Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs

20 artists gush about their special someones and the music that defines their friendships.

Illustration Leah Mandel
March 06, 2017
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Photos courtesy, clockwise from left: Fetty Wap and Monty, Eva Hendricks, Thundercat, MadeinTYO, Julien Ehrlich, BEARCAT, Jay Versace, Jerrika Karlae.

Best friends come around every-so-often, but when you feel that musical click — locking eyes and screaming lyrics to each other across the party, driving around all night listening to that one album and spilling your guts — you know it’s really real.

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To kick off BFF Week on The FADER, we hit up some of our favorite artists to tell us about their very best pals in the world, and the music that defines their friendships.



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Kodie Shane
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Kodie Shane facetiming her best friend Lil Uzi Vert.   Courtesy Kodie Shane.

Sooo my best friend’s name is Lil Uzi Vert lolololololol. We met last year, like January/February so we've known each other for a year. We actually fell out, like we weren't the best of friends at all. It was so much miscommunication, and then we finally got to talk and now he's my bestieeeeee. I would say we complement each other ‘cause he just matches my fly lol. We get fly together. I knew we would be best friends when we weren't cool at all, and he flew me out to L.A. and kinda made it right. He took it upon himself to fix our relationship and now we’re always together lolololol.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? We’re always listening to new artists together. We love discovering new music.

MadeinTYO
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs MadeinTYO, left. 24hrs, right.   Courtesy MadeinTYO.

My best friend is 24hrs, and we've known each other since birth. Some of Twenty's strengths are my weaknesses, and vice versa. We complement each other. That's my motherf***** real brother.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? Digits” by Young Thug.

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Whitney’s Julien Ehrlich
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs "Elliot on the left, Me in the middle, & Josiah (Bass in Whitney) on the right at my 11th or 12th birthday." — Julien Ehrlich.   Courtesy Julien Ehrlich.

My best friend is Elliot Coughlin, and we’ve been friends since pre-school. I was a bit more shy growing up, and he was the loudest, goofiest class clown-type imaginable. Without him I would have never gone streaking or anything like that. He pooped in one of the holes at our local country club golf course back in 7th grade because they kept kicking us out. That was probably the moment when I knew we'd be friends forever. I spent the holidays with him and his family this year but I don't see him enough. Love you Ell.

Do you have a favorite song to listen to together? When we got to college we got super obsessed with "The Band" together. We'd get drunk and scream "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" through the University of Oregon campus.

Thundercat
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Flying Lotus, left. Thundercat, right.   Courtesy Thundercat.

My best friend is Flying Lotus. We’ve been best friends for almost 10 years. I knew when we shook hands for the first time and when we both agreed Old Boy was the best movie ever. We both look the same, like Danny Devito and Arnold Schwarzenegger in Twins the movie.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? "Rhinestone Cowboy" by Madvillain (MF Doom + Madlib).

N.A.A.F.I’s Tomás Davó
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Alberto Bustamante, left. Tomás Davó, right.   Courtesy María Fernanda Molins.

My best friend Alberto Bustamante, a.k.a Mexican Jihad. We met in university in 2006, so it’s been 11 years now. We have very different personalities, but we have similar ideas about life. In our friendship, or working together with N.A.A.F.I, we split the responsibilities and manage to get the best out of each other.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? We listen a lot to Popcaan's Where We Come From. "Everything Nice" is probably the one we listen to most.

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Jerrika Karlae
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Nekia Hauser, left. Jerrika Karlae, right.   Courtesy Jerrika Karlae.

My best friend is Nekia Hauser, a.k.a my mommy. We complement each other so well, being as I'm the only child. All I know is my mom. When we go out in public people think we are sisters and are blown away by resemblance. The moment when I knew we would be best friends forever is when I was younger, she would always be like Superwoman and save the day from any problem I was facing. She's the reason I'm the woman I am today, with her strong guidance and love.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? Our favorite song that we sing along to a lot is R. Kelly's "You Remind Me Of Something." It's an old school classic of ours.

Dertbag’s Philip L. Post
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Nina Wisner, left. Philip L. Post, right.   Courtesy Philip L. Post.

