Israeli musician Dennis Lloyd, real name Nir Tibor, created his successful hit “Nevermind” in a one-bedroom apartment in Bangkok, Thailand, with just his instruments, laptop and a microphone.
"Nevermind" tells the narrative of a troubled love story. The song dives into Lloyd's relationship with a Colombian girl he dated while in Bangkok, who left to travel in Indonesia. As a way to channel his emotions of uncertainty, Lloyd started penning "Nevermind" — composing, producing and releasing the track independently.
But with no access to Wi-Fi or Spotify, the 25-year-old had no idea that “Nevermind” was topping Spotify's Global Viral Charts. It wasn't until record labels started flooding Lloyd’s email that he realized how enormous “Nevermind” had become in other parts of the globe.
“I opened my email and my inbox was filled with record labels from Europe and the U.S. We jumped on a call and I just asked them, ‘How did you find me?’” Lloyd said to me in an interview. “I had maybe 90,000 views on YouTube and for me, it was huge. They all said, ‘You have to open Spotify.’”
After teaming up with management company ONEWAY., Lloyd and his manager Josh Fluxgold set out to maximize the growing global interest. "Nevermind" started accumulating millions of streams, topping Spotify’s “Today’s Top Hits,” where the song reached No. 1 on three separate occasions and maintained a 185-day streak.
Lloyd, born in Tel Aviv, Israel, is a multi-instrumentalist. His biggest musical influences growing up were Nirvana, particularly frontman Kurt Cobain.
He learned the trumpet at age eight and the classical guitar at age 13, after stealing his sister’s guitar to learn how to play, he recalled. He studied jazz at the Thelma Yellin High School of the Arts in Givatayim, located just outside of Tel Aviv, where he focused on his technical trumpet skills. When he was 15, he took a trip to the U.S. and purchased his first microphone.
“It was like a USB microphone, like the shittiest I could find, but it was cheap, so I bought it...I started producing and recording,” he said.
Lloyd began singing as soon as he learned the basic four chords on the guitar and started forming melodies, he said. Despite receiving criticism from fellow high school classmates who urged him to "stay in his lane," he persisted against them, arguing that creating music was "the only way that I could really express myself and my feelings."
Lloyd served in the Israeli army for three years when he turned 18, then moved Bangkok in 2015 in search of a creative outlet to produce music. He explained moving to Bangkok to “find his sound,” dedicating one year to just creating. During that time span, he composed more than 40 songs.
“I packed my bags and I moved to Bangkok, Thailand — I spent a year there like completely isolated, no Wi-Fi,” he described. “I wanted to find my sound, and for one year, I just like made music. That’s it.”
When Lloyd returned to Israel about one year later, his mother showed him a newspaper clipping about a kid in Denmark who remixed a Nathan Goshen song; the remix topped 90 million hits on Spotify.
So Lloyd remixed “Nevermind” and re-released the song in 2017. The song found success too. "Nevermind" amassed over 750 million streams, achieved platinum status in seven countries and peaked No. 3 on the alternative radio charts in the U.S. "Nevermind" also marks Lloyd’s debut on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, an important milestone for up-and-coming and established artists alike. He also landed on the Forbes 30 under 30 list in Israel.
Today, on Feb. 15, Lloyd continues his momentum by unveiling his newest single, “Never Go Back,” via Arista Records. “Never Go Back” is the latest track from his forthcoming EP coming in April 2019. The EP goes even deeper into the different stages and emotions of his relationship and breakup, he said.
“'Never Go Back' is a continuation of the narrative of ‘Nevermind’ about the same ex-girlfriend,” Lloyd said. “I recorded 'Nevermind' at the beginning of my relationship, and I wrote ‘Never Go Back’ two days after we broke up.”
Trading versus in both Spanish and English, "Never Go Back" highlights Lloyd's stripped-down vocals, aided by his guitar and a soulful trumpet solo. Lloyd creatively blends the elements of pop, R&B, rock and reggae, breaking global boundaries in addition to crossing them. The new single is now available on YouTube and major streaming services.
Lloyd is preparing to embark on his U.S. headlining tour, including festival sets at Coachella, Firefly and Governors Ball this summer. Tickets go on sale on Feb. 15 at dennislloydmusic.com.
Check out the tour dates below.
April 7, 2019 - Vancouver, BC - VENUE
April 9, 2019 - Seattle, WA - Neumos
April 11, 2019 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall
April 14, 2019 - Indio, CA - Coachella
April 15, 2019 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theatre
April 18, 2019 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom Lounge
April 21, 2019 - Indio, CA - Coachella
May 29, 2019 - New York, NY - Irving Plaza
May 31, 2019 - New York, NY - Governors Ball
June 2, 2019 - Toronto, ON - Danforth Music Hall
June 3, 2019 - Montreal, QC - L’Astral
June 5, 2019 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall
June 7, 2019 - Washington, DC - 9:30 Club
June 8, 2019 – Cleveland, OH - LaureLive
June 10, 2019 - St. Paul, MN - Amsterdam Hall
June 12, 2019 - Denver, CO - Bluebird Theater
June 16, 2019 - Dallas, TX - Club Dada
June 17, 2019 - Austin, TX - The Parish
June 19, 2019 - Atlanta, GA - Terminal West
June 21, 2019 – Dover, DE – Firefly Festival
