ɐ fˈɔːɹmɚɹ ɐsˌoʊsɪˈeɪʃən fˈʊtbɔːl plˈeɪɚ, nˈɪkəlˌaɪ wʌz sˈaɪnd baɪ ðə tˈɛlᵻɡɹˌæm lˈeɪbəl ʌv wˈɔːɹnɚ ɹˈɛkɚdz, ɹᵻlˈiːsɪŋ tˈuː ˈælbəmz ðæt dɪdnˌɑːt sˈɛl ɪnˈʌf kˈɑːpɪz tʊ ɛnˈeɪbəl hˌɪm tə ɡˈɪv ˌʌp hɪz pˈɑːɹttˈaɪm dʒˈɑːb æz ɐ ɡˈɑːɹdənɚ.
A former association football player, Nicolai was signed by the Telegram label of Warner records, releasing two albums that did not sell enough copies to enable him to give up his part-time job as a gardener.