arts and crafts after leaving her hometown of Washington DC. She would use their one bathroom as her art studio and paint there. His father was artistic as well, and worked various jobs. At home, they would play a variety of music, read, write poetry and draw. They also got him heavy into Japanese anime, manga and video games. Having parents with such creativity and diversity, it was only natural that it passed down to him. “I just emulated what I saw, whatever they were doing; I wanted to do it too.”
But things weren’t all storybook. His mother and father fought a lot, verbally and physically. His mother later took him and moved to Georgia to live with her side of the family. “It was a complete culture shock for me, I moved from the city landscape to suburban scenery and we were really poor. But this is also where my passion and love for Hip Hop really blossomed.” It was in Spanish class where the light bulb clicked on. “I wrote a rap because my friend who sat next to me just asked me to try it. I scribbled on the front and the back of the paper and gave it to him.” His friend was impressed, and told him that he was better than some of the people he knew already. “I sat and dwelled on becoming an MC for about two weeks, wondering if I could really do it. I didn’t want to be something I wasn’t, so I thought really hard about it.”
Fast forward to the present, Niko Villamor has been honing his skills tremendously ever since. From entering rap battles and recording “The Weight Room” mixtape and “The Thank Us Later” compilation (which they are giving away for free) with his fellow artists from The Ivy Leegue (Brefontaine, Outbreak and Skuba), opening up for acts such as The Youngbloodz, the Grammy award winning three six mafia, Omarion, Marques Houston and also performing with Slim from 112 (who is like a big brother to The Ivy Leegue), This looks to be a promising profession for someone who never thought he would lend a hand to stimulate the growth of Hip Hop.