Stay tuned, Toronto, you’re about to see one of the best releases of 2020! Today, Canadian songwriter, film composer, model and curator TiKA releases her new single, “Sideways”.
But more to come: she’s also dropping her debut album, Anywhere But Here, via Next Door Records on February 26th, 2021.
The album will feature records that boast “ethereal sounds that wrap around you, reminding you of other memories”. As the artist herself, her work is surely evolving, but the vibe is said to remain current, which makes me pretty happy!
Anywhere But Here is produced by TiKa’s friend and fellow artist, Casey MQ, and will feature a duet with the R’n’B artist Desiire. The album will address deeply personal themes, and one of the tracks is actually inspired by Tika’s Jamaican roots. So, while we’re excitedly looking forward to check it out, let’s get back to Sideways.
TiKa says that Sideways was created during the moment of her life that she refers to as “a vulnerable place of immense pain”. She says she’d made a mistake with a friend, which led to her feeling “a great deal of shame”.
“I didn’t know what to do because I felt that I had ruined the relationship to the point of not turning back,” TiKA says. “It made me feel unbalanced and insecure.”
Sketched by @claritytarot
She says that despite all the life-changing moments that we can face, one of the things that she can always count on is music and freedom.
“Music to guide my steps, freedom in the reality that I was indeed human and flawed,” TiKA says. “Despite the remorse, I was encouraged by the fact that there may be room in every heart for reconciliation and redemption.”
TiKA is a rising star who started this path about five years ago. She’s inspired by a lot of Black Queer women of the 90’s, such as Meshell Ndegeocello, Tracy Chapman, Dionne Farris and Diana King. She says they’ve inspired her with the “rawness and grace in what they were saying through music”, and with all my heart I can say she’s carrying on their legacy.
Her upcoming album, Anywhere But Here, is set to be just like that. Powerful, raw, and graceful; featuring similar qualities of her favorite artists.
So check out Sideways now, and be on the look out for more to come!