Tell us about yourself:
My artist name is Nikita Nagraj, but I like to go by NIKITA. I’m from Dallas, TX, born and raised, but my parents are immigrants from Mumbai, India. Ever since I was a little kid, around 7, I loved singing infant of people either solo or with friends, and I loved listening to music and harmonizing to R&B songs or Indian songs in Bollywood movies.
Growing up in the south I was very influenced by rap which was not yet mainstream in India. Now, rap is loved by all in India which shows how influential this art is. I can speak Tamil and Hindi at a basic level, and sing in those languages.
I learned both Western and Indian classical music, but rapping and singing R&B are my strong suits. Growing up in the south all of my life, I was very influenced by UGK and that nitty gritty rap sound. Nobody in my culture is doing that right now, especially as a female. Everybody is rapping on some pop ish, but nobody in my community is representing the Indian Americans who like to free style rap and sing hooks and choruses like Alicia Keys.
That is where I want to come in and change the game. In 5 years, I see myself as a full time artist either independent or with a label, doing what I love full time. I want to represent my community in the rap and r&b world, and fuse my cultures through my music. I want to make music that expresses every emotion for listeners to relate to.
I want to be remembered for breaking barriers and introducing something totally new to the music industry. My community is on the rise, with names like Aziz, Hassan Minaj, Mindy Kailing, Nav, Priyanka Chopra, Lily Singh etc. but nobody is rapping with the greats…yet.