Conversations with Nikole

Today we’d like to introduce you to Nikole.

Hi Nikole, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
HI! My name is Nicole Ortega, but I go by my artist name, “NIKOLE.” I grew up in Miami, Florida specifically the South Miami area, and I’m a singer and songwriter. Growing up in Miami was a ride; it’s so cultural and such a beautiful city. I wouldn’t have had it any other way. You have good weather, good food, the beach, the culture, and did I already say good food…the list can go on. I like to say I grew up pretty involved in my community and culture. My mom is Venezuelan, and my dad is Lebanese, so I really got to experience two beautiful opposing backgrounds. I grew up speaking Spanish with my mom and eating her amazing food, and then I also got to experience my dad’s side pretty close. My whole life my dad has ran his restaurant business, he owns multiple Lebanese restaurants around Miami which means yes, I ate really good growing up. One of his restaurants was across the street from a Ballet Conservatory, and I think that’s when I started dabbling in the arts working with movement and learning to know my body. I did ballet for about nine years… it was something I enjoyed (kinda haha), but I knew it wasn’t really the route for me. When I got to elementary school, that’s when the real story began.

I began singing when I was seven years old, specifically in the second grade. It all started in my music class, we were singing the little mermaid and after class ended. My teacher pulled me aside and said “You have a voice, you should definitely look into taking vocal lessons or something” and ever since then its been a beautiful journey to say the least. I joined the choir later on in elementary and even sang the national anthem at my 5th-grade graduation. I took a bit of classical piano lessons from the age of 5-8, and I was actually really good and did competitions and won first place but you know, when you’re a kid and your parents are forcing you to go to lessons, you kinda lose the interest of it and I did which in hindsight I wish I hadn’t. Music has always been a part of my life and I feel like I created that for myself, i came from a nonmusical background you know? No one in my family does music; sure, they enjoy listening (who doesn’t), but I think I’m the only one in my whole family who really takes it seriously. As I got older, I realized that. This can be an actual career and something I’d really like to do.

Funny enough, I believe the same year I found out I could sing, I did in fact get lessons, and my teacher suggested I audition for this broadcasted Spanish talent show that aired on Univision called “Sabado Gigante” so I did and I got on and I competed against three other kids, I think that was a huge turning/stepping stone for me… I got to really perform and I LOVED IT, it was so so cool. At the time I was also taking some hip pop dance classes and I was able to use those skills in my performance, I felt like a mini superstar. I really believe that performance is what did it for me, I realized I love the camera and most importantly performing. Music is so freeing and expressive and especially when you include dancing with it.. it changes the whole thing. One of the most influential artists growing up for me was Lady Gaga, she did it all. she didn’t care what people think, she was authentic to her herself and the most expressive artist we had at that point in time in my own opinion. She gave me a whole new perspective and really inspired me to take risks and ultimately follow my dreams of being a performer.

Now fast forward we’re getting older and still taking vocal lessons, I had auditioned for “La Voz kids” which was basically the Spanish version of “the voice” but for kids. I didn’t get far, I actually didn’t even make it on, lol. I remember feeling a bit discouraged and not knowing if this was the career path for me so I started to think of other paths and one being a Plastic Surgeon. I had the idea in my head of this is what I wanna do and study, I even interned at an office when I was 15 and I truly enjoyed it and sorta convinced myself I’d become a doctor and just sing on the side. Now, we’re freshmen in high school, and my friend had mentioned Berklee College of Music and how her sister had auditioned for this music school, and it’s one of the best in the world and etc.. it intrigued me. This same year is when I began songwriting. I had a huge, honestly embarrassingly massive crush on this guy that truly wanted nothing to do with me LOL Classic, at the time, I was obsessed. I believe if that crush hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have started writing music. I had a piano in my house from when I was taking lessons and all those years after I quit, it was just collecting dust and I was finally able put it to good use.

From that point on I considered myself a songwriter, I would shamelessly write songs about him and post it on soundcloud and honestly everyone at school knew, even him BUT HEY, I never cared. That’s a quality I love about myself, the act of not caring what people think, and I think you need that to be a songwriter. It might seem cringe to even us songwriters sometimes and its hard to be vulnerable but someone will connect and someone out there is feeling the same way as you, you never know how your music can positively affect someone. Songwriting back then to me was therapy, a way to tell people how I was feeling without having to deal with the confrontation and it still is. If you wanna know how I’m feeling, just listen to my songs, and you’ll know exactly what’s going on. It’s made me a very real person, very blunt and honest; I don’t lie in my songs, and maybe I’ll over-exaggerate for the purpose of the song. cmon… I’m sorry, I’m a songwriter I’m GOING to take things personally and write a song about it, LOL, but not once will I tell a lie. Its made me vulnerable and I love it, vulnerability is the most beautiful thing a person can have, its what makes us human, our experiences…our emotions, its what makes you, you.

