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Having grown up in the working class, Nicholas uses songwriting as both catharsis and self-discovery. He believes "that there is an ideal, honest way to live and through the writing process, I'll be able to find it".
With the release of his new EP "The Greatest Enemy”, Nicholas looks set to get back on the road and reconnect with audiences. To him, rediscovering that connection between audience and performer is "the best feeling on earth and I want to keep chasing it".
After several years of living in Germany, I finally had the chance to fly back to Singapore. While my main priority was to spend time with family and friends, I knew that despite my hang-ups, I wanted to do something with my music during my time back home. Most people would’ve used such an opportunity to put together a regular show, but I decided to do something fairly different.
Read More‘How are you?’ has been a question that I’ve found difficult to answer, even when it comes to replying friends and family from back home. Here’s my unedited answer to that.
Read MoreIf you’ve been following this blog, you might remember that I started offering subscriptions on Bandcamp sometime in 2017. Here’s a little update on how that has been going for me.
Read MoreEver since being introduced to “For Emma, Forever Ago” and falling immediately in love with it, I’ve eaten up every record Justin Vernon has put out since. Just once, the Facebook algorithm actually recommended me something I’d be interested in: a podcast episode featuring Justin Vernon on how to build a sustainable career in music! Here are some of my thoughts on what he said.
Read More‘How are you doing?’
That is a question I’ve found very difficult to answer. Ever since the pandemic reached Germany, I’ve found myself constantly moving back and forth between extreme states of numbness and anxiety.
Read MoreIt’s the bane of musicians but I believe that the paperwork is just as important as the songs themselves. When you skip out on administration, you’re setting yourself up for a lot of trouble in the future. Here are 3 things that you should start with.
Read MoreIn between days of bringing more things to our new apartment in Paderborn , I decided to finally start writing tabs for my songs. Here are a few reasons why I think writing your own sheet music is a good idea.
Read MoreMaking that first record isn’t easy. It’s a a steep learning curve that one has to go through to not only achieve their creative vision, but also to become a jack of all trades, which is becoming more essential in the world of the independent singer-songwriter / musician.
Read MoreSo if you didn’t know, my summer - and life in general here - didn’t turn out the way I wanted it to. As if the logistics of moving to another city wasn’t stressful enough, I also had to process my emotions surrounding the big move.
Read MoreEarlier this year, it dawned on me that Forgiefan would be 10 years old in 2021. Naturally, the thought of doing something to commemorate the 10th anniversary of its release has often crossed my mind in these past few months.
Read MoreAs I was dealing with my emotions concerning admission to university, my digital distributor informed me that they were letting me go. Somehow, in the crazy world that is my mind, it felt like the last string that tied me to music in Singapore had finally given way and I was all on my own.
Read MoreHey everyone, it’s been a while! A lot has happened since my last post. So to begin unpacking emotionally, here’s an update regarding my studies here in Germany.
Read MoreIt’s a weird time to be alive, let alone make music. No one could've imagined it: a world without live shows. Yet this is our reality now. If there is anything to be realised from this pandemic, it is that we musicians urgently need to utilise our creativity and come up with ways to survive without live shows, so that the music can carry on.
Read MoreI’ve been having more than enough time to reflect on this first year living overseas. Moments of nostalgia have swept over me, as I looked back at my journey, emotional and otherwise, that has gone by in the blink of an eye.
Read MoreWhen I first saw the trailer for the movie “Yesterday”, I immediately knew it was going to hit home for me. I was reminded about some important points about music, finding an audience and learning from rejection, which I’d like to share here.
Read MoreThe nearing end of 2019, as well as another decade, has been bringing about much retrospection. For me, it has especially been about one aspect of life, namely failure.
Read MoreSo I’ve been living in Göttingen for a little more than six months now. Though I’ve mostly adjusted to the life here, it was not (and still isn’t) easy to transition into a different lifestyle from the one I knew. Besides the initial language barrier and chilly mornings, here are some other things you’d have to get used to when living here.
Read MoreWhen people think of Germany, what often comes to mind is beer, sausages and football. But there’s so much more to the country than that. With cover bands being the minority here unlike Singapore, the numerous music venues littered across Germany together form not only a fulfilling circuit for overseas acts to tour, but also opportunities for a whole slew of local indie acts to organically grow their fan bases.
Though I’m sure that I’ve only just begun to scratch the surface, here are some of the amazing German acts I’ve discovered through my travels and Spotify:
Read MoreBy the time this post goes live, I would’ve taught what would possibly be my last guitar lesson for a long while. In the blink of an eye, 10 years of teaching guitar has flown by. As I sadly said goodbye to each student these past few weeks, a truth from reflecting on this season in my life became clearer to me.
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