FEATURE:
Spotlight
Becky Sikasa
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THERE are not many interviews…
out there with Becky Sikasa. That is a shame, as she is a major talent that people need to know about. I will come to an interview with her from last year. In terms of biography on her Bandcamp page, you do get a sense of why this incredible artist has been turning heads: “From the very start soul artist Becky Sikasa captivated tastemakers and music lovers in UK and Germany. Working with award-winning producers and directors, Becky shapes her artistic vision, and is on her way to becoming one of the new voices of UK-Neo-Soul”. She pays The Lexington in London on 28th November. I am tempted to go and see her play as her music is phenomenal. Recently nominated for a second time running for the Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) for The Writings and the Pictures and the Song. Sikasa was nominated last year for Twelve Wooden Boxes. Even though rEDOLENT won for Dinny Greet, the fact she has been nominated two years running proves what a consistent and important talent she is. I want to pull together the various bits of reviews and interviews there are. I want to start with this feature from CLASH. Last year, they highlighted seven acts who were playing at the Wide Days showcase in Edinburgh:
“Playing the smallest Wide Days venue, the authenticity of Sneaky Pete’s makes for an off-kilter match to Becky Sikasa’s set. The intimacy greatly showcases her emotive soul pop. Playing on the Friday, the space is packed to bursting point, most punters have clearly planned to watch this set. Laying her soul bare, or at least that’s how it seems, the Glasgow based singer ensures an arresting performance. The proficiency of Becky Sikasa’s voice is impossible to shake off”.
You can hear her long-E.P. on Bandcamp and also Spotify. I think it is a wonderful work. I will end with a review of that work from April. With a new single, I have no words, out and getting a lot of positive reaction, this is a perfect time to discover Becky Sikasa. I will hop back and forth regarding timeline and chronology. I want to come to Record Jet and their feature from February, where they named Becky Sikasa their artist of that month. Since then, she has had quite a big and important year:
“Between neo soul and indie pop
February is going to be a musical one: our Artist of the Month is Beck Sikasa, singer-songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist. And boy, is there a lot of music with Becky! Vocals, keyboard, guitar, violin – it seems that Becky owns it all and makes it all her own. That’s why she is considered an up-and-coming star in the world of neo soul. But Becky can do more than just neo soul. She is constantly growing her international fanbase with her colourful genre cocktail of neo soul, a pinch of RnB and indie pop. In other words, she has generated a lot of attention outside of Germany. Her lively and colourful music has a certain appeal. She considers James Blake, Sylvan Esso and Bruno Major, among others, to be her musical idols and sources of songwriting inspiration.
Next stop: Pop Academy Edinburgh
Her interest in music started at the young age of 4, when she played the keyboard with her mother. She also took the opportunity to learn to write her own lyrics. Becky includes many of her own experiences and emotions in her music. Her lyrics talk of lovesickness and how she deals with pain. She pours all of her creativity and emotions into her music. This is perhaps also the reason why Becky Sikasa has generated well over 32,000 monthly listeners on Spotify. Her next few concerts have been announced and are partly sold out.
Becky has a feel for emotions
Becky Sikasa moved away from home to Scotland, specifically Edinburgh, to Napier University. There she studied pop music and first appeared in 2016 as one half of the German-Scottish duo “Lunir”. The band’s first appearances were in pubs, small cafes, on the radio, as a feature at 1Live, and appearances at international festivals and showcases. During the pandemic, Becky concentrated on her solo career and composing her own and new music. She eventually released her debut singles “Lullaby” and “Keeper” in 2022. Her tracks capture a light, airy mood with Becky questioning her identity, sense of belonging and connection. And as Becky’s Instagram posts demonstrate, her rehearsals are funny and spontaneous.
The new single “Crashing and Fall” was released on 19th January and along with three sold-out headline shows in three countries (England, Scotland und Germany), is really driving her rise. The latest single was picked up by BBC 1Xtra, BBC Introducing and BBC R1’s Chillest Show and the first three tracks of the EP have already been streamed more than half a million times – a fantastic achievement when you consider that they were released by Becky herself on her own label. With so many festival appearances and solo gigs coming up this year, 2024 will be a big year for Becky”.
