This is part of our weekly series titled “Columbus’ Own,” where we profile a local band every Thursday.

 

After being kicked out of high school and banned from Skully’s Music-Diner for fighting, local rapper Submuloc, whose real name is Nate Frase, said he knows he is serious trouble, but he’s adamant that people shouldn’t take anything he says seriously.

“Please don’t take anything I say seriously, unless it pertains to saving dolphins in Japan or how much I hate dumb people,” Frase, 22, warned via text before his interview with The Lantern.

But with almost 170,000 total video views on YouTube as of Wednesday evening, people are starting to take his musical talent seriously. Frase’s video for his rap “Mind Blown” has the most views of his songs at more than 24,000.

Frase said he got his start “back in the day” at an open mic night with friends.

“I didn’t rap yet and I just kind of fooled around with them,” he said. “One night that we were there before one of the shows, they had an open mic contest … and I just got drunk and decided to do it.”

The liquid courage led Frase to a victory and five more wins after that night.

Before rapping, came poetry though for Frase.

“I wrote poetry for a long time, but I never felt real comfortable letting people hear it, and so when I started doing the rapping stuff it was a cool way for me to incorporate that without … being personal,” he said.

Frase said he never listened to music before becoming a rapper.

“To be honest with you, I’ve never actually listened to music in my entire life. I thought I invented it when I started … no, I’m just kidding,” he said laughing.

He said this was how the interview would go, with him cracking jokes throughout. In reality, Frase said he listens to a lot of music and has for a long time.

“I listen to so many different genres of music and I probably don’t really listen to rap as much as I listen to other genres,” Frase said in a serious manner.

Frase said he hopes his music comes off as “intelligent rap.”

“Basically anything that’s thought-provoking and not talking about the same thing that everyone else is talking about,” he said.

Carson Wassmuth, co-owner of Tha City Clothing Co. in the Short North and Frase’s high school peer, recommended attending one of Frase’s shows.

“He is a great artist, with unparalleled lyricism in the Columbus underground rap scene,” Wassmuth said in an email. “When he performs, he comes out with a crazy amount of energy and keeps the crowd engaged all the way through the performance.”

Frase has opened shows for Machine Gun Kelly and Big K.R.I.T., but said he would love to perform with Tech N9ne.

Having performed at several venues throughout Columbus, Frase said there’s one he won’t be returning to. After starting at fight at one of his shows at Skully’s, located at 1151 N. High St., Frase said he isn’t allowed back in the venue.

“Some guy hit a girl and I jumped off stage during my performance and I started fighting with a bunch of people and started a riot. So yeah, I’m not allowed back there,” he said. “It’s videotaped and stuff so … maybe down the road I could get cool points.”

Getting kicked out of venues is something Frase somewhat prided himself on. He was kicked out of Grove City High School as a teenager for Photoshopping pictures of his principals in compromising positions, among other things. More recently, Frase was kicked out of Rock on the Range at Columbus Crew Stadium this past weekend.

“I’m just trouble, I guess,” Frase said, shrugging his shoulders.

Still an unsigned artist, Frase said he has no intentions of getting caught in a contract with a record label.

“My goal is to basically be doing what I’m doing right now, independently and make a career out of it … so whether that be with making a label and all that stuff or whatever, that’s just the goal,” Frase said. “And to be high the entire time. That’s the other goal.”

After the interview, Frase’s management sent an email to The Lantern apologizing for not warning about Frase’s character.

“I guess we should have warned you before you met him, he’s always clowning,” said Jessa Williams of Frase’s management in an email.