Nucleya opens up on getting ‘burn out’: It was a turbulent phase

DJ Nucleya nonchalantly admits being ‘lazy’, when you ask if his preference to wear shorts during a concert is fashion or comfort. The DJ was in Mumbai for his latest stint On Tour, wherein he sported orange shorts, contrary to others who might wear elaborate outfits. In the meantime, Nucleya admits that in the last few years, he stopped touring which led him to lose ‘touch with reality’. “I wasn’t touring and I was around people who gave me a different perspective of the world outside. I lost touch with my creative self,” he shares.

He mentions he was ‘lost during the pandemic’, as he opens up on the particular phase: “Getting lost creatively is the most catastrophic thing that can happen to an artist. Then you start not believing in yourself. You follow other people’s gut feelings. Like releasing music that you are not 100% sure about. But people tell you that it’s the thing. And then (when) it fails, you lose a bit of that trust in yourself.”

The 42-year-old known for popular songs like Bass Rani (2015) does not shy away from the fact that he hasn’t released any music in the last few years owing to his ‘burnout’. “It was a turbulent phase in my life emotionally. When you have a disconnect with your emotional self it shows in your physical health also. Neend haram ho jana! You have taken so much work that you have not only disconnected from yourself but also from your family. Jo log aap se pyaar baatna chahte hai, aap unse pyaar baat nahi pate kyunki aap ka mann kahi aur laga hua hai. In the last 3–3 .5 years I haven’t released music. And my fans often ask me to release something. (But) It becomes difficult to explain that maine aapko jiss speed se music diya tha, uss speed se main burnout ho chuka hoon,” Nucleya explains. Hotel hopping, hopping cities without realising which city you are in, finishing your sleep in taxis, are just the few things the musician mentions that he went through leading him to burn out. “It is an unhealthy life. Aap successful nahi ho rahe ho, aap unhealthy ho rahe ho. I don’t want to make music kyunki mujhe mehsoos nahi hota hai aisa ki I’m in sync with myself to make music. I will make an album with honesty because main banana chahta hoon and not because of views or anything,” he concludes.