MY BEST FRIEND’S NAME IS NINA WISNER AND WE HAVE KNOWN EACH FOR 3 YEARS. NINA COMPLEMENTS ME BECAUSE SHE BRINGS MUCH NEEDED BALANCE TO MY LIFE. I’M A WILD CHILD AND NINA IS MORE RESERVED AND CHILLED. I KNEW WE'D BE BEST FRIENDS FOREVER WHEN WE ATE AT CHICK FIL A FOR THE FIRST TIME.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? WHENEVER I DRIVE WITH NINA I LIKE TO BLAST “BOYS DON’T CRY.”

Hinds
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Gus, left. Ana Perrote, center. Amber Grimbergen, right.   Courtesy Hinds.

Our very best friend is called Gus. Well, we all call him Gus but his real name is Alvaro. We’ve probably known each other now for like… forever? I don't even remember! He's alway been there for everybody, and now he does it in the best way because he works in our management, so we get to spend a loooot of time with him. He comes to all the shows he can, and it's the best having a good friend with you when you're far away.

Do you have a favorite song to listen to together? So many! But the most important one would probably be “Hold Up” by Beyoncé, because we've been singing that song in a row for hours.

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Jay Versace
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Courtesy Jay Versace.

My best friends are Jayshaun and Kellie, and it's been about a year that we have known each other. When they're wearing nice clothes I be like "I know that's the fuck right," and I start screaming. The moment I knew Kellie and I would be best friends is the day she spent a night and we talked about life all night. The moment I knew for Jayshaun is when we sat down and listened to music for hours and we realized we had so much in common.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? Me and Kellie’s fav song is “Let It Go” by Keyshia Cole, and me and Jayshaun have too many to count, literally.

Fetty Wap & Monty
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Fetty Wap, left. Monty, right.   Courtesy Fetty Wap and Monty.

Fetty Wap: My best friend is Monty… that's been my brother, I lost count [of the years], we’ve been through so much. Monty is the fly one. I learn from him. He picks the hot beats that he knows I can do good hooks on. We made sure each other was good in our worst times — when we spent nights in Monty's Intrepid because neither one of us had a home — and now in our better times.

Monty: The world knows him as Fetty Wap. I call him Zoo, Wap, or bro. We’ve been friends for almost 10 years. When me and Wap are around each other it's always positive energy. That's my brother. I knew we were gonna be cool forever a few years into our friendship, when I realized that me and Wap never had a fallout. We never betrayed each other and we continue to stay true to one another. That's my bro for life.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together?
Fetty: Too many Gucci Mane songs to choose from. Pick any one.
Monty: If I had to pick one, I would say any Gucci Mane song from the "Writing On The Wall" mixtape.

Allison Crutchfield
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Allison Crutchfield, left. Katie Crutchfield, right.   Courtesy Jesse Riggins.

My best friend’s name is Katie Crutchfield and I’ve known her since January 4th, 1989 — we were in the womb together! We’re identical genetically and astrologically speaking, so it’s complicated. Katie’s more organized and generally takes more initiative than I do, and I’m a little more vibey and just generally more of a freak.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? We listen to a lot of Rilo Kiley and Guided by Voices together.

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BEARCAT
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Kush, left. BEARCAT, right.   Courtesy BEARCAT.

My best friend is my puppy Kush, I’ve been his human for two years now. Kush has increased my patience vastly! And made me understand that hard work gets results on a whole new level! Teaching him how to high five is def one of our highlights. I was crying & Kush jumped on me and started to lick my tears with some much love and concern for me, which only made me cry more because with his limited capacity he was doing everything he could to comfort me and — ahhhh — there are just no words for this type of love and care! It went straight to my heart.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? We don’t but there are certain afro beats that I will play at home and Kush will ACTUALLY start rolling around on the floor and do a wiggle on his back!!! I love to pick him up and dance with him, he likes it too.

Sorority Noise’s Cameron Boucher
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Zak Ickes, left. Cameron Boucher, right.   Courtesy Jessica Flynn.

My best friend's name is Zak Ickes and we have known each other since the 7th grade. We're both 23 so we've been friends for like 10 years. There was actually one point where we weren't friends at all because we were in the ninth grade and I spent all my money on this wack-ass gold Epiphone SG and he told me Epiphone sucked, so I told him I was a better guitarist than him. We did not speak for like six months after that, and then one day my mom dropped me off at his house to hang out and we never talked about it again until we brought it up in the van like two years ago. That's when I knew we’d be best friends forever.

