There is a different side of Nyoman Paul that most people might not have discovered.

The young singer-songwriter, at least on stage and across social media, often appears gentle yet easy going. Truly, a pop music heartthrob in the making. However, during a recent interview, Paul's usual charm was heightened by an unmistakable passion for music. This passion was especially communicated and manifested through his debut studio album, LUAP.

Unlike his pop peers who tend to break through by singing about young romance, Paul decided to look inward as he, creatively and metaphorically, dipped his hand into the chasmic waters of his psyche. As a result, the eight-track LUAP is engaging, unpredictable and surprisingly deep.

When asked about Paul's ultimate “mission” in LUAP, his answer was resolute: "I wanted to tell a story."

"Since the beginning, when I entered the world of music, I had realized that I was not a singer with a typical [vocal] technicality or, perhaps incidentally, rich in tone," Paul explained. "That being said, I [also] realized that one of the ways to sing is by telling a story. That's what I'd like to count on within me. I'd like to sing and tell a story."

Into the deep end

Such a mindset is the reason why, ever since his 2023 debut single "Bernafaslah Sejenak", Paul has consistently set his eyes on being a singer-songwriter. In LUAP, seven out of the album's eight songs were cowritten by him. Even the seventh track of the album, "Luapkanlah", was written solely by him, complemented by music production from Lafa Pratomo.

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