Nick Hart, the winner of Travers Rising Stars 2021, tells the story of how he entered Travers Rising Stars 2021, and his approach to the performance which resulted in his victory. Nick provides a very personal insight to his experience and talks about what he's done since he was announced as the winner. Nick also takes time to give some very valuable guidance to this year's competitors.
APPLYING
I first heard about Travers Rising Stars when an advert from a local publication was thrust in front of me.
After a few days contemplating entering, I realised the closing deadline was at the end of the week. Unsure what the judges would be looking for, I decided to keep the setup as simple as possible and just aimed to deliver a good sound of a couple songs that I felt passionate about.
I put something together that I felt represented me as an artist. Personally, I believe raw musicality is always most important.
After a few days contemplating entering, I realised the closing deadline was at the end of the week. Unsure what the judges would be looking for, I decided to keep the setup as simple as possible and just aimed to deliver a good sound of a couple songs that I felt passionate about.
I put something together that I felt represented me as an artist. Personally, I believe raw musicality is always most important.
THE FINAL
I have a lot of experience performing live concerts, private functions and theatre productions. So I approached it like any other live performance; practice and preparation.
I focused my set on the tracks of mine which spoke the most to me.
I thought it would be a fun little exercise to write a track for the final, to see what it would bring out. The track which resulted, 'High Road', turned out to be one I'm proud of, one which speaks to me on a very personal level.
Typically, the day of the final brought clouds and rain. However, for me, it felt very calm, and nothing too stressful. Preparation is a bit of a ritual for me, so for the 45 minutes to an hour before I went on I must have looked a little strange; a random person strolling up and down a dusty car park, making all kinds of weird noises behind a stage, but that's the job.
At the end of my set, I felt shocking. There were far too many little mistakes and errors for my liking, perhaps due to my finger being sliced open and bleeding profusely everywhere. That's one way to play join the dots! However, the reception from the crowd was great and the feedback from individuals I know and trust was all positive.
I focused my set on the tracks of mine which spoke the most to me.
I thought it would be a fun little exercise to write a track for the final, to see what it would bring out. The track which resulted, 'High Road', turned out to be one I'm proud of, one which speaks to me on a very personal level.
Typically, the day of the final brought clouds and rain. However, for me, it felt very calm, and nothing too stressful. Preparation is a bit of a ritual for me, so for the 45 minutes to an hour before I went on I must have looked a little strange; a random person strolling up and down a dusty car park, making all kinds of weird noises behind a stage, but that's the job.
At the end of my set, I felt shocking. There were far too many little mistakes and errors for my liking, perhaps due to my finger being sliced open and bleeding profusely everywhere. That's one way to play join the dots! However, the reception from the crowd was great and the feedback from individuals I know and trust was all positive.
AND THE WINNER IS...
I didn't register at all when my name was announced as the winner, I just wasn't expecting it! I didn't even register that they said my name. It took a nudge from the person next to me to realise that something had happened. I'd not even thought about winning. So when I realised, it was all a bit odd, but in a really good way.
THE WINNER'S PERFORMANCE
I was still in disbelief, so I just warmed up and got on with it. To my delight, the set was much smoother and more vibrant.
The highlight of my sets was a track extremely close to my heart. "How can I tell you I love you?" is the track I've written which means the most to me out of any. One night it just came to me, and 10 minutes later it was done. It was such a vividly beautiful and distressing point in my life. It's so personal, I have to be extremely careful. If I'm not in the right frame of mind, I simply can't finish the song. It catapults me right back to that moment in time and overloads me. In that winner set, I was in a great frame of mind and yet I still had a tear rolling down my face.
The highlight of my sets was a track extremely close to my heart. "How can I tell you I love you?" is the track I've written which means the most to me out of any. One night it just came to me, and 10 minutes later it was done. It was such a vividly beautiful and distressing point in my life. It's so personal, I have to be extremely careful. If I'm not in the right frame of mind, I simply can't finish the song. It catapults me right back to that moment in time and overloads me. In that winner set, I was in a great frame of mind and yet I still had a tear rolling down my face.
Nick Hart - High Road, Ordinary Hero |
Nick Hart - How can I Tell You I love You |
MY VISIT TO UNDER THE APPLE TREE
The day was so relaxed and the recording itself was straightforward. Get to the studio, set up, do your thing, chat, have tea, and solve any issues. Very professional, which is what I expected.
The experience was great. Bob Harris and Miles Harris are such lovely people and so friendly, kind, warm and welcoming. It's always great to hear the thoughts and feedback from individuals who have such a rich and long-standing history in the music industry. As it happens, they were extremely complementary of the tracks and performance, which is a fantastic feather in the cap to have!
The experience was great. Bob Harris and Miles Harris are such lovely people and so friendly, kind, warm and welcoming. It's always great to hear the thoughts and feedback from individuals who have such a rich and long-standing history in the music industry. As it happens, they were extremely complementary of the tracks and performance, which is a fantastic feather in the cap to have!
NICK'S ADVICE TO ENTRANTS OF TRS 2022
Enjoy it; it's as simple as that. Don't overthink it. Enjoy it.
Do material that you believe in. Do it for yourself because when you try to please someone else, it never works out as well as doing something you are passionate about. It doesn't matter what the outcome will be because you'll get great value out of the experience and a far better performance.
Do material that you believe in. Do it for yourself because when you try to please someone else, it never works out as well as doing something you are passionate about. It doesn't matter what the outcome will be because you'll get great value out of the experience and a far better performance.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR NICK HART
Winning Travers Rising Stars, I can say for the first time, I feel confident in saying that things are looking promising. I've got two phenomenal, world class mentors who are very graciously taking the time to guide me and constantly push me to become the very best artist I can be. I am proud to say they have changed every single aspect of the way I work, beyond recognition and I can't wait to see where things go! I must extend my utmost sincere thanks to these two individuals.
So I'm feeling strong. I'm in a great place to move things forward and the rest of the year has already been allocated for a couple of exciting and complex projects. With my debut EP coming out shortly as well, it's going to be an extremely busy year.
So I'm feeling strong. I'm in a great place to move things forward and the rest of the year has already been allocated for a couple of exciting and complex projects. With my debut EP coming out shortly as well, it's going to be an extremely busy year.