smartdumb is a new record label founded by (me) nick sylvester, the producer and creative co-founder of artist development company godmode. channel tres, yaeji, and jpegmafia were among the one-of-a-kind artists we worked with.

in 2022, i left godmode to start a new kind of music company that better supports the artists i believe in. smartdumb is that company.

this is a home for music that begins with a question mark and ends with an exclamation point. we work closely with artists who make us say, 'wait, what? oh. wow.' the job of an independent label -- at least this one -- is to help the rest of the world understand the vision.

smartdumb is also a brick & mortar gallery space in the glassell park neighborhood of los angeles. the gallery displays new sound and multimedia works for smartdumb artists, and hosts an ongoing concert series for emerging artists. the gallery opened in march and runs through june 2026.

as for me: i'm a music producer, composer, and artist based here in los angeles. i have songs with everyone from pharrell to amy allen, from honey dijon to tyler, the creator, from the dare to chris lake, from mø to avalon emerson. i've composed music for espn documentaries and apple commercials, and i've scored multiple independent video games.

i grew up in philadelphia, playing trumpet in wedding and bar mitzvah bands. at harvard i studied computer music, music concrete, and renaissance choral music, and also wrote for the harvard lampoon. after a tempestuous stint as a music critic, i fell in with lcd soundsystem's james murphy, who taught me how to produce, mix, and create an artist's signature sound. that's probably the thing i enjoy most.

you can contact me at nick at smartdumb dot info.

thanks for reading.