It’s simply after midday on a Monday in July, and the UFC Enviornment in North Brunswick, New Jersey, is eerily quiet. In walked Nick Hexum, the 54-year-old frontman of the band 311, 6-foot-3, carrying a duffel bag. He had a smile on his face, however his eyes advised a unique story: This man was drained.
Traditional rock star, proper? Social gathering the evening away after which leap proper into taking images. No, that is not Hexum’s type. He has been sober for practically twenty years and counting, reflecting his dedication to prioritizing his well being and “specializing in performing, making music and household — a very powerful issues in life,” he mentioned .
“Vast sobriety is what it’s to me,” he explains. “To everybody, however many of the guys within the band have grown out of that section. You possibly can’t sow wild oats endlessly.
Zach Timberlake
Particularly drained this time? It was a mixture of late-night performances and journey issues. The evening earlier than, 311 rocked Maryland amphitheaters. Then, a collection of flight delays compelled him to desert the aircraft, hire a automobile, and drive for greater than three hours to conduct “FLEX” picture shoots and interviews.
“Oh, my God,” I believed, feeling anxious. I’ve met artists, musicians, and actors who grew to become high-maintenance divas once they had fewer issues. Positive, Hexum sings about “amber” and overcoming “stunning disasters,” however he is nonetheless human. I’ve seen firsthand how a scarcity of sleep and visitors jams on the Jersey Turnpike can flip anybody right into a full-on stress grenade.
However as he seemed across the huge 28,000-square-foot facility, he did not explode. As an alternative, he mentioned: “I am excited. A bit of bit out of my type, however able to work.
He might imagine he isn’t the one for him, nevertheless it would not present. Over the subsequent few hours of interviews, portraits, workout routines, and selfies, Hexum was engaged and cooperative with none complaints.
Erica Schultz
How Nick Hexum works at full pace
Push the sled a number of extra occasions? definitely. One other set of field jumps? why not? Adjusting the shape for higher lighting, even when it feels a bit awkward? Not an issue.
Nick Hexum understands that well being and health transcend aesthetics. “Train is a crucial a part of my life to remain targeted and glad,” he explains. “I really feel like in case you work in your bodily well being, your psychological well being will observe.”
This can be a near-perfect abstract of one of many many advantages of train. Actually, if I’ve an oz of musical expertise, I attempt to put it into tune. To keep away from embarrassment, I feel I will depart the lyrics to the professionals.
Since their breakthrough within the mid-Nineteen Nineties, 311 has been a driving pressure within the music business, making a signature sound that seamlessly blends rock, reggae, funk and hip-hop. The band has 13 studio albums, together with a brand new album scheduled to be launched this fall, which accommodates 34 singles. A number of singles reached the highest ten of the Various Songs chart, together with the aforementioned hits “Amber,” “Come Unique,” “Do not Tread on Me” and “Hey You.” On Spotify alone, the band has amassed over 3.6 million monthly listeners and has obtained billions of performs throughout numerous platforms.
These successes are laborious received. The band hails from Nebraska and was formally fashioned in 1990. The band’s preliminary makes an attempt in Los Angeles have been unsuccessful, they usually ultimately returned to Omaha to construct a loyal fan base. After signing a cope with Capricorn Data, their first album obtained little consideration when their touring RV caught hearth, destroying their gear.
Regardless of these setbacks, 311 persevered. Their mainstream breakthrough got here with the songs “Down” and “All Combined Up” from their self-titled third album, which propelled the document to triple platinum standing. Success continued, with 4 albums launched between 2005 and 2014, reaching the highest 10 of the Billboard 200 chart.
311’s lengthy historical past and artistic evolution are a testomony to their relentless work ethic and mirror Hexum’s health and life-style. Similar to within the gymnasium, there are not any shortcuts to success. It’s a must to put within the work.
“Our band has been round for 34 years,” Hexum mentioned. “It is not all the time straightforward. We have had our share of setbacks, however we have all the time persevered. I am simply conserving an angle of gratitude. I am doing what I’ve all the time wished to do in my life. So why not keep in a very good temper?
Erica Schultz
Nick Hexum’s Health Philosophy: Consistency
On the planet of health media, not each superstar is really enthusiastic about health. Some simply play a job. Hexum’s physique is streamlined and vascular, the results of years of laborious work, not a crash weight loss program.
