If you’ve ever ordered a coffee at SipHouse in Freeport, chances are you’ve run into Spotify artist Samuel Nonni.

The 21-year-old musician works as a barista at the coffee shop and is set to drop his second Spotify album, “precaution junkie,” in the next week. The album will follow the self-taught musician’s first experimental pop/rap album he crafted in 2022, right before he dropped out of film school and took control of his creative life.

Known as portraitofaburningflower — a name that must be typed without spaces in order to be found on Spotify — Nonni said he draws inspiration from widely known artists such as iconic rapper Kendrick Lamar and moody, dark pop artist Billie Eilish. With a close listen to the musician’s previously released tracks, many will also find that Nonni’s other influences, such as Joji, Radiohead and Beach House, are strongly reflected in his style.

With a wide range of artists from whom to take inspiration, it makes sense why Nonni chooses not to box himself in to one genre of music.

“I never want to make the same thing twice. Even if [it has] similar inspirations,” Nonni said. “I’m the same person, I’m the same artist, so there will always be things that carry into each other. But I make it a goal to try something different at the start of every project.”

In fact, one popular artist’s recent dip into a new genre was a major influence on “precaution junkie,” Nonni said. Lil Yachty — who many may know as the carefree rapper featured in 2016-2017–era rap hits like D.R.A.M.’s “Broccoli” and KYLE’s “iSpy” — released an experimental album at the beginning of 2023. The songs clearly pay homage to Pink Floyd’s classic rock album, “Dark Side of the Moon,” but include funky baselines and eccentric vocals specific to the rapper’s unique personality.

This is the energy that portraitofaburningflower has carried into his second album. In fact, Nonni’s switch from pursuing film as a career to producing music reflects his reluctance to be confined to a narrow form of self-expression.

The Midcoast native, who grew up dabbling in piano, audio engineering and participating in high school film competitions, dropped out of his college film degree after one semester. Being creatively drained from producing films for assignments, he said, was not working for him.

At the end of his final semester, Nonni produced “CAULIFLOWER,” his first self-produced album that reflected on a breakup. The songs featured on the project are not quite identifiable in genre — though there are identifiable influences, which offer listeners a sense of familiarity when delving into the experimental style. Each song is still distinctly original to the musician.

This theme of innovation will carry into “precaution junkie,” Nonni hinted.

“I think I just learn a lot about myself when I create something, and that translates into the next thing I make,” Nonni said. “I take a lot of time to really make sure I am represented in what I’m making.”

What to expect in ‘precaution junkie’

“This album that I’m making now, there’s a lot of, um … my friend describes it as like poetic rap, so I’m not really sure what that means,” Nonni said with a laugh.

One song sample that Nonni sent to Midcoast Go, “summonthewaterdragon,” starts off with ethereal layers of vocalizations, piano, strings (likely produced by synths) and the occasional bird chirps. The song gains momentum as Nonni raps in a monotone, rhythmic stream-of-consciousness–like flow (which contains some explicit language, as a warning to the faint of heart). The song is upbeat yet meditative in feel, living up to the “poetic rap” comment.

If the new album is anything like his first, listeners can expect a healthy mix of rap, singing and indie pop/R&B vibes. Think of viral TikTok song “Gimme Love” by Joji, a known influence on Nonni’s style.

But if encountering portraitofaburningflower for the first time — which may be the case for many as Nonni only has a handful of monthly listeners on Spotify — previous tracks such as “on the floor,” “codenamekid” or “KNOW IT ALL” can introduce listeners to Nonni’s artistic style.

The release date for “precaution junkie” is not exact, but the musician said it should drop sometime between now and next Tuesday, May 28. The album, Nonni said, could even be out by the time this story is published.

Copy the Story Link

« Previous

Meetinghouse Arts to debut community art project this weekend

Next »

Cooking at the Cove: A glorious repast