Nik West

Nik West

Nik West is a bassist and singer-songwriter from Phoenix, Arizona. She begins as a guitarist before moving to bass in high school, after hearing Michael Jackson’s “You Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”. Her father, T. West, teaches her rhythm guitar from the age of 13 and also teaches her and her siblings to sing when they are young.

Early family music making

West’s first performing group is her family: her sisters play keys, drums, violin and guitar, and she also has an older brother. She continues to record with some of her siblings. Although she sings, she considers herself primarily a bassist and originally intends her debut album, Just in the Nik of Time, to be instrumental. A producer encourages her to sing on the record, and she does.

Collaborations and performances

West works with Dave Stewart of Eurythmics on several projects after he becomes aware of her debut album work. She also works with Stewart and Grammy-winning songwriter and producer Glen Ballard on a recording project. Her playing and jamming credits include Prince, John Mayer and Marcus Miller, and she has also worked for artists such as Glee. She is noted by Lionel Richie, Meshell N’Deggeocello and Flea.

Equipment, endorsements and projects

West receives endorsements from Fender and SWR. She is one of the first musicians to play Fender’s first 6-string bass, and she serves as a partner in developing Fender’s Dimension Bass line, which launches in 2013. She is also the creator of the Queen of Strings Competition. She appears in features in Bass Musician Magazine, Bass Player, Bass Quarterly Germany and Bass Magazine Japan.