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To mark the occasion of our final tee drop of 2025, ‘Cycles’, I wanted to sit down with the artist behind the design, North Nights, a Brisbane-based lettering specialist. Building on a foundation in graffiti, North Nights has invested sweat in refining his own blend of ‘Calligraffiti’ – a hybrid of calligraphy and graffiti that emphasises stylised letterforms and expressive marks.

Originally, we had planned to do this interview in person. As the end-of-year chaos set in, the days slipped by, and we decided to conduct the interview over iMessage rather than forcing an opportunity to be same place, same time. So, after setting the drop live, on Friday night, I took a break from packing orders and shot my questions across to the man, who was trying to enjoy a cold frothy one after a relentless week of cutting fades.

During my interview prep, I found myself listening to a fair bit of metalcore band ‘The Ghost Inside‘. Before we roll tape, here’s some lyrics that resonated with me at this current checkpoint on the continuous rotation of our existence.

“This is my time to rise, GO!

(Dark horse)

I’ll fight my way to the top

You will never be the thorn in my side (my side)

(Dark horse)

Dreams are my driving force

Open your eyes

Go live your own life.”

“I’m not scared…”

—The Ghost Inside ‘Dark Horse’

Introduction and interview by Luke Shirlaw for Artillery Worldwide – Images courtesy of North Nights

Luke Shirlaw: Man, it’s a busy season. I’ve been thinking a lot about doing things better next year. Being more efficient and effective. And also more creative. I just went for a walk through South Brisbane, and saw soooo many people are enjoying the festive season, ladies (and fellas) dressed up all nice, dining, socialising, heaps of people in Christmas shirts etc. And now I’m back at the studio solo, packing orders. LOL.

I know you had a hectic day today. What are you thinking about and reflecting upon as the year winds down?

North Nights: The problem is I don’t wind down. More so, I just want to make sure my partner and son have a good Christmas. That’s all I’m thinking about through this period as I work the whole way through.

LS: Do you fuck with Slowthai? I love his music, and when I was doing research for this interview, I came across his song ‘North Nights’. Dope listen. You familiar?

NN: Yeah, I fuck with Slowthai. I listened to his earlier work a lot. We used to bump it in the barber shop, almost daily.

LS: Just to stay on this track for a sec, there’s some great lyrics: “Only get one life, no simulating” – how does this phrase speak to you?

NN: What comes to mind is ‘just be you’. Don’t worry about what everyone else is doing, and be thankful for your life.

LS: To clear things up, I assume your name didn’t come from this song. Where did it come from?

NN: Hahaha. Unfortunately not. That would have been cool though.

I needed a new handle with the graffiti/ calligraphy changeover, and I just thought back to my most memorable moments. All I could think about is Northside (of Brisbane) and nighttime. Somehow it stuck.

LS: I first met you in my final years at Ironlak, when you came through the Lak studio to make a video. Since I’ve known you, you’ve been pretty nice with the handstyle and script/ calligraphy lettering.

Tell me your initial introduction to graffiti – did you start with more traditional, ‘New York graffiti’ piecing etc? Or was it always the tags?

NN: I was lucky enough to start traditional like everyone else. I’d seen graffiti since I was young, and I was very much a wildstyle enthusiast from my early teens. I still do the odd piece here and there with close friends.

LS: What led you to focus so heavily on handstyles and scripts, and to hone that as your art form, rather than pieces or any other visual arts practice?

NN: Well, before I learned how to tag, I could only piece wildstyle. My tags were rubbish until I got schooled on the art form. There weren’t many doing wildstyle tags or bending purely tag letters in Brisbane, that I really knew of, at that time anyway.

LS: How would you describe what you do to the average person?

NN: Shit, that’s a hard one. I don’t really label myself as anything, nor do I care to be labelled. I’ll leave it to anyone who wants to view my work to make that decision for themselves. I’m just happy to do it for myself.

LS: What’s your thoughts on the current Calligraffiti movement? I feel like that name was coined by SHOE from the Netherlands, but he’s obviously not the first person to approach calligraphy with a graffiti eye (and hand). Did you take any inspiration from him? Whose shoulders are you standing on?

NN: In the earlier days, I definitely took inspiration from a lot of traditional artists. I definitely did my homework. I really wanted to hone in on my own style, non-repeatable. I try not to look at others’ work too much. I like to stay current, but stay in my lane as well. I think that’s what makes it mine, in my opinion.

The current movement is amazing, but dull in Brisbane. That’s always the case. Overseas, it’s booming. More people are seeing the value of it, thankfully.

LS: Coming from a graffiti AND graphic design background, in the early days I have been guilty of calling graffiti the dopest form of typography, but I’ve had purist typographers challenge that idea, saying that (in their view) graffiti isn’t typography, or is a horrible form of typography – largely due to its deconstruction of letters, not sticking to traditional typographic structure.