Now back to the story. My junior year I ended up doing a summer camp at Berklee, it was the one week vocal summit program and when I say I fell in love,… I fell head over heels. It opened my eyes to the possibility of taking this seriously and how I can actually make this a career. Junior year I joined the drama club, I’ve never been into musical theatre but it felt like the best elective to take cause It had singing and dancing and it was great, so much fun and met so many amazing people through it. Senior year I auditioned for Berklee, and I got in, scholarship and everything, if im being honest it was the only school I applied to and not cause I knew id get in, I was just a very lazy kid ( Im working on my procrastination skills). That moment solidified it for me, I knew it was the universe confirming this is what I am meant to do. Throughout those four years, I learned so much and met so many lifelong friends that I would work with later on. Berklee was a huge pivotal point in my life I mean I loved it, I truly did. I don’t think many people get to say they enjoyed what they studied, let alone know what they want to do, and I feel grateful and privileged that I did. I went on to study Professional Music, which basically means you build your own major, and I did Music Business, Songwriting, and Production. I think my first three years were me getting comfortable with my craft, I didn’t record much or even play any shows until my senior year when I got a fire light under my ass, and I played 16 shows of my own music, traveling back and forth from Boston to New York, senior year was my favorite.

I released my first single, “Fade Away,” with the help of my amazing producer and friend Kyle Walsh, also known as “ColdSpringMotel.” Kyle, I don’t think he knows but he really help create my sound with me, he’s the first person to really believe in my art and make time for me for our sessions and ideas, he never rushes me or rushes a project or puts pressure on it. I can tell he just enjoys creating art, I truly am extremely grateful for him. “Fade Away” was the first song I ever put out that felt real and true to who I wanted to be and perceived as an artist. After that song we went on to work on more music that now will be on my upcoming EP. I’ve released two more songs with Kyles’s help, “90 Days” and my personal favorite, “Love after Death”. It’s quite beautiful how music creates itself, and songs come to fruition when they’re ready. I saw someones comment on a TikTok and it resonated, I believe it was actually Noah Kahan: ” Music is more than a career or an album roll out or a session in Los Angeles. It’s as present as the air or trees and it’ll never leave you” and I absolutely loved that. I think being at Berklee, being surrounded by extremely talented musicians, the best of the best if I may say… kinda hazes you a little. You’re constantly overwhelmed by posts on Instagram and people releasing music left and right, and you might feel like you’re behind, but that’s just not true. I frankly didn’t learn this till my senior year; whatever you’re doing at Berklee, sure yeah, it matters for the time being, and being a micro-influencer at school and all that other stuff, I don’t know; it doesn’t really matter in the real world. I remember beating myself up about not getting specific shows at school and feeling like I wasn’t good enough and I realized that everyone is on their own journey and you need to ride that wave and focus on yourself and not have envy or jealousy and rather see all of it as inspiration and support your peers and friends. All the 16 shows I did, I got myself, no one helped me… I worked hard to put myself out there and break out of that haze bubble that can come with going to an art school. You need to be able to see past all of it and really hone in on your art. I do believe if you find that hack, then you’re set.

I currently live in Los Angeles, I moved right after graduation. I think College prepared me for the move and not in the way you think but in the mindset of it. I think there’s a huge stigma behind LA and it being superficial and whatnot, but I think it’s what you make it out to be and who you surround yourself with. We’re not all perfect and we might never really even truly know what we’re doing and we are constantly figuring it out, it the beauty of life. What I’m trying to say is I think I fought most of my comparison demons at school, and LA is just the real-life version of what college was. LA is filled with tons and tons of aspiring musicians and people following their dreams in every aspect, but what you need to remember is people’s journeys aren’t yours, that’s their path and what’s for them, and just because they’re doing whatever it is before you, does NOT mean your time won’t come. I feel so grateful to be in this beautiful city, and I’m constantly so inspired by the people around me, I love seeing my friends succeed and do what they love and deserve it. I think the second you stop following your dreams, that is when you start to lose. I’m now living my 15-year-old dream, making some of the best music I’ve made in my career, and I’m just going to keep getting better cause I’m never going to stop. I want people to feel inspired when they listen to my art and feel like they can chase their dreams and take that risk, we’re only getting older and life is meant to be riskful and make mistakes and be in the wrong and learn from it all. I can’t wait for my 5 track EP to come out, Kyle and I worked so hard on it and spent sleepless nights and im so grateful for everyone invlolved, my team, friends and family. Thank you, JJ Catalyst, for mixing four songs; he’s a legend; thank you, Ruairi O’ Flaherty, for mastering all five songs, and thank you, Jeremey Daniels, for mixing one of the songs and being an executive producer and immense helping hand. Thank you to all friends and family who continue to ride this journey with me and believe in me, im so forever grateful.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
As I’ve mentioned a little before, as much as college was inspiring, it was very ego-bending. I struggled with comparison, being in an environment where everyone is just as good, it can be challenging for a young mind. Having had no upbringing with other musicians was difficult, when I had reached college everyone seemed to have such knowledge and I did too but I was too naive to understand that. I grew up listening to the radio with my mom every time we could drive to school, but she would also play oldies like Frank Sinatra, The Supremes, Micheal Jackson, Diana Ross and etc.. but I never had a parent that would play music with me, and I think I really let that get to me, I let it diminish my knowledge in music and I put myself in a box. I would say comparison was just a big one, I didn’t know myself as an artist truly until I was In my senior year. I’ve never really shared this with many people because it’s past me now, and the outcome of it is what truly matters, but a massive turning point that honestly ultimately was for the best was my American idol audition in October of 2021. I had the opportunity to get flown out to LA by American Idol and audition in front of the live judges which was a great experience I met so many amazing people and created life long friendships.