Prior to ending with a review of her new E.P. (at six songs, it is technically that rather than an album), I want to feature an interview from last year. Interculture Youth Scotland spoke with the stunning Becky Sikasa about he progress and what she was looking ahead to. I am new to her work, though I have been looking back and seeing where she came from:
“What first got you into music and who were your early musical inspirations; anyone you listened to while growing up or were there any artists throughout your life that you heard and felt, ‘I want to make music like them!’?
For sure! Definitely too many to list them all but big childhood heroes for me were Lauryn Hill, Regina Spektor, Mariah Carey, D’Angelo, Stacie Orrico, Corinne Bailey Rae, Feist but then also Lianne La Havas, Bon Iver, Hiatus Kaiyote, Solange, KT Tunstall, Justin Timberlake, Kimbra...ha-ha! The list goes on, but I’ll stop for now.
What has been the most amazing experience for you in music and what are you most looking forward to in 2024?
Think one of my favourite moments recently has been performing my song ‘Wait Up’ live for the first time with my band at our Edinburgh headline. That feeling of something you made up in your mind coming to life like that is just unreal.
What were the most challenging things you encountered at the beginning of your career and what would you count as the important breaks?
I think one of the most challenging things when you first start a project is trusting that your art is already enough even though no one’s heard it yet and it doesn’t yet have any outside stamps of approval that you may be looking for to sort of make it a ‘real thing’.
Can you describe how you compose your songs, and explain a bit about your process?
There isn’t really one way but usually the first bit, the first line, the first phrase, the first melody just sorta jumps out at me randomly. Might be in the middle of the night, actually quite frequently is in the middle of the night ha-ha! (my poor neighbours). I don’t usually have an idea to write about a topic and then go at it, it’s more of a fluid process, not that much planning or structure to it. Once the bones of the track are clear, I usually take it to David Scobie whose part of my band and has been a close creative partner for the longest time and we just experiment and have fun with production and arrangement until it feels right. Those long-term creative relationships are so important to me. That level of communication and understanding doesn’t just happen overnight”
Who would you most like to collaborate with?
I’ve actually already started working on some collabs with a couple of incredible artists! I feel like I can’t give it away just yet but am truly buzzing...keep your eyes peeled for that in 2024!
You’re playing First Footin’ on New Year’s Day in Edinburgh with other acts like Bemz and Grace &The Flat Boys, what’s your New Year resolutions or goals for 2024?
Ooh I never really do New Year’s resolutions but to be honest I’m super lucky to call my band and my visual and creative team my best pals and we’ve sort of just been having the best time working away together. So ,I kinda just hope we get to do even more of it next year?!
Buzzing to start the year off with a wee solo gig as part of this amazing line up! Hopefully get some people excited to come along to my Celtic Connections show which will be my biggest headline yet, at St Luke’s.
Your music speaks such truth and comes from a place that allows people to feel okay with vulnerability, tell us about your EP ‘Twelve Wooden Boxes’, and how your tour has been so far?
That EP is probably always going to hold a special place in my heart; not just because it’s my debut but also because of what it’s about. Twelve Wooden Boxes is the house I grew up in as a kid. One of my earliest and most vivid memories is picking dozens of flowers in in the big meadow behind the house, my mum tying them into cute arrangements, and me and my siblings sitting on these tiny plastic chairs, selling them to people passing by. We were so proud of our wee business! There was something magical about that home and it burnt down a few years later. Twelve Wooden Boxes is about feeling a bit lost in the world, searching for belonging and identity, the first earth shattering heart break, and ultimately, love.
What would you tell young people who are building towards songwriting, and what advice would you give to them on finding their identity as an artist?
Don’t feel disheartened too easily, keep at it.
Don’t be afraid to ask other artists you like for help, maybe co-write with friends.
And most importantly try not to take it and yourself too seriously and remember to enjoy yourself in the process”.
