We met digitally on a sunny day in Upstate New York and Vancouver, Canada. Despite it being early in the morning on the West Coast, Alex Gumuchian—better known to his millions of followers and listeners as bbno$—is a ray of industrial-strength sunshine: decked out in a dark hoodie, iconic side-swept hair with a streak of grey, his iconic round glasses, and a cheek-scrunching smile.
Despite his stardom, he was extremely friendly, like a neighbor or co-worker. Before we dived in, Alex asked about my personal life. It wasn't the surprise that took me; blushingly, I told him my background briefly. At that moment, I realized his sincerity, along with a dash of meme culture, a sprinkle of rave glitter, and a heaping spoonful of kindness, may be the secret to his sauce.
"I'm 29 years old, going on 30. I have my birthday on June 30th, so I have the golden birthday this year," he begins, clearly pleased with the cosmic alignment of champagne and candles. Vancouver-born and bred, Alex was homeschooled until eighth grade. He later swam competitively until an accident resulted in him breaking his back. While healing, Alex found writing poetry and music to be a way of healing. "Music is my passion…I just loved making art, even if it's goofy or funny." Pain also introduced him to kinesiology classes, but the lecture hall bored him. Beats, he realized, were better textbooks.
And testing them on SoundCloud was a lot cheaper than grad school.
With his early work in 2014, bbno$ hit fame with his collaboration with Yung Gravy in 2017. But his single "Lalala," released in 2019, shot him to global stardom. Crafted with producer Y2K, the single hijacked every dorm room, Instagram, and TikTok swipe.
Bbno$ on making music built for serotonin highs. Diego Dutra (provided)
During one of many interviews that year, Alex referred to his music as "oxymoronical rap." Several years later, it has continued to haunt him in every interview like a clingy ex—this one included. "See, the unfortunate reality is I said this…and at this point I don't know if it really stands up," he laughs. "I was making 'mumble rap' but saying very, like, simplistic soft things… It's very fun, positive."
These days, Alex's music leans electronic, built for serotonin highs: "I want my live show to be like a rave," he says with excitement. And the new sonic manifesto is pure dopamine, with bass lines engineered to shake loose any lingering doubt.
Heartbreak in 2024 shoved Alex into an emotional alleyway with no exit. Desperate, he tried what he once resisted: medication, going on antidepressants. "Wow, I didn't know this is how most people feel all the time," he marvels, eyes widening at the memory. Two months on a low dose felt "literally on MDMA every day… I'm having the greatest day ever, and nothing can bring me down."
That euphoria birthed the single "Antidepressants," released earlier this year. An earworm that turns Big Pharms' stigma into communal karaoke, along with a raving video showing him working out shirtless, making out with folks, and gyrating across town. Since the release, fans now hand him prescription bottles to autograph, proving mental-health transparency can, indeed, chart.
Scroll through his social media, and you'll find the occasional Alex pic or video cosplaying as Hatsune Miku, Sonic the Hedgehog, or The Grinch moment. "People come to my shows cosplayed as me now—Hatsune Miku with a beard," he chuckles, half proud parent, half bemused observer. Cosplay is equal parts fan dialogue and guerrilla marketing: "Nowadays it's like marketing music is how you really get [it] out there…and it just gives me a tool I can have so much fun doing."
In March, bbno$ won at the 2025 Juno Awards (occasionally known as the "Canadian Grammys") and performed at the award ceremonies, flipping the telecast into a queer fantastia. His performance of "It Boy" featured drag artists, including Canada's Drag Race winner Priyanka (CBC, the award broadcaster, prudishly trimmed a moment when the drag winner faux-pegged him mid-set.) A battalion of drag devoured the stage's catwalk. "Nobody fills stages better than a queen–or a king," he insists, later chuckling at the moment his dad whispers about Priyanka: Yo, she's really hot.
But this was more than spectacle; it was allyship in action. "I am so unbelievably privileged," Alex says, explaining that his work allows him to pay it forward. He's aware that his cisgender whiteness opens doors that many queer performers still have a hard time prying. Alex doesn't care if critics grouse about his willingness to be open and explore, whether through cosplaying or—even to my surprise—wanting to learn how to tuck.
"There's so much negativity in the world," he reflects, "Why is it there? There's so much hate. There's so much war. The only thing I need to do is just be positive. And if people don't like my positivity and people have an argument against my political views and how I portray myself online, they can get fucked."
He's living his best life, folks, naysayers be damned.
When we spoke, Alex enjoyed a brief respite before heading out on his European tour. "Blessed, but I'd love two more days off with my family," he sighs, the only hint of fatigue in an otherwise kinetic monologue. Housebound moments are rare; flights outnumber buses, and his three-year-old nephew grows between layovers. Still, Alex's calendar bulges: a content blitz over several weeks, a Vancouver charity festival, and sketches for the wildest drag music video he's worked on.
Bbno$ is betting that more hit songs and cosplays can rewrite the music-marketing playbook. If the plans work, dancefloors will shake a little harder; if it doesn't, at least the wigs will still be fabulous. Either way, Alex's Fun Train has left the station: tickets stamped, with a destination to radical joy. In an era of doom scrolls and hot takes, perhaps the boldest rebellion is a Canadian artist who cosplays, raps about antidepressants, and is an active ally who floods stages and screens with drag queens and kings.
Because joy, when amplified loud enough, can drown out all the hate.