I sadly didn’t make it to Hollywood, and I let it affect me DEEPLY. I didn’t listen to music for a whole month, I didn’t write, I didn’t sing, I honestly removed music from my life for that time being, I became depressed for that portion. I don’t know why I let their opinions affect me so much at the time, I think because I grew up watching it and I had always dreamt it, I just think that fantasy got ruined. In hindsight, once I basically regained consciousness a month later, I realized that their opinions did not matter, and I thought of how many talented people get rejected every season, and it’s just a silly show; I honestly thought of Tori Kelly, ofc I am no Tori Kelly, but that’s just a prime example of they don’t know what they just missed. The timing of it just wasn’t meant for me, and I know that now. I look back and I truly had no experience of performing live like that, I didnt have the confidence I had now, and NOW I have that confidence because of that experience, it quite funny. That audition was a MASSIVE turning point in my performance career, and that is what ignited the fire under my ass and how I pushed myself my senior year to perform. I played 16 shows, got offered a job to sing at 5-star restaurants (which is still my job to this day), released my first single, and really gave me the push I have now. I wouldn’t change the trajectory of things whatsoever.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Music is a universal language; I do it because art is the most beautiful way to be vulnerable. I think as humans, we have so many emotions we deal with daily, and music is a form of therapy. Over the past two years, I’ve released three singles and two songs that I’m featured in. The first single came out in 2022, called “Fade Away,” in which I worked with my amazing friend and producer Kyle Walsh, also known as “ColdSpringMotel”. We have continued to work together, and that is who I’ve worked with on the other songs and also who I did my upcoming EP with. The second single came out in 2023, which is part of the EP, and this one is called “90 days.” the most recent song, which is the one I’m the proudest of because I also co-produced it, is called “Love After Death”. All these songs feel like a starting point in my career that I’ve always wanted; I’m so proud of these babies; they’re my children, haha. These tunes took so long to create, and it’s such a process of patience and trusting the process. Just cause you start a song today doesn’t mean you need to finish it today; art takes time, and you need to have grace with it. I wrote “Love After Death” in 2020…. and it took three years to produce because sometimes you need to take a step back and sit with it and let the ideas come to you.

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Along with music, I also love to do some NPO (Non Profit) work. I’ve always believed spreading love is the way to heal the world and so when I moved to LA and saw how bad the homeless epidemic is, I wanted to help. I feel very privileged to live in this city and to be able to have a roof over my head and food on my table; not many people get to have this. I work with two NPOs, one being “Miracle Messages”. It’s a social support program, and we go to these shelters and try to connect people with past loved ones or give them the opportunity to build a connection through a buddy program. I am now in this coming new year, trying to set up a way to implement music and bring music to these shelters and for them to have that sense of community and remind them of their passions. The other NPO being “Starts with One Today” where we go to Skid Row on Sundays and give out food/amenities, clothes, and anything any homeless people need.

If you are reading this right now whether it be on your phone or computer, you’re privileged to be existing in this moment and be able to do that. So many humans out there struggle so much and as someone who is aware of what I have, the only right thing is to give back, im not millionaire and you don’t need to be one to be able to help. These people have stories, and they’re just like us and these humans have dreams and desires that they may never be able to follow or even tell. I think it’s important to take time out of your day and express that and be there for those people. I take so much joy in sitting down and listening to these stories, it’s quite inspiring and heartbreaking, but it’s a great reminder to be grateful for what you have and know that action can be taken.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/nikoleorte
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nikoleorte/
• SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/nikoleorte
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@nikoleorte

Image Credits
Adriana gavilanes Theo Goude Sarah Dalia