Rocks Off reached out to the artists playing this year's Houston Press Music Awards showcase Sunday, August 5, and asked them to introduce themselves. Here's what they sent back.

Complete HPMA showcase and awards coverage

Rocks Off: When and where was your first gig in Houston, and how did it go?

Nick Greer: it was an open-mike at AvantGarden (when it was Helios) 2001 at age 14. I was the youngest person allowed at the bar, Mariana said it was fine as long as my mother was with me, which she was. the first time performing i played "Where Is My Mind" by the Pixies, "Long December" by the Counting Crows and then a song i wrote. I got tipped, it went well.

RO: What Houston-area venues do you play most often?

NG: AvantGarden, The Capitol [at St. Germain], Fitzgerald's.

RO: How often do you play in the area?

NG: as much as possible and I would like to play more.

RO: Describe your sound in eight words or less.

NG: Piano-rock blues and passionate funk.

RO: Where would you like yourself or your band to be in one year? Ten years? Forty?

NG: One year: self-sustaining and selling steady amounts of records, with enough to fund a tour or supplement income to record more albums and pay back all the support. In ten years I will have a heavy arsenal of albums, production and writing credits as well as having had a tremendous amount of volunteer contributions all in the name of helping people succeed and overcome.

Forty years, I will be shocked if I'm alive, but if I am, I will be satisfied.

RO: What is one thing you'd like to do (as a musician) before you pack it in?

NG: I would like to learn how to read music.

Nick Greer plays the HPMA showcase 7 p.m., Sunday, August 5 at Ben's Beans, 1302 Dallas.

Check out Nick Greer on YouTube, Tumblr, Twitter, and Facebook.