Nav is the stage name of Navraj Singh Goraya, a renowned Canadian hip-hop music producer and recording artist. Nav, who was born and raised in Toronto, began writing music while he was in the third grade. Nav discovered a whole new universe in music and made the decision to take music seriously as a career choice because his uncle is a well-known figure in the Indian contemporary music industry. He quietly contributed to Drake’s popular song “Back to Back” in the middle of 2015. He started his own adventure on the “SoundCloud” platform, a social media website where aspiring musicians can share their works with the world. ‘Take me Simple’ was one of the first tunes that Nav put to the site and it earned millions of hits. He worked with American rapper Travis Scott on the song “Beibs in the Trap” in September 2016, and the result was widely praised. After receiving numerous offers, he signed with the American record label “Republic Records” and the Canadian label “XO” in early 2017. Soon after, Nav released his first mixtape of the same name. Later, he collaborated with musicians like Metro Boomin and The Weeknd on a mixtape that was released.
Early Childhood & Life
On November 3, 1989, Nav was born to Indian parents in Toronto, Ontario as Navraj Singh Goraya. His parents both migrated to Canada after being born in Punjab, India. They were residents of a diverse Toronto community. Of the family’s three kids, Nav was the youngest. In Ontario, his father was a forklift operator. His mother was an information technology engineer.
Nav’s interest in music creation was mostly influenced by his uncle. His parents became aware of his passion for the arts and gave him a boom box while he was in the third grade.
The family relocated to the city’s northwest and made their home in the Rexdale district. Nav experienced minimal bullying at school, just like the majority of non-white students. He didn’t do well in school and thought that music was where his genuine talent resided.
He lost more and more intellectual ground as he matured. But he was gradually revealing himself to be a highly gifted pianist. During Nav’s time in high school, the local music scene in Rexdale expanded quickly. Nav noticed kids his age making mixtapes and decided to do the same in an effort to fit in. Through the use of Sony’s “ACID Pro” software, he started mixing music and eventually started producing his own beats.
He chose to accomplish something important in order to emulate his idol, hip-hop superstar Nasir Jones, often known as Nas. He recorded a rap song for his friend at the beginning of 2015 but was instructed to perform it himself. He has never performed rap in front of an audience before. His initial performance gave him more confidence and enabled him to advance with his songs. He quickly began putting in long hours of labor to create the perfect song to establish his professional career.
Nav’s Career and Childhood
He had stated in one of his early interviews from 2012 that he could create anything an “artist wanted.” His work matched the confidence he exuded, and he gradually began to generate attention in the Toronto music scene. Fortunately, Drake, one of the most popular American rappers of all time, heard one of his beats in the middle of 2015. As Drake used the beat for his song “Back to Back,” Nav had his big break.
Nav later came to the conclusion that being a featured artist on a song by one of the finest American rappers of this generation was not a particularly noteworthy accomplishment. He kept on writing songs on his own. A few months later, he discovered the true impact of his abilities after hearing his music on the program “OVO Sound Radio.”
A few months later, in September 2015, Nav made an online debut on “SoundCloud,” a website where aspiring musicians can freely share their works with the globe. At that point, Nav was already somewhat well-known and soon attracted a sizable fan base on “SoundCloud.”
The song “Take me Simple” was one of his first “SoundCloud” hits. The song quickly rose to fame. More than 12 million people have listened to it on SoundCloud thus far. The Man and “Take Me Simple,” two of Drake’s tracks, were later played on “OVO Sound Radio.”
He began working with more established musicians in 2016, and one of his first was on Travis Scott’s song “Beibs in the Trap.” The song’s cheeky comparison of Justin Beiber to cocaine in the lyrics caused considerable controversy. Birds in the Trap is a complete album that Nav co-wrote and co-produced. scream McKnight. The album appeared on the “Billboard 200” and reached its highest position at number 90.
The album’s popularity grew gradually, and after selling more than a million copies domestically, the “Recording Industry Association of America” (RIAA) designated it as a “platinum” record. Nav independently released his first mixtape in September 2016. Its title was “The Introduction.” He agreed to a contract with “XO” and “Republic Records” in February 2017. He was required to release his debut mixtape, “The Introduction,” to a larger audience as part of the agreement.
A few months later, he released his second mixtape of the same name. He worked with The Weeknd on the mixtape’s lead song, “Some Way.” The song’s music video has received over 41 million views on “YouTube” as of this writing. The Weeknd sang as a guest on the song, whose lyrics sparked a great deal of debate. In the song, Weeknd is said to have directly criticized Justin Beiber, with whom he had a long-running rivalry at the time. Rappers seemed to share this problem, but it was quickly forgotten.
Nav released his third mixtape, “Perfect Timing,” in July 2017. Metro Boomin and Nav worked together to produce and write the tape. The album’s several songs included well-known and up-and-coming performers like Gucci Mane, Lil Uzi Vert, 21 Savage, and Belly.
The album’s position on the Billboard 200 list peaked at number thirteen. The song “Wanted You,” one of the album’s singles, was listed on the “Billboard Hot 100.”
The 2018 “Juno Awards” committee recognized his quick and dramatic climb to stardom by giving him the “Breakthrough Artist of the Year” award.
His Individual Life
Nav changed his name from “Navraj” to “Nav” as he gained popularity in order to sound more like other musicians.
According to Nav, many of his songs are about drugs, sex, and depression because these subjects are typically taboo in Indian homes.
Estimated Net Worth
He has a $4 million net worth.