Before he even considered chasing influencer status, he spent nights trying to influence his friends that he was a worthy keystyling opponent – essentially battle-rapping them over instant messenger – and practicing rhymes over pre-made beats from his middle school peers. And I remember being genuinely happy, like, ‘Juvenile is out of jail!’”Īround that same time, the Toronto-born, L.A.-bred Miller stumbled on BET and Comedy Central, as he became familiar with stand-up comedy through the specials he watched on television. I remember watching his first big single back, they shot a music video for it. “I can’t remember how young I was, but I remember when I realized that Juvenile had gone to jail,” Miller reflects to Billboard from his Los Angeles home. What did stick with him in his adolescence was music discovery on Napster and the call-and-request music video channel The Box, where he was first introduced to the lore of Cash Money Records–the New Orleans Universal imprint, home to game-changing rappers Lil Wayne and Juvenile. With his father being a classically trained musician skilled at piano and violin, Miller was encouraged at a young age to try out some instruments of his own – none of which stuck with him. Miller found meaning in hip-hop when he found meaning in comedy, he explains. While Miller still sprinkles punchlines throughout his work, rapping in a non-satirical sense is a concept that fans of the funnyman are still wrapping their heads around But this isn’t a career pivot: Miller has been a rapper, far before his stand-up career beginnings or his first Vine account took off years before. And on “Pacemaker,” he runs through the sacrifices he had to make to get there, like sleeping on floors in 2010, and the responsibilities that come with financial comfort.

On “Rat Race,” Miller flexes his business-savvy nature, tossing in some clever bars (“Treat this rap s–t like twins/ What I mean by that is I just had to”). His following of 2.6 million subscribers are now also subscribing to the maker of “Rat Race” and “Pacemaker,” tracks where he spits over gritty production, detailing his approach to fame and other career moves with a straight face.Īs Miller explains, many of his creative ideas are in “stark contrast” to the comedy he’s best known for. Since March, Miller has uploaded two music videos to his YouTube channel – which is usually composed of reaction videos and other hijinks – under the moniker NOEL. He’s such a natural, it’s hard to imagine that he’s ever considered another career path.Īnd yet, Noel Miller is rapping. From reading off-base fan DMs to reacting to out-of-pocket TikToks to questioning the bullying tactics of Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath with his Tiny Meat Gang co-host and collaborator Cody Ko, Miller is swift when it comes to his comedic timing. J Balvin Reclaims His Crown as the Artist With the Most Videos in YouTube's Billion Views Clubįinding humor in even the most unfortunate life experiences is what Miller’s known for.

Comedy video shorts