To round things off, there is this review for The Writings and the Pictures and the Song. It is a wonderful E.P. that I would urge people to check out. I think that it is Becky Sikasa’s best collection to date. She is going to keep on growing and become this massive artist. Someone that should definitely be on your radar:
“Scotland’s rising R&B and neo-soul star Becky Sikasa released her EP ‘The Writings And The Pictures And The Song’. This is her second EP after her 2022 debut ‘Twelve Wooden Boxes’, for which she received a nomination for the Scottish Album of the Year award.
‘Twelve Wooden Boxes’ was praised for Sikasa’s soaring vocal range as she searched for belonging, identity and love. ‘The Writings And The Pictures And The Song’ shows Sikasa’s disillusion with unbelieving ideas about love following her first heartbreak.
The new EP features singles ‘Hard To Love,’ Wait Up,’ Work Of Love,’ and ‘Crashing And Falling’. Sikasa wears her heart on her sleeve in ‘The Writings And The Pictures And The Song’, as her angelic vocals interweave in the unworldly production. She opens up to her listeners through her unguarded lyrics, from feeling hard to love to her anxiety about making mistakes.
The EP opens with her 2023 single ‘Hard To Love’. Relating to her experience with ADHD, Sikasa states on her social media that a lot of qualities associated with ADHD are often categorised as annoying and disruptive, leaving a tear in her self-esteem. Backed by soft piano chords, Sikasa’s heavenly voice and pure songwriting convey her vulnerability from start to finish as she translates the thoughts in her head into this single. ‘Wait Up’ is the second track of the new EP. This resounding single featuring Sikasa’s soulful vocals reminds her listeners they still have time, as everything will come together at the right moment.
‘Nothing To It’ is the third track in the EP about escaping the cyclical nature of life and making the same choice. Sikasa fears losing herself and voices that making the same choices feels like watching herself from the outside, walking into a trap. With the support from her celestial vocals and the delicate arrangement of the piano chords, Sikasa wonders whether learning is ever linear. ‘Nothing To It’ reveals that Sikasa is still a work in progress, as she constantly enters the same cycle of making the same choices and learning from them.
‘Work of Love’ ties the EP together, as ‘The Writing And The Pictures And The Song’ is a line from the widely praised 2023 single. Sikasa enunciates with her supernal vocals and her pure lyricism that the work of love is not for the weak and is not an easy process. The song stemmed from Sikasa’s first heartbreak, a heartbreak that was not only broken from the love but love in general. Sikasa opens a new path from this feeling towards a new perspective with the backing of heartfelt music arrangements.
‘Of Lightness And Nicotine’ is the penultimate track in the EP of her finding the balance between ‘lightness’ and ‘nicotine’ through her unearthly vocals and intangible production. The EP closes with ‘Crashing and Falling,’ Sikasa’s heart-rending single about her fear of making mistakes and “doing things wrong.” Sikasa embraces love and tenderness to pull her out of her fear, as her seraphic harmonies intertwined with the vivid music arrangements support the beautiful message that love can rescue you from your fears.
Through unlearning ideas and embracing love, Sikasa is a work in progress. Siksasa demonstrates her work of progress by moving through her fears instead of living in them and finding new perspectives of love whilst also exhibiting that love itself, from loving others to loving yourself, is also a work in progress. Most known for writing emotive songs about belonging, identity and connection from scenes from life, art and literature, she dived deep within herself and her experiences to compose grounded lyrics harmonised with her empyrean vocals and backed by the dainty composition. She invites her listeners to experience her process and inner thoughts whilst reminding them that they are also a work in progress.
Following the release of the EP, Sikasa received a nomination from BBC Introducing for Scottish Act of the Year. She also announced a tour in Scotland, due to begin in Autumn. With this soulful EP, her gift of lyricism and heavenly, warm vocals, Becky Sikasa is the next effulgent star of neo-soul and R&B”.
If you are looking around for a new artist or someone for next year that is worth watching then I would suggest that you connect with Becky Sikasa. This incredible artist is also helping to shine a light on Scottish music and its importance. It often gets overlooked in favour of artists coming out of London. The award-nominated and hugely tipped artist is someone to watch closely as I feel her career will…
TAKE her far and wide.
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