Do you have a favorite song to listen to together? Probably “Do Right” by Jimmie's Chicken Shack or “Girl All The Bad Guys Want” by Bowling For Soup.

Jay Som
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Jay Som, left. Maxine, right.   Courtesy Jay Som.

My best friend is Maxine Garcia, and we’ve been friends for almost 14 years. I love her so much. She's been such a huge and important figure in my life for most of my childhood to teenage years. A major thing that separates her from most friends is that we can go for months without talking then check in with each other by being supportive of each other's endeavors. She's super intelligent, thoughtful, and caring and she deserves the world! [I knew we’d be best friends] when she invited me to her 10th birthday party.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? First Date” by Blink 182.

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Charly Bliss’s Eva Hendricks
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Eva Hendricks, left. Amanda, right.   Courtesy Eva Hendricks.

My best friend is Amanda. We’ve been best friends since we were 6 years old. We are very different, and I’ve always felt like she is such a better person than I am. I’m always aspiring to be more like her. I feel like I’m very flighty and all over the place; I’m neurotic and anxious, and she’s extraordinarily good at coming into a situation and being like, “Here’s how we solve the problem. Game plan, right now, let’s go.” She taught me how to drive on the highway. She’s the first person I go to for advice. My best friend.

We had a very dramatic AIM fight when we were in 7th grade. I was popular for a week because I got a Juicy Couture sweatsuit, and she was not having it. She was right, these girls were terrible and I was acting like an asshat. Amanda knew me well enough to be able to be like, “You’re acting not yourself. Cut it out.” When we made up I was like, She’s my ride or die. She’s gonna be my best friend for the rest of my life.

Do you guys have a favorite song to listen to together? We have so many songs. Hannah Montana would be in there, but I’d say our number one best friend song is “My Best Friend” by Weezer. It’s unforgivably bad as a song, but we always sing it to each other in the car.

HOOPS’S Drew & Keagan
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Judah, left. Drew, right.   Courtesy Drew Auscherman.

Drew: My best friend’s name is Judah, and we’ve been best friends for a couple of years, but it feels like my whole life. He just had knee surgery and he skates. Please keep him in your thoughts. He kick-flipped into my life and nothing was the same. We like to constantly riff. We're a couple of jokesters when we get together. [I knew we’d be best friends] when he asked me to join his band (Manneqin).

Do you have a favorite song to listen to together? “Moments in Love” by Art of Noise.

Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Keagan, left. James, right.   Courtesy Keagan Beresford.

Keagan: My best friend is James. We have known each other since 7th grade. We get along because our personalities bounce off each other quite nicely. His sense of humor coupled with his mannerisms never fail to make me laugh. We met at a Christian music youth group workshop when we were 13. We discovered our short lived passion for heavy faith based music.

Do you have a favorite song to listen to together? We like to listen to Cocteau Twins.

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Lydia Ainsworth
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs Abby, left. Lydia Ainsworth, right.   Courtesy Lydia Ainsworth.

My best friend's name is Abby. We've known each other since she was born. She's my little sister. We laugh with and at each other a lot. Abby is methodical and orderly and I am more instinctive and impulsive. We both believe in and encourage each other. There isn't a single moment that made me know we’d be best friends forever, it's a sisterly intrinsic feeling I've always had.

Do you have a favorite song to listen to together?Wannabe” by Spice Girls.

PUP’s Stefan Babcock
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs "Here’s a photo of us caught in Cape Horn during a freak snowstorm, miles away from everything." — Stefan Babcock.   Courtesy Stefan Babcock.

My sister Carla is my best friend. She’s got four years on me, and in many ways is my exact opposite — I tour in a loud rock band. She is a nuclear physicist. But we do have a few things in common, beyond our DNA. The biggest thing is that we are both absolutely nuts about camping and nature. We go on trips together every year. We have the exact same sense of adventure. When we were kids, we hated each other. She used to beat me up - I was a really small kid and she learned kickboxing at a young age. But I think we started smoking pot together when I was 14 or something, and that sorta kickstarted the friendship.

From The Collection:

BFF Week
Thundercat, Kodie Shane, Jay Versace And More Talk Friendship And Their BFFs