Takin' My Time

In a modern world that moves at breakneck speeds, "Takin' My Time" is a reminder of the power of pausing, listening, and tuning into life's precious gifts in each moment. Created by be-the-change rapper Nimo Patel, musician Daniel Nahmod, and filmmaker Ellie Walton, the timeless insights and sweeping visuals guide us to remember that the silence between words gives a conversation dimension, the space between notes gives music its rhythm, and taking time out gives space for regeneration.

Below are the lyrics:

TAKIN' MY TIME

Yeah, Takin my time is not a luxury 
You gotta see, I’m tryna breathe
I’m tryna stay on top of this economy
I’m tryna please everyone that’s on to me
Tryna be a human being and live honestly

But honestly, unless I run fast like sonic speed
They say I got no chance to catch my fondest dreams
So its on to me to make happen what I want to be
Instead of livin life how they wanna see
Avoid livin’ life like a wanna be,
Though I wanna be, peaceful (peaceful)
And I oughtta be livin with my cup half full (half full)
But I bought a dream sayin if you wanna reach these goals
You gotta be on the run from here to Heathrow, like -

Oooh-ooooh

Takin my time when everything is blurry 
Wondering why we’re always in a hurry
Made up my mind ain’t gonna bring the worry
Don’t want my life just passing me by,
I’m takin’ my time!

Woo ohhh

Yeah, I wanna take more time not always on the run 
I wanna make more time and try to have some fun
Cuz if the world end now and my time was done
What do I have to show, nothing but my wheels spun

So I’m takin my time man, 
Makin it right man
Livin this life man
Feelin it nice man

Not tryna get stressed out on every single thing 
Gonna be more chill, just call me ‘ice man’

Yo! lets get to work 
No more goin bezerk
No more checkin’ my socials
No more digging for dirt
No more tellin my self lies
Livin on the surface
No more livin life like
I’m in the middle of a circus

Takin my time when everything is blurry 
Wondering why we’re always in a hurry
Made up my mind ain’t gonna bring the worry
Don’t want my life just passing me by,
I’m takin’ my time!

Takin my time when everything is blurry 
Wondering why we’re always in a hurry
Made up my mind ain’t gonna bring the worry
Don’t want my life just passing me by,
I’m takin’ my time!

I’m takin my time for all the times I’ve been on the run
Movin’ aside making some  time just to have some fun
Made up my mind, not tryna  sigh when my life is done

So I’m takin my time man, 
I’m makin it right man
Don’t need to choose it all,
Not tryna lose it all
Don’t need to do it all

-----

Hip hop artist and humanitarian Nimo Patel is no stranger to takin' his time. At the pinnacle of a dizzying career -- spanning Wall Street, founding an animation studio, and MTV rap stardom, he was haunted by an unshakeable sense of emptiness. In his mid-twenties, he abandoned the limelight and found himself meditating in the foothills of the Himalayas. There, an inner voice nudged him to radically simplify his life and find his purpose in service to others. He moved to the Gandhi Ashram in India and dedicated himself to the children in the surrounding slums.

Fast-forward to April 2012: Nimo and a dance troupe of sixteen of "his kids" toured the world with "Ekatva" – a performance whose ultimate message was Oneness. A year later, in the summer of 2013, seven years into his musical hiatus, something inside nudged Nimo to begin writing music again, but this time in a different spirit. This time, the music would reflect the heart of humanity. 

A few months after he began writing, inspired by a global 21-day kindness challenge, Nimo wrote and produced Being Kind. In one week, together with a labor-of-love crew of volunteers, he co-created a zero-budget music video as an offering of gratitude for the 5,900 participants across 98 countries who simultaneously committed to doing a unique act of kindness every day for 21 days in the spirit of “being the change” they wish to see in the world. A month and a half later, he did it again with Grateful, a musical offering inspired by the 11,500 participants and their small acts throughout a global 21-day gratitude challenge.

In the tailwinds of these heart-opening productions, Nimo embarked on a pilgrimage to bridge music, love and selfless service, through Empty Hands, an album he gifted freely to the world and that grew into a nonprofit that sparks the transformative power of music and the arts with thousands of children in the slums of India, the Gandhi Sabarmati Ashram, and communities around the world. 

A man with a dedicated work ethic, playful spirit, and huge heart of presence and care, Nimo's lived practice of "takin' my time" touches the lives of each being he encounters and has organically emerged into countless collaborations -- from stewarding underprivileged children across the world in a stunning performance about the spirit of oneness in 2012 and in 2019; showing up with an unconditional spirit to support someone's journey; igniting values-based events in communities around the world; inspiring creative artistic collaborations and heart-opening songs, sweeping up the room when no one is looking; teaching an undergraduate course this Fall 2025 at his alma mater, University of Pennsylvania; and so much more.

Through it all, Nimo keeps his focus on the infinite things that give life purpose. As his Graduation song describes, "Be wary of the impact that you wanna make, instead make sure you are impacted each day; have your eye on the sky, but still see the ants, for the small things are the foundation of all that will last."