Darling Nikki shares her love for The King and Prince with her new hippie-soul single and video Elvis — showcasing today on Tinnitist.
Have you ever felt like you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time? Join the club — indie songstress Nikki has the quintessential soundtrack for this exact feeling. With an artistry that conveys nostalgic themes of disco, funk, and hippie enthusiasm, her music takes listeners back to the glory days of ’70s soul.
The multi-tasking artist’s debut single and video Elvis — which she penned, recorded, produced and edited — is a retro-fueled earworm, combining a punchy bassline with catchy brass to deliver a story of the king of rock ’n’ roll himself. However, the song was initially inspired not by Presley but Prince:
“Though he don’t even know my name
And he has never seen my face
I can feel that I will be the one he loves
The king of rock ’n’ roll
I go where he goes
And I don’t miss any shows
Until he’s mine
And he feels me like I feel him
I’m in love with the king of rock ’n’ roll.”
“I wanted to write a song about a special encounter I had with Prince, when I was a teenager,” Nikki says. “He’s always been a huge inspiration, and I was a super fan and I chose my artist name after one of his songs. It’s bizarre that I met him several times, but the coolest thing was when I met him in a club in Monaco — we chatted and immediately clicked. The music sucked and we went together to the DJ booth to pick James Brown tunes. It was really special. Like finally being at the right place at the right time, when all my life I felt I was at the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Combining funky guitars, rock and roll swagger and horns via Al Green, Elvis is a tune that draws listeners in the same way any idol attracts their devout fans. It’s a preview of Nikki’s forthcoming EP Hippie Soul. The singer-songwriter says her EP is a multi-cultural project, featuring contributions from musicians and engineers from Brazil, Turkey, Germany, and the U.K.
Born and raised in Germany, Darling Nikki started making music at five years old. In a country known for its iconic techno and industrial music scenes, her love of vintage funk made her a misfit. At 17, she left home to become a musician. Throughout her career, she has provided vocals and worked with Larry Graham (Sly Stone, Prince), Dionne Warwick and Nelly Furtado, among others.
During the pandemic, Nikki devoted herself to songwriting and is now putting the finishing touches on Hippie Soul, a collection of deeply personal songs that celebrate her favorite musical era. “With Hippie Soul, I also created my own genre and brand,” she says. “I want to take people back to a world where the air is thick of ’70s nostalgia and to the free-spirited ethos of the hippie movement and its music.”
Watch the video for Elvis above, listen to the track below, and meet up with Darling Nikki on her website, Instagram and TikTok.
