Nicki Nicole Shares How Rap Music Became Her Escape

It’s a drizzly Thursday afternoon in New York City and Nicki Nicole has spent most of the day answering constant interview questions from journalists. For someone who just finished a tour between Latin America and Europe, let alone nine sold-out shows at Movistar Arena in Buenos Aires, where more than 100,000 fans were in attendance, you’d think she’d be ready to slow down. But hours before our conversation, she announced that her first US headlining tour would kick off next month in Mexico City. You can see the tunnel vision in her blue eyes. The fans who have been by her side since day one are the motivation for her to keep trying.

The 23-year-old budding singer, rapper and songwriter has solidified his name in his native Argentina. Nicole Cucco prides herself on never sticking to just one genre when creating music; it helped position her as a multidimensional creator interested in bridging the gap between singing and rapping.

With the announcement of the US leg of her tour, new music will do just that. Her first single of the year, “Ojos Verdes”, is a cumbia ballad inspired by personal situations she has been through, most likely a reference to her recent public breakup with Peso Pluma. The lyrics mean: “But you brought out the best in me / And I realized it the day you left.”

“Since I was a young girl, I listened to cumbia and knew a lot about it. The only time I ever composed a cumbia song was with [band] Angeles Azules,” she said. “Now I feel comfortable and prepared to write my own songs, so this is me doing it myself.”

Nicole has come a long way in a short amount of time. Her 2019 debut album “Recuedros,” was filled with pop, soulful R&B and urbano tunes, including her standout single, “Wapo Traketero,” which she performed a few years later on “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” – making her the first Argentine artist to perform on a late night show.

Meanwhile, her second studio album of 2021, “Parte de Mí”, revolves around upbeat reggaeton, hip-hop and pop sounds, along with strong collaborations from artists such as Rauw Alejandro, Mora and Mon Lafarte, to name just a few artists. “ALMA,” a self-exploratory album that fuses reggaeton, Latin R&B and dark ballads, was nominated for “Best urban album” at the 2023 Latin Grammy Awards.

“The truth is that every album and every song I release really helps me develop my music,” she said. “If you listen to my first and third albums, you can see the growth not only in my voice but in my overall concepts, even the way I express myself. I love when people have I can see that progress in my music.”

Her fourth studio album is still a work in progress, but Nicole notes that the overall concept of the project is complete. “I didn’t want to limit myself or rush the album. I’m always learning something new. Just being in New York for a week, I created some incredible songs,” she said. “For this next project, when it comes to structure and melody, there will be a lot of hip-hop, R&B and rap – that will be the focus. However, musically, in addition to my next project, me, there will be many surprises.” That will happen this year.”

Growing up, Nicole’s musical influences were diverse. She grew up with tango, cumbia, rock and many different genres. “Amy Winehouse, Christina Aguilera, Kendrick Lamar are some of the artists that have influenced my music,” she said. I have never worked on rock music as a solo artist, but that is something I plan to explore as well.”

Nicole’s love of hip-hop began when she was 15 years old, around the time she began participating in freestyle competitions. She remembers being intrigued by “The Get Down,” the Netflix series focusing on the birth and development of hip-hop in New York City, and wanted to learn more about the genre’s origins.

“Before watching [the series], I knew somewhat about the history of hip-hop, but as I continued watching, I wanted to learn more about this world, it really caught my attention,” Nicole said. “I started listening to music rap more; I loved them all. I’m very sad because the show only has one season.”

At age 17, the younger Nicki Nicole was competing in freestyle competitions, which helped shape her wordplay today. Her favorite rappers past and present include Nuyorican rappers Hurricane G, Lauryn Hill, Queen of ivy, Nathy Peluso, and her sister, Sofía Gabanna. The rise of hip-hop culture in Argentina is not new; it has been a movement for a while now. Nicole is grateful to El Quinto Escalón, known as Argentina’s most prominent rap competition, held from 2012 to 2017 in Buenos Aires. Duki, Paolo Londra, Milo J and many others – each with their own style and essence – all participated in the competition and are key figures in the Argentine hip-hop scene today.

As a white Argentinian woman, Nicole understands that she occupies a space created and originated by black people — hip-hop is black history. It was never hers to begin with, so as an outsider, it’s imperative that she navigate it thoughtfully and avoid any cultural appropriation.

“This is not my fight to start, and people can easily co-opt a space they haven’t started, but I will never own the space I’m a guest in,” she said. . . “Knowing the origins of hip-hop is important, bringing visibility to the things that have happened in the culture in the past, and so many incredible rappers have made these spaces, appropriation is not Time is something I never intended to do.” .”

She says she also owes hip-hop and rap culture for helping her break out of her shell and forge her freedom.

She shared: “I like hip-hop, but mainly rap, which taught me how to express myself when freestyling. Not only musically, but it also taught me how to get out of my shell because I used to very shy”. “Everything I don’t have [courage] to say it live, I would say it freestyle, in the studio, in a battle, and I learned to express myself this way. And through freestyle, I learned how to be social and it also helped me in my personal life in how I talk to people.”

With so much music and talent coming from Argentina – Cazzu, Emilia, Tiago PZK, Duki, Maria Becerra, etc. – Nicki Nicole is proud of the greatness that comes from her country.

“I know that every Argentinian artist who is making work right now really deserves recognition,” she said. “I know a lot of them, so that makes me happy because I know all the work and effort behind it all, and I know that they do all this because they dreamed it. It’s an honor to know them.”

As Nicki Nicole prepares for her tour and plans world domination, she’s unaffected by any outside noise – anything that interferes with her work. Nothing can stop her, unless it’s the chance to get on set with the legend Tego Calderón or the electropop band Miranda, which she hopes will one day become a reality. What keeps her going is her family, friends, and enjoying what she does.

“I am truly achieving everything I have ever dreamed of and that is what keeps me going,” she said. “Being able to support my parents, being able to spend time with the people I love, that’s the most important thing to me in this world of music.”

Brenda Barrientos is a Peruvian-American journalist and social strategist with over seven years of experience. In addition to her work on social media, Brenda also writes about music and culture, with a particular focus on Latinx creators. In addition to PS, her writing has also been published by Billboard, Byrdie, People en Español, Refinery29, Rolling Stone, etc.