We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nolen Abel. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nolen below.

Nolen, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

Around my first year of middle school, I’d want to say. I was a nerdy kid who loved experimenting with different hobbies. I always had to learn something new. So my days were spent programming, finding glitches in games, or reading a science magazine. I always knew I could sing, but I had no desire to cultivate that talent. That is until I saw my uncle perform at a festival. He was playing the drums, and I was enamored by it for some reason. I pleaded with my parents to sign me up for drum lessons, but instead, they put me in piano classes. After my first lesson, music became my new obsession.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Hello everybody, my name is Nolen Abel and I’m an Alt-Pop artist/producer from Memphis, Tennessee. Growing up, music has always been a part of my life. It was like a second family to me. It was my shoulder to cry on during the rough times and my camera to capture the good times. Listening to artists and bands like Bon Iver, Kendrick Lamar, Bob Dylan, and Hikaru Utada taught me that there are intricate ways to write about your experiences so that they can impact another person. So now, I focus on giving back through creation. I make music not only to journal my life but to express thoughts and feelings that millions of people can relate to in their struggles.

We often hear about learning lessons – but just as important is unlearning lessons. Have you ever had to unlearn a lesson?

There’s no such thing as an overnight success. After I released my first song, I thought I would be this huge, widely successful artist by next week. It was then I realized that the people we call an “overnight success” didn’t make it overnight. There were days similar to the ones small artists like me have, where they stared at their ceiling at 3 in the morning wondering how and when will their time to shine be. Macklemore is a great example of this. He used to work at Subway and would write rhymes during his breaks. He didn’t know if any of those rhymes would amount to anything, but he kept pushing and pushing. Most people see Thrift Shop as this weird phenom that happened in a day. To him, it was years in the making.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The fans most definitely. Whether you have one, ten, one hundred, or a million, having fans lets you know that your effort is worth it. People could choose to turn on all these major popular artists at any second, but they choose to listen to your music. There isn’t a better feeling in the world as a musician.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://amarihall2.wixsite.com/nolenabel
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nolenabelofficial/

Image Credits
Milea Verock TheNvkedEye K-Mo