Everything You Wanted to Know About Nicotine Dolls Frontman Sam Cieri
If you were tuned in to the 17th season of America's Got Talent last year, we have zero doubts that you remember the incredible voice of Sam Cieri and his viral, emotional performance of original song "What Makes You Sad."
The track actually belongs to Nicotine Dolls, the band for which Sam is the lead singer, and while he eventually dropped out of the competition, he and the band hold a more important place in our hearts than ever. Recently, the band released their latest single, "Real House," putting Sam's pure yet raspy rock vocals front and center, and the group's upcoming EP, How Do You Love Me, is set to drop on Dec. 8. It's a very good time to be a Nicotine Dolls fan, and below is everything Sam shared about himself as our latest Man Crush Monday.
(Photo credit: Hannah Greve)
Name: Sam Cieri
Hometown: Celebration, Florida
Birthday: May 10
Fun Facts:
1. Sam is a massive Gilmore Girls fan and would love to live in Stars Hollow.
"I'm a full fall-time Gilmore Girls re-watcher, and the dream of living in Stars Hollow feels like a warm hug of life. I'm essentially from a small town, and I love that type of day-to-day. Everyone knows everyone, and the town's drama is better than anything on TV."
-Sam Cieri
2. He knows better than anyone that you can't force inspiration.
"The second I start to look, I lose it. For the most part, it's just sitting and playing till something raises its hand. You get that one line or melody that flickers the story to life in your head. That's a big thing for me; I know the song has something when I can start to see it in my head visually. They play out like little movies."
-Sam Cieri
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3. Lately, he's constantly been singing the classic Billy Vera song "At This Moment."
"Cooking, walking, cleaning—I'll start singing it to the point where it's been called to my attention multiple times and I didn't even notice."
-Sam Cieri
4. His go-to Starbucks drink us a giant latte with cinnamon and sugar.
"Simple but comforting."
-Sam Cieri
5. He relates to Jim Hawkins from Treasure Planet the most out of all of Disney's characters.
"He always felt a bit self-reflective. That monologue, the one on the boat—if you know, you know. It makes me cry every time."
-Sam Cieri
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6. If he could travel anywhere in the world for a week, he'd go to his favorite place, Dublin, Ireland.
"I lived there for a few months and fell head over heels with the kindness of the people, the comfort of the food, the amount of beauty and cultural significance from such a small place. One of those few places outside the country that has felt like home to me."
-Sam Cieri
7. He has some thoughts about who would play him in a movie about his life.
"I've always loved Alex Wolff, and I just asked a car of people and was told either him or a young Harrison Ford—and when I say other people told me, I mean I told myself but instantly knew better."
-Sam Cieri
8. Though in the past he considered actors he grew up with to be his biggest heroes, today, he'd say his biggest hero is his mom.
"The amount that she overcame and never let anyone see her struggle. She finds joy and love in every situation, even when that seems impossible. That kind of optimism and persistence to preserve through love and optimism is pretty awe-inspiring."
-Sam Cieri
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9. Lately, little moments of contentment have been putting the biggest smiles on his face.
"Just a day where I have a moment of being okay with everything just as it is. I tend to think real happiness is found in those moments."
-Sam Cieri
10. He's had the same celebrity crush for a long time.
"This question was eternally answered the moment I watched The Notebook as a teenager. Rachel McAdams has been and will always be my number one."
-Sam Cieri
11. Above everything else, Sam's life has always been propelled by and fully formed by creativity.
"I'm obsessed with it and will always push into every corner I can. That means I don't like staying stagnant or comfortable within that creativity. That means everything is always on the table in an unpredictable way, and the acknowledgment and obsession of that in my own perspective defines a majority of my person."
-Sam Cieri
For more on the guys who inspire us most, click HERE to discover everything you wanted to know about "Sweater" singer Kevian Kraemer.