The Renton Reporter recently interviewed Renton singer and songwriter Nick Deonigi in a question-and- answer session. He will be playing from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m., Saturday, Aug. 8, at Vino at The Landing. Here’s what he had to say about his background and his music:

1. Where are you from originally and where are you based now?

I grew up off of Green Valley Road in Auburn. It was a beautiful place to be raised and I visit as often as possible. I currently reside in Renton.

2. How would you describe your music?

Singer-songwriter pop/rock.

3. Where do you get your inspiration for your songs? Who do you listen to?

All musical inspiration starts with real-life experiences for me. I have a hard time creating anything pretentious and have to be personally connected to what I’m writing or I lose interest. Most of it’s relationship-based; Not necessarily romantic relationships, but affairs of the heart for sure.

Like most artists would say nowadays I listen to a bit of everything. With technology making all kinds of music so easily accessible, it would be hard to get stuck in one genre. One of my favorite artists right now though is definitely Ed Sheeran.

4. What’s your process for writing songs?

Sometimes an idea hits me and it all comes out in minutes or hours and sometimes I sit down and just mess around with the guitar or piano all day until I stumble across something that speaks to me. There’s no guarantee that hammering it out all day will produce results but sometimes it does. Sometimes I dream melodies and turn them into songs. Either way you have to make time to be creative or nothing gets finished. I can’t just write a song in my head from start to finish. You’ve got to find some sort of creative spark and then try and fan the flame and see what happens.

5. If you weren’t playing music, what would you be doing?

I’m not sure if this means generally, as in what do I do when I’m not playing music or what would I be doing if I hadn’t made music my main focus in life. I’ll answer both. Right now, when I’m not playing music, I can be found out on the golf course, spending time with my lady or friends and family, hiking or working my part-time bartending job. If I hadn’t chosen music, I’d probably be in the medical field. I’ve always had an interest in it and almost applied for a diagnostic imaging program a few years back before deciding to make another record instead.

6. Preferences: Beatles or Stones; Prince or Michael?

Wow. Are you really going to make me choose? I’d guess I’d have to say Michael. As far as Beatles or Stones, it’s a toss up. Please don’t make me pick.

7. Where did you get the idea for “Good for Something” and where can I hear it?

“Good for Something” is a track off my first album “Miles and Minutes.” Both “Miles” and my latest album “Dream Yourself To Life” can be found on iTunes. The idea for “Good for Something” came when I was living with my parents kind of out in the country. Most my friends all lived closer to the city where it seemed everything was always happening and though I would visit from time to time it wasn’t as convenient as I was wanting it to be. I started to develop this sense of isolation like I was missing out on something all the time.

I guess “Good for Something” was me recognizing this feeling and longing to be more involved in the experiences that I thought life should (be) about at that moment in time.