Calligraphy does traditionally have a structure, and handstyles are more free-flowing – often scrawled in fleeting moments and under pressure. Given that Calligraffiti mixes the two, what’s your perspective on this?

NN: There’s a place for everything. Purist or not, people are going to do it and challenge what’s normal. I love both forms at the end of the day.

LS: Speaking of structure. Tell me about this design you’ve made for us, and a little bit about your process. I’d never seen that circle grid before, but it reminds me of a graphic designer’s grid – the calligrapher’s version.

NN: On the front design, I had a lot of fun paying homage to wildstyle and trying to keep my style intact. The back design was a little struggle as I individually placed each letter like a puzzle piece. I can’t really dissect how I do it, as it just comes together in my mind. It’s definitely a time-consuming process.

LS: What impact has music had on your work? Graffiti has often been placed in the hip hop bucket, but I get the feeling that you’re not strictly a hip hop guy? Especially looking at the more aggressive shapes in this Artillery design. It would be just as at home on a hardcore or metal merch design.

NN: Music definitely has a massive impact on me. I listen to a lot of underground hip hop, mostly. I grew up listening to Jedi Mind Tricks, etc. I do listen to a variety of music, metal, hardcore, and more, but for the most part, I’ve been bumping Griselda and Rome Streetz. One Aussie artist I do bump is Jose Halftime.

LS: Tell me a little bit about your tattoos. I can see you’ve got a lot of your own work tattooed, even on your head. It takes a certain belief in your own work to get it permanently etched on your body. You don’t seem like a bragadocious person, so can you talk me through the belief you have in your work, how important that is for other artists, and your thought process behind the tattoos?

NN: Well, it’s been a 15-year journey so far. Countless hours. The calligraphy across my head is my son’s name. At the moment I’m in the middle of my whole front, which is a collab between my tattoo artist and me. It has a big portion of my calligraffiti in it.

My work serves a purpose to me, and the belief is where I’ve been and where I’m heading. I’m hoping to stop at some point, but that will be when I’m out of room. There’s still a fair bit to go.

Originality of what you believe through your art is a thing. Otherwise, what separates you from all the others doing the same thing?

LS: What about your approach to work? Do you ever put meaning or intention into your work? Or is it just about perfecting the aesthetics?

NN: It depends on how I’m feeling, honestly. I try just to paint what’s going on and let some bullshit out. Other times, I want it to be aesthetically pleasing, or if I’m in a mood, I’ll research something and paint it out.

LS: We’ve had a fair bit of community support for this drop so far. How important is community to you? How do you feel about being an artist in Brisbane?

NN: It’s super important. I wouldn’t have half the opportunity I’ve had if it wasn’t for people believing in me.

I’m super thankful for all the support, and for my family and friends keeping my art alive.

It’s a love-hate for me with art in general. I have a lot of love for where Brisbane has got me now. For the most part, the art is done for myself. That’s where the love starts and where it ends.

LS: I’m not sure if you saw the memo I wrote to coincide with this drop, about Cycles. But I wanted get some of your thoughts about what you think of when you hear the name ‘Cycles’?

NN: What it means to me is don’t forget your motions. Where you have been and where you’re heading.

LS: One element I’ve been reflecting on is ‘breaking inherited cycles’. Since I was a kid, I had the phrase ‘change my stars’ embedded in my head. My parents were cleaners, and then they ran a struggling small business (fruit shop), which eventually failed. So we never really had much beyond love and hard work. I always wanted to break out of that cycle and change my lot in life (or ‘change my stars’). The sentence went away for a while, but it’s come back to mind recently, and I’ve realised I haven’t done a great job of changing my stars. It’s definitely a work in progress.

I’ve been reading a lot about limiting beliefs and self-sabotage, and changing these limiting beliefs to create your desired reality. It sounds woo-woo as fuck, but I’m starting to see how powerful we are, even though I haven’t cracked the code yet. Do you ever think about this stuff? It’s an interesting path we choose as creatives. Definitely a path less travelled, but if you can figure it out, there’s a lot of magic to be made. And it can have a real impact on other people too. Thoughts?

NN: Super interesting for sure. Yeah, I’ve thought a lot about that stuff. I think my journey is – when my home life is happy, I’m happy.

I try not to overthink about all the bad shit I’ve done in the past, but more so, repay it back however I can. Karma is a thing.

LS: Okay, that’s it. What’s next for you? Hope and dreams for 2026?

NN: I think I’ll just try to push myself in my own realm. For me, the art will always be there, whether I like it or not. More collabs, more family time, more blessings. More Artillery.

Our ‘Cycles’ tee by North Nights is available until midnight tonight, and then it’s gone for good. DO. NOT. SLEEP.

Get yours here.