gnash

Los Angeles-based producer gnash combines the emotional vulnerability of early-2000s emo singer/songwriters with the sounds of introspective alternative R&B. His international hit collaboration with Olivia O'Brien “i hate u, i love u” went multi-platinum across the globe in 2016, rising into the Top Ten in the U.S., Europe, and Australasia. Surpassing a billion streams, the track appeared on his first album, 2019′s We. Over the following years, dozens of singles and collaborations kept him busy until 2023, when he released his sophomore set, The Art of Letting Go. Born Garrett Charles Nash, gnash got his start as a DJ and as one part of the duo Gemineyes with Harry Hudson. In 2014, his reimagining of the O.T. Genasis track “CoCo” garnered attention from blogs, which led to a string of digital singles released in 2015. His debut EP, U, was released in March of the same year. A mellow, laid-back affair, U employed gnash’s rapping over woozy atmospherics, reminiscent of Drake and Troye Sivan. At the end of the year, me arrived. One year after his debut release, he issued his third EP, the seven-song us. Gnash described the emotive, downtempo us as his personal sonic journey through life’s ups and downs — breakups, self-discovery, searching for new experiences — ultimately leading to loving oneself. A full roster of guest collaborators appeared on the EP, such as Compton rapper Buddy, Goody Grace, Mark Johns, Liphemra, Wrenn, Quiñ, and Rosabeales. Lead single “i hate u, i love u,” his 2016 duet with Olivia O'Brien, topped international charts and would eventually surpass 1 billion streams. In 2018, gnash returned with the singles “The Broken Hearts Club,” “Nobody’s Home,” and “t-shirt,” which would all land on his official debut full-length we, issued in early 2019 on Atlantic. Into the 2020s, gnash released an array of singles including “Wash Your Hands” and collaborations with the likes of CXLOE, Walk Off the Earth, Clara Mae, and Shwayze. ~ Neil Z. Yeung