A Uniting Sound

Katharina:
Would you rather be more attractive or more charismatic?

Naïka:
Charismatic. A person that’s just attractive can keep you very bored. Charm goes beyond that. It gets to your soul.

Katharina:
If you could be minister of education for a day, what would you change about music education in schools?

Naïka:
I would impose it. How does the world work without music? People often don’t take music education seriously enough. To be creative in a musical way activates certain areas in your brain, which can also be used for other skills. And it’s healing.

Katharina:
What are your three favorite words in the English language?

Naïka:
Laughter, love, happiness. God, I’m such a cheesy person.

Katharina:
What other languages do you speak?

Naïka:
English and French are my first languages and I speak Haitian Creole and a little bit of Spanish. My mum is from Haiti, so I grew up with Caribbean music playing around the house.

Katharina:
That explains why you covered an old Haitian song, „Papa Gede / Bel Gason“-a clip that has over half a million views on your Facebook page.

Naïka:
The reactions were amazing. It is a song that everyone forgot about and it was so much fun bringing it back.

Katharina:
While English is the dominating language in popular cultural, non-white languages and sound influences are often neglected…

Naïka:
I want to change that. Every culture and heritage should be glorified and valued. We should learn from each other’s histories and respect them. I don’t understand this separation that’s going on. I never understood how we can be this way, so full of fear instead of embracing our differences.

Katharina:
You wrote a song about a Syrian child-what inspired you to write about someone so far away?

Naïka:
I came across this video, where I could see this little boy. His home had just crumbled, and he was taken to the hospital but his whole family had died after being hit by a bomb in Aleppo. I want to cry just thinking about it now. I recognized once again, that in the country where I live we all exist in this little bubble. And we see videos like that on the news, thinking it’s something very far away. I don’t think we realize that this stuff is happening in our world and that we have the power to stop it. We are powerful enough to make a difference. Just watching it and saying „Oh so sad!“ before moving on is not enough. We have to help each other, I want to bring awareness to the fact that not everyone has the same privileges as we do. Writing songs like this is my way of trying to change things.

Katharina:
Is there a song that really changed you?

Naïka:
Michael Jackson’s „We are the World“ and „One Love“ by Bob Marley. Always. I also like a more recent one, „Chained to the Rhythm“ by Katy Perry. I really felt impacted by that song, I actually wish I wrote it.

Katharina:
Speaking about songwriting, do you write all of your songs on your own?

Naïka:
Yes, definitely. I want to be involved in all of my music. I feel then it’s much more personal and that connection is very important to me. The only song I didn’t write on my own is „Call me Marilyn“. A good friend from Berklee College of Music in Boston, where I went to school, pitched it to me.

Katharina:
Do you remember the first song you ever wrote?

Naïka:
A long time ago in South Africa, the track was called „Rise.“ It was about coming together as humanity and not being afraid to rise up. When I look back at it now, it´s incredibly kitschy.
I’ve come a long way, in regard to my voice as well. When I started singing, it was not as good as it is today. It’s a daily effort, still. It’s a mountain to climb. I really want to bring a positive change to this planet. I know, this sounds super cheesy. But like I already said, I am a cheesy person. That’s my biggest motivation: Knowing that I can inspire people and make them feel unique. We’ve created so many boundaries, I want to tear these walls down. We should all try to cherish and appreciate each other.

Katharina:
Oooh, you are a little hippie.

Naïka:
Yes, I am a little hippie inside.

Katharina:
What are the little things in life that make you happy?

Naïka:
Food, oh my god.

Katharina:
You don’t look like it though.

Naïka:
I know, because I try to eat healthy. But one of the best things about traveling is to try different kinds of food. I love Vietnamese food. As well as Haitian and French cuisine. I am going to Paris in a few days and since I booked the trip, all I can think about is eating.

Katharina:
Moving on from the happy things in life to some rather sad things. On your YouTube channel you wrote about your song „Snowing in LA (Long distance song),“: „When your boyfriend moves across the country, gotta write a song to deal with the sadness!“ What happened to this relationship?

Naïka:
I was crying for three days in a row, I was really sad. To write a song about it helped me. I was a bit nervous about releasing the song because it is so personal. But on the other side, I was super excited to share it since many people are going through the same thing. Me and my boyfriend are still together. When I move to LA in January, we will be reunited.

Katharina:
Maybe then we’ll get a sequel song from you. Could it be that being separated from people you like is a common trope in your biography? Because you lived in so many different countries?

Naïka:
Yes. My dad’s job made the family move very often. I grew up in Guadeloupe, an island in the Caribbean, and also on an Island in the Pacific Ocean named Vanuatu. Then I lived in Kenya for four years and in Paris for two. The last step was South Africa before we moved back to Miami. Now I think all the moving I had to go through as a child was very rewarding, because I became a person who can easily adapt to new situations. When I look back now, I think of it as a magical childhood. I was exposed to so many different cultures, a variety of sounds, fragrances and so on.

Katharina:
Yes, one can hear that this influenced your sound. All the tracks are different, but they are all very well-made pop.

Naïka:
The term I found for myself to describe it is „world pop“. I want to incorporate my roots and all the different cultures in my sound. Plus, I adore pop music, Britney Spears used to be my idol when I was six, I just love pop music. I try to keep it organic. I am not too deep into electronic stuff. I do a little bit of it, to keep my sound modern, but having a variety of instruments is more important to me. For one of the songs I used African drums and my new song „Serpentine“ has an Arabic feel to it.

Katharina:
Do you believe in god?

Naïka:
Yes. I believe in a higher power. I think you attract what you put out, I believe in karma. I have seen the wonders of the world and there is just too much beauty on this earth to not believe in a higher power. With all of the different religions I encountered, I realized that they all end up worshipping the same principles. We all hope for positive things and pray to attract them.

Katharina:
What does it mean to be a modern woman, a modern human to you?

Naïka:
Knowing how to be independent, knowing to rely on yourself. You don’t necessarily need a partner to evolve or to be a better version of yourself. Your individual soul is powerful and if you have a strong will nothing is impossible. A modern human to me also means being aware of what is happening in the world and working towards changing it for the better, to try and bring a positive change to our society.

Katharina:
Have you ever rejected an attractive guy for being too chauvinistic?

Naïka:
So many times. There are guys out there who think you are just a piece of meat, a little flower to pick as they please. Not with me. You will not do whatever you want with me and then throw me away when you´re done.

Katharina:
Are you always open about your opinions?

Naïka:
Yes, though I try to not be too blunt, because I don’t like hurting other people’s feelings. But if someone is a prick to me, then I will say something straight to their face. I am not going to keep my mouth shut if somebody is disrespectful to me or anyone else.

Katharina:
Do you remember the last time you really felt a feeling of ecstasy?

Naïka:
I had this awaking phase this year, where I just realized that I can do anything if I set my mind on it. This sounds so basic, but there is always this voice in your head that limits and scares you. So, during this crazy phase I understood that fear is always the main element slowing me down. My path will not be easy. I have had difficult times and I know there are many challenges to come. But now I feel mentally prepared. I always study people who have had successful music careers. And one thing they always say is, that they never gave up no matter how hard it got. I won’t let failure stop me, I can do this-having that realization was an ecstatic moment for me.