Yet before becoming a global rising star with millions of streams across platforms like Spotify and YouTube (totaling over 165 million streams), Naïka's journey has been anything but conventional. Born to a family that often had to move to various countries due to her father's job, she spent her childhood in a state of constant flux, moving every few years to a new corner of the world. But as she tells New Times herself, Naïka's very first experience with music came when she was born right here in Miami.
"My parents tell me that the first time they ever saw me smile was when they left Baptist Hospital with me," she says. "They brought me into the car after I had just been born, and then I heard music on the radio, and I was smiling and happy because it was my first introduction to it. So I think I just always felt a very strong and easy connection with music from the very beginning."
Moving to Miami
The turning point came when Naïka was 15 or 16 years old, as her family faced unexpected upheaval after her father lost his job. They were living in South Africa at the time, and when deciding where to move next, they decided to move to Naïka's birth city, having never truly lived in the 305 before. Here, she decided to officially experiment with music, which her parents initially viewed as "just some kid stuff," a common perception that many young artists face. But with time, she proved to her family that her music was more than just a phase but a concrete career she aimed to pursue fully."For me, I really saw it as a huge opportunity," Naïka says. "I was like, Okay, we're moving to the United States. This is it. I'm going to chase my dreams."
Armed with a newfound keyboard and inspired by the likes of Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato, Destiny's Child, and all the female pop stars of the early aughts, Naika began honing her songwriting skills, performing wherever she could find a stage in the city. Since then, she became classically trained at the prestigious Berklee School of Music and eventually moved to Los Angeles to sign with a major label. However, what seemed like the ultimate dream for a budding artist like the French artist was not without its challenges.
"It wasn't the right timing, it wasn't the right team," she reflects. "There were a lot of different things that made it so that it was just not the right decision."
Undeterred, Naïka parted ways with the label and set out to release her debut EP, Lost in Paradise Pt. 1, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. "I'm like, 'Oh, what do I do? Like, do I drop this or not?' And then, obviously, it became a question of 'Why shouldn't I drop it?'" she says.
The gamble paid off, with her music particularly resonating with listeners around the world. A quick look at one of her music videos on YouTube will show a deluge of comments, sending love from listeners in countries like Brazil, India, Latin America, of course, the U.S. and France, and even areas as far as Uzbekistan.
Room to Grow
What could be a reason for this incredible reach so early in her career? It's perhaps because Naïka has mastered something musicians from Miami know well: embracing her multicultural upbringing and multilingual prowess, making it all a part of her lyrics and, ultimately, a defining aspect of her artistry. Switching between French, English, and even Creole and Spanish in her music, Naïka shows that she is a creature of culture, using her vocabularic artillery to her advantage, all of her words charged with unique significance and intention depending on the language she chooses to express a thought. Combine this with celestial and experimental pop beats, her music truly knows no bounds — as exhibited by her most recent viral hit, "Layers." The fusion of her diverse influences has struck a chord with listeners, and Naïka's music has even caught the attention of one of her all-time favorite childhood idols, Britney Spears.
"My icon, my childhood icon, started posting videos with my music," she says, still in awe of the experience. "It was almost consistently. There's a song that I dropped a couple of years ago called 'Sauce' that she loved and was always dancing to, and she kept posting with my music with probably two to three other songs as well."
As many bragging rights as that singular experience alone offers her, Naïka remains firmly and humbly grounded in the supportive community she's built around her. She fondly remembers how her current manager was once one of her close friends in college, freezing together in a tiny Boston dorm room, to now making waves around the world. Plus, looking up to women in music her whole life, she remains completely and totally in awe of those who came before her, only hoping to achieve a fraction of what they have and finding support in other female artists who surround her now.
Looking ahead, Naïka is working on finishing her official debut album after releasing a series of EPs, culminating in a project that she's been harboring for nearly a year. With her soulful sound and unwavering determination, Naïka is poised to become the next big thing to emerge from Miami's vibrant music scene — if she isn't already.
"I'm really proud, and I'm really happy because I just feel so blessed and grateful to be surrounded by and working with such amazing friends that are like family to me," she says. "I really just hope to create a community of like-minded people who know how to love and respect each other through all different types of barriers through the music."
