88 Rising’s Indonesian R&B star Niki on the anxieties of modern love (VIDEO)
KUALA LUMPUR, July 5 — Much of Niki’s music is a throwback to the good old sounds of early 2000s R&B but her catchy beats are anything but dated.
The Jakarta-born singer, whose real name is Nicole Zefanya, captures what it’s like to fall in love as a young person through her songs, gathering inspiration from the emotional minefield that is modern dating.
Lyrics in urs, a track off her latest EP wanna take this downtown?, touch on technology-related anxieties with lines about “half-assed texts” from a partner and wanting nothing more than to ring them up in the wee hours of the morning.
Niki confessed to being a true-blue romantic who would have loved to date in an era where letters and not smartphones were the mediators of relationships.
“Obviously, technology has brought the world to where it is today and it’s really helped us as a species, but I do romanticise the idea of falling in love with someone in the 1950s and how stress-free that would be.
“I think I would fare better back then just because I’m an old soul and I’m very old-fashioned. I like going on a date with somebody and not having to worry about my phone,” she told
Malay Mail.
Known for writing and producing her own material, Niki said penning lyrics was cathartic and allowed her to mature with her career.
“For me, my thoughts are always jumbled up in one big mess in my head and once I put it on paper, I gain a new perspective on what I was going through.
“Sometimes, when I write things down, my sentiments about certain things change and turn into a more developed idea.”
It may be a surprise to some that Niki once thought of studying psychology and becoming a counselor instead of pursuing music.
Now, she’s providing a different kind of therapy through relatable lyrics about falling in and out of love that scores of fans find themselves resonating with.
“Sometimes I write based on personal experiences and other times, a friend would call me crying about some guy that hurt her and I might want to write about that.”
The multi-talented musician isn’t afraid to roll up her sleeves and get hands-on with projects, even directing and editing the music video for her dreamy, trap-inspired song, Spell.
At just 20-years-old, Niki has enjoyed a meteoric rise to fame ever since being roped in by record company 88rising.
Her addition brought a refreshing female face to the boys club that houses hip-hop giants like Joji and Higher Brothers.
With the ever-growing popularity of genres like K-pop and the viral nature of rappers like Rich Brian, the world has their eyes trained on talent from the East and Niki hopes she can be a part of a new generation of Asian musicians to go global.
“The best thing about 88rising is how like-minded everybody is and everyone works together not just to be artistes but truly to precipitate and catalyse a cultural shift so we can see more Asian musicians in mainstream media.
“That’s always been their goal from day one and that’s what I love. I do this because I love music and not only that, I also love Asia and I want it to go mainstream.”
Stream Niki’s latest EP wanna take this downtown? on Spotify and follow her on Instagram for updates.
