{"id":27908,"date":"2015-11-09T17:37:13","date_gmt":"2015-11-09T17:37:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.jomec.co.uk\/altcardiff\/?p=27908"},"modified":"2015-11-09T17:37:13","modified_gmt":"2015-11-09T17:37:13","slug":"cardiff-character-john-nicholas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/2015\/11\/09\/cardiff-character-john-nicholas\/","title":{"rendered":"Cardiff Character: John Nicholas"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The Autumn wind is picking up and the night has drawn in; heavy clouds hang low, and drops of rain are beginning to fall to the ground. \u201cAt least I remembered to wear my beanie,\u201d says Cardiff based musician <a href=\"http:\/\/Turner\/AltCardiff\/17 Nov 2015 News\/NoLogo \/\/Headline\/\/ Concert to raise money for Welsh refugees \/\/Standfirst\/\/ A benefit concert will be held in aid of the Welsh Refugee Council and Freedom from Torture \/\/Main Body\/\/ A concert will be held in Newport later this month in aid of Welsh refugees and asylum seekers. The fundraising event will be held at Stow Park Church Centre in Newport on 20 November, and aims to raise money for charities Welsh Refugee Council (WRC) and Freedom from Torture. The concert will feature a plethora of musical acts, including Frankie Armstrong and Newport based choir Cascapella. This year will mark the third time the event has taken place since its inception in 2013. According to the WRC, previous years have been successful in raising money for the two charities. \/\/Sidebar\/\/ Words from the performers Frankie Armstrong \u201cI support causes that help those who are desperately in need of a range of help, given how little is being done by central or local Government. I\u2019m a singer as well as a singing teacher, and this is what I can offer to both raise money and to raise spirits. I believe that art is a crucial part of any struggle for greater justice and equality and I have gifted friends who are only too willing to help by joining us in the concert.\u201d Sarah Harman \u201cWe are bringing together over 50 singers from two choirs (Cascapella from Newport, which I run and Cardiff Canton Singers led by Laura Bradshaw) to sing in support of these important causes. Frankie and I will both be performing together with five piece, Variegated Women and my quartet, The Quiet Ranters will round off the bill.\u201d Further Details For more information on the Welsh Refugee Council, visit their website For more information on Freedom from Torture, visit their website Not sure how to get to the concert? Tickets are available for \u00a38 on the door (concessions \u00a36) \/\/Pictures\/\/ \/\/Facebook Post\/\/ A benefit concert will be held in aid of the Welsh Refugee Council and Freedom from Torture. Performers include Frankie Armstrong and Newport based choir Cascapella \/\/Twitter Post\/\/ A benefit concert in aid of refugees is to be held in Newport. Frankie Armstrong is amongst the performers #Benefit Concert #Welsh Refugee Council #Freedom From Torture #Frankie Armstrong \/\/Tags\/\/ #Benefit Concert #Stow Park Church Centre #Welsh Refugee Council #Freedom from Torture #Frankie Armstrong #Sarah Harman #Cascapella #Charity \/\/Research Log\/\/ frankiearmstrong45@gmail.com sarahharmany@btinternet.com Welsh Refugee Council: 02920489800 https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/welshrefcouncil\/?ref=ts&amp;fref=ts\">John Nicholas<\/a>, after chiding himself for shaving earlier that day.<\/p>\n<p>But even though it is cold, John doesn\u2019t seem to be particularly bothered. After all, things have been going pretty well for him lately.<\/p>\n<p>Having built up a reputation as a talented solo artist, the 25-year-old is lucky enough to be able to make a living from what he loves. He has played in venues all around the UK, as well as in such far-flung places as Texas and Argentina.<\/p>\n<p>He refers to what he does as \u201cwork\u201d, though it\u2019s hard to think that he isn\u2019t the envy of many nine-to-fivers.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_28075\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"width: 480px\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2015\/11\/IMG_20151102_172019920-e1447062283774.jpg\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-28075 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2015\/11\/IMG_20151102_172019920-480x270.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_20151102_172019920\" width=\"480\" height=\"270\" \/><p class=\"wp-caption-text\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-28075 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/cardiffjournalism.co.uk\/altcardiff\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/13\/2015\/11\/IMG_20151102_172019920-480x270.jpg\" alt=\"IMG_20151102_172019920\" width=\"480\" height=\"270\" \/><\/noscript><\/a> Solo performer John Nicholas often uses a loop pedal when playing the guitar<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>In the beginning<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>For John, his interest in music started early. \u201cI\u2019ve been performing my whole life, really,\u201d he says as he takes a sip from a large caramel latte. \u201cFrom around the age of six I would always sing around the house.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><strong><em>\u201cFrom around the age of six I would always sing around the house.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: left\">However, he says that it wasn&#8217;t until his late teens when he started to take his interest in music a bit more seriously.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI used to be in a band called Written In Kings, which was kind of how I got started. We played the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.millenniumstadium.com\/\">Millennium Stadium<\/a> at one point. I think there were around 3,000 people there &#8211; which was and still is quite a lot,\u201d he muses.<\/p>\n<p>However, wanting to focus more on his solo career,\u00a0John decided to go it alone. He recalls how those early days were largely spent busking on the streets of Cardiff.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I personally don\u2019t do it as much as I used to. But I still enjoy it, and if I have some spare time I\u2019ll head out on to the street with my guitar and play a couple of songs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>https:\/\/youtu.be\/zrNNTrVLqxg<\/p>\n<p><strong>The state of the music scene<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>John has been able to thrive in what some see as a turbulent time for the music industry. All across the country venues are closing, which has had a knock-on effect on the artists who depend on them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think the music scene in general can be a bit up and down. It depends on where you go, and from what I\u2019ve seen it\u2019s okay. But I know it can be a bit unstable,\u201d he adds.<\/p>\n<p>When asked about the state of the music scene in Cardiff, he is quite upbeat. \u201cI think it\u2019s really quite healthy. Two new venues have opened up recently, for example, and I think that\u2019s definitely a good sign.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Of course, there is the question of what he would be doing if he wasn\u2019t a musician. \u201cI used to be a teacher, so that\u2019s probably what I\u2019d be doing if I wasn\u2019t performing,&#8221; he says hesitantly. &#8220;But I love what I do, and if possible I\u2019ll carry on with it for the rest of my life.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Solo performer talks about what it means to be a modern day musician<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":342,"featured_media":28248,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,10],"tags":[960,61,4808,4809,4284],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-27908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-culture","category-uncategorized","tag-acoustic","tag-busker","tag-cardiff-singer","tag-john-nicholas","tag-musician"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Cardiff Character: John Nicholas - alt.cardiff<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"John Nicholas; 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