“Once I first began, I did it as a result of I discovered I’d really feel much less loopy,” he mentioned of his unique motivation.
When requested about his health philosophy, Hexam burdened the significance of routine. “I imagine in consistency,” he mentioned. “I do not go to the gymnasium for 2 hours. Often, I begin the day with 15 or 20 minutes of cardio to clear my head.
Off the court docket, he’s a daily at F45, a high-intensity group health class.
“That works for me; whenever you present up, you do not have to set something, and it is completely different each time. Whereas on tour, he sticks to a separate exercise plan, beginning with cardio and guided core workout routines. Then, he Mix it with a basic seaside muscle exercise sooner or later, a full-body exercise the subsequent, and continue learning new workout routines.
As a musician, Hexum has a novel rhythm to his exercises, conserving his exercise reps in sync with the beat of the music. He additionally tried completely different diets, however nothing labored long-term. “I used to be vegan for some time and keto for 10 months, however I felt like I wanted numerous naps,” he mentioned. “Now I’m again to a full spectrum weight loss program.”
Examine shirtless stage images or journal profiles from 2019 to the current and you will see that ditching keto results in a fuller physique. Nonetheless, he nonetheless maintains vascularity and visual abs.
Most significantly, Hexum’s method reminds us that there isn’t a one-size-fits-all method. For him, it was about longevity, power and happiness.
Erica Schultz
Nick Hexum leaves a legacy of empowerment
Whereas Hexum’s primary focus stays music and health, his entrepreneurial spirit has led him to discover new ventures within the business. Alongside along with his bandmates, spouse and others, they based SKP (which stands for “Escape”) with the goal of liberating unbiased artists and musicians from the customarily unfair and exploitative conventional music label system.
“We wish to depart a legacy of empowerment,” he explains. “We’re making a platform to assist younger artists navigate the business to allow them to retain fairness and management over their work.”
Hexum’s imaginative and prescient SKP (skp.io) As “a system the place artists can retain their rights and nonetheless get promotions like a document label.” The imaginative and prescient is not restricted to music, however includes a “nice democratization of tradition,” with creators constructing careers by way of self-produced content material.
On SKP’s web site, they define their mission: to create an ecosystem that “helps and empowers our community of musicians, artists and craftsmen, actors, managers and technicians.” “We’re additionally increasing into movies in order that extra solid and crew can take part and have an fairness stake within the initiatives,” he explains.
He contrasts this with the normal mannequin: “Earlier than, it was principally like one individual owned it and everybody simply labored for a examine. After which, even when they have been wildly profitable, they did not get something out of it. The identical goes for document labels, like I by no means had any curiosity within the labels we supported.
Erica Schultz
Nick Hexum’s “Sure To Life” Technique
As we left the assembly, one thing from our dialogue struck me. Within the ultimate seconds of the interview, I requested the manufacturing employees, “So, what occurs subsequent?” Nick interjected, “No matter it’s, sure! Sure to life.
I am fairly certain it was an improvised line that he was ready for anything we’d want, however, whether or not he landed on goal or not, it did not find yourself being a throwaway line; it is a line that is caught with me, Its message is to embrace alternative and method life with an open and constructive thoughts – many themes woven into 311’s music.
This “Sure to Life” philosophy is organically tied to each a part of Hexum’s existence, and is mirrored in 311’s various, genre-melting music. That is his method to health, as he seeks out new habits and adjusts his weight loss program. That is mirrored in his enterprise with SKP, the place he hopes to reinvent the worth of creativity. This angle means being constant, performing effectively no matter fatigue, being dedicated to your work, and sustaining a constructive angle whenever you least wish to do it.
After filming wraps up, Hexham faces one other five-hour trek to Boston. Only a pit cease earlier than 311’s subsequent present in New Hampshire. Nonetheless, the 311 frontman’s optimistic outlook stays steadfast.
As we mentioned our goodbyes and packed up with the employees, I thought of how I might carry extra of the Sure Life power into my very own world. That affirmative angle has propelled him by way of a 34-year profession within the tumultuous music business, and at age 54, it continues to maintain him with power and power that could be simply what we’re all searching for The key ingredient.
