Brika
Brika | |
---|---|
Birth name | Briana Alexa Martinez |
Born | Miami, Florida | November 22, 1994
Origin | United States |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Singer, Songwriter, Musician |
Instrument(s) | Vocals, Keyboard, Piano |
Years active | 2013–present |
Labels | |
Website | brikamusic |
Briana Alexa Martinez (born November 22, 1994), commonly known by her stage name Brika, is an American singer and songwriter.[1] She releases music under independent record label Art House Records.[2] On February 23, 2015, Brika was included as one of New Music Seminar's 'Artist on the Verge' by "a hand-selected A&R committee comprised of NMS partners, talent scouts, buyers, booking agents, taste-makers and other industry experts", as reported by Billboard.[3] Brika’s music has circulated Annie Mac's Musical Hot Water Bottle program on BBC Radio 1.[4][5] She was selected for ASCAP's Latin On the Spot feature on June 10, 2014.[1] Her debut album Voice Memos was released on December 16, 2014.[2]
Early life and career
Brika was born November 22, 1994 in Miami and is of Cuban descent.[1] She is the second oldest of two sisters and a brother.[6] Brika was intrigued about music since she was an infant, which eventually led to teaching herself how to play the piano and write her own songs.[7]
She met music producer Julio Reyes Copello through his son Alejandro. Brika began to work with Reyes Copello in 2012 and signed with his independent record label in 2013.[6]
On December 20, 2013, Brika released her first single, "Mumbai", on iTunes followed by "Expectations", "Options", and "Gold" in 2014.[2] Her critically acclaimed single, "Expectations", is considered to be her "breakout single"[6] and was listed on the blog aggregator, Hype Machine's Zeitgeist Most Blogged and Favorited Tracks of 2014'.[8]
Her debut album, Voice Memos, a creative process that lasted approximately a year and a half,[7] was released December 17, 2014,[2] and circulated through college radio stations around North America.[9][10][11][12] It includes a collaboration with rapper BOGART on a track titled “Go”.[13] Voice Memos was listed on HillyDilly's Top 25 Debuts of 2014.[14] The album had an exclusive premiere on Hype Machine a week before its official release,[15] after climbing to the top of its 'Most Popular' Chart several times throughout the year.[16][17] Notable blog Indie Shuffle listed Brika as an "Artist To Watch in 2015".[18]
Brika took part in an acoustic performance with electronic artist Kygo on the weekend of his performance at Ultra Music Festival in 2015.[19] More recently, Brika also performed with Kygo during the winter XGames 2016 live on ESPN (United States) Nationwide. Miami New Times wrote articles referring to her as "Miami Music's Next Big Thing" and "Ten Can't-Miss Local Acts of III Points 2016". The Miami New Times highlighted: "Her voice has an old-school quality that's rich with nuance and subtlety, rare these days." [20][21]
NYLON placed Brika in their list of "7 Up-And-Coming Female Artists You Should Know About".[22] She took part in Red Bull's esteemed SoundSelect festival alongside up-and-coming artist Goldlink.[23] According to Univision, It is said she will be releasing new singles in 2017.[24] Brika was featured on Live Nation's One's To Watch alongside LANY, Léon, and many other artists.[25]
Artistry
Her sonic identity has been characterized as “alt-soul... simplistic yet powerful in nature”[26] with a vocally "sultry tone".[27] Brika has expressed that she draws inspiration from “bits and pieces of everything, even visuals”. Journalist Brianne Nemiroff, of Viva Glam Magazine, has compared her sound to Billie Holiday and Banks.[28] Brika states her “greatest inspiration is being in the middle of action”.[6]
Discography
Albums
Brika discography | |
---|---|
Singles | "Mumbai", "Expectations", "Options", "Gold" |
References
- ^ a b c ASCAP Latin On The Spot, June 10, 2014
- ^ a b c d iTunes Official Release Archived April 20, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ New Music Seminar 'Artist On the Verge' Class of 2015 Billboard, Billboard Staff, February 23, 2015
- ^ Annie Mac's Musical Hot Water Bottle, August 17, 2014
- ^ Annie Mac's Musical Hot Water Bottle, October 26, 2014
- ^ a b c d LADYGUNN Magazine Interview, Olivia Inkster, April 2, 2015
- ^ a b BreaktThru Radio Interview, Jess Goulart, Feb 27, 2015
- ^ Ziegeist 2014 List
- ^ KZUU Station Playlist Cookies After Dark With DJ Super Star
- ^ 88Nine Radio Milwaukee
- ^ KVNF Radio
- ^ Air Toronto Archived April 12, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ IndieCurrent Voice Memos Review, Tori Holmes, December 22, 2014.
- ^ HillyDilly Top 25 Debuts Archived August 22, 2015, at the Wayback Machine,
- ^ Hype Machine Exclusive Premiere, December 2014
- ^ Hype Machine Chart, May 2014
- ^ Hype Machine Chart, July 2014
- ^ Indieshuffle Artist To Watch List, Dec 22, 2014
- ^ Billboard Coverage Ultra Music Festival Brika/Kygo,
- ^ Rolland, David (2016-02-05). "Westchester Native Brika Could Be Miami Music's Next Big Thing". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
- ^ Duran, Jose D. (2016-10-04). "Ten Can't-Miss Local Acts of III Points 2016". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
- ^ "7 Up-And-Coming Female Artists You Should Know About". Retrieved 2017-04-20.
- ^ Duran, Jose D. (2017-01-31). "Red Bull Sound Select's 3 Days in Miami Returns With Angel Olsen, Goldlink, and Kelela". Miami New Times. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
- ^ "Up-and-coming singer Brika calls the shots: "I'm a free spirit"". www.univision.com. Retrieved 2017-04-20.
- ^ "Ones To Watch Presents: All Eyes On Brika [Interview + Live Performance] / Ones To Watch". Ones To Watch. Retrieved 2017-08-02.
- ^ The Music Ninja Blog,
- ^ HillyDilly Review, Taylor Rummel, September 2014
- ^ Viva Glam Magazine, Brianne Nemiroff, April 1, 2015
- 21st-century American singers
- American female singer-songwriters
- American singer-songwriters
- Living people
- American electronic musicians
- 1994 births
- Musicians from Miami
- American entertainers of Cuban descent
- Trip hop musicians
- Synthpop singers
- Songwriters from Florida
- 21st-century women singers
- Chill-out musicians