Apr 20, 2020

Music Monday: Niina Rosa

Updated: Apr 26, 2020

Rising artist/musician Niina Rosa chats with the team about the light and love that goes into his music. Watch Avocado Toast the series premiering May 18th, 2020 to hear featured songs from the talented musician.

Have you had a chance to watch the trailer yet? What part of the show excited you the most?

The cinematography looks really great!

How much of yourself goes into your music?

Especially these days with the new music I’m about to release, I put everything into it. My music is extremely healing for me, and it’s also an opportunity for me to create something from absolutely nothing and so I really try and express myself and put something new into the world.

Are baby boomers and millennials often having the same conversations but just using different words?

I don’t think the conversations are the same, nor are the words. When I think about the baby boomer era, theres a depth there that I think is lacking greatly from millennial culture.

What makes baby boomers so awesome?

Their music, movies, books, ideas, clothes. Basically everything.

What makes millennials so wonderful?

I think a lot of stuff that makes millennials great could double as a list of hinderances. It’s kind of like Woodstock vs Coachella or something and to me theres just no comparison, regardless of that fact that I’d probably not attend either and just be at home working on something.

Sex, sexuality, gender and different kinds of relationships are depicted in Avocado Toast the series. Why is it important to continue sharing these types of stories today?

As we grow and evolve it’s important to continue exploring all aspects of humanity in order to learn about each other and ourselves and breaking down unnecessary walls and division. I actually co-created, with Lucah Rosenberg Lee, a documentary called ‘Passing’ that revolves around the subject of gender and sexuality, if anyone is interested you can just google it.

Who is a major influence for you and on your creativity?

My mom definitely is #1 from who I am as a person to the kind of art I make and the fact that I even make art at all. My partner and my close friends are major influences on me as well, I’m very grateful.

What music related opportunities are ahead of you? What are your dream scenarios?

I’ve got new music coming out for myself, and I’ve also been a part of some exciting collaborations that I also can’t wait to share :) Dream scenario is to have a studio at my farm house where I can invite my collaborators and make and release music independently non stop.

With so much going on in the world today, what’s your motivation to be a performer? Do you make music to explain? To get away? To move past? To widen our knowledge? To incite a conversation?

It’s something that’s just always been in my heart and music seemed to be the best way for me to express what I had inside me that wanted to be released.

I do sometimes use my music creation as a form of escaping into a realm, however briefly, that is safe and secure and filled with light and love, but also to bring that into my world as much as possible. I believe that music has the ability to affect people on a very deep, almost magical level, I hope to create frequencies that can bring magic into this world even just a little bit more.

What's next for you as a creator?

These days I’m constantly working on new songs, I have releases planned out for the next few months including a music video for a song called Miracle from the LP I’m releasing on May 8th, Melting When My Eyes Open. I’m also working on my ability to play piano and am currently taking jazz improv lessons.

Do you have interesting hobbies or creative pursuits outside of music? Tell us about it!

I love photography and visual arts, I get to do a lot of that when it comes to the creation of album art for my music, whether I make it alone or collaborate with someone. I actually make a lot of my art with my partner and that is always an amazing experience because she inspires me so much and helps me see myself in different ways and even gain a deeper understanding of what

I’m trying to do creatively. Mostly I’m just hyper focused on my music.

I really like video games, during this quarantine I’ve been playing some Nintendo with friends online - Mario Kart, Super Smash Bros, Luigi’s Mansion 3.

Reading is a hobby as well I suppose! I’m currently finishing up a book called Killing Commendatore by Haruki Murakami.