Erika de Casier

Erika de Casier (2021)

**Erika de Casier e Ramos Lizardo,** known professionally as **Erika de Casier,** is a Portuguese-born Danish singer, songwriter, and record producer. She came to worldwide prominence in mid-2021 following the release of her debut single "What Do You Want From Me?". She signed to Republic Records and shortly after, she released her debut album 'Sweet Talk'. The single was supported by three singles, 'C'est La Vie' featuring Normani and 'Jezebel' all of which peaked at #8.

Following her debut album, de Casier signed with ROC NATION and released her second and most successful album as of yet , 'Artificial Bloom' (stylized as 'A R T I F I C I A L B L O O M' ) to critical acclaim. The album was supported by the singles 'BLOOD AND TIME' and 'Temperature' which peaked at #9 and #5 respectively. She subsequently toured with Rihanna as the opening act for the Truce Tour.

Her third album "SUNDANCER: Secrets Of A Girl" was released with the title track debuting and peaking at #6. Following the release of the album, Erika embarked on her first headlining tour, the 'SUPER KIND OF TOUR' throughout the summer.

Her fourth album "From Vincent's Dream" was released on October 7, 2022; supported by the singles "No Longer The Same", "Saint" and "Out Of Sight". The deluxe edition, entitled "From Vincent's Dream: Reimagined" was released a week after with remixes from Kacey Musgraves and Megan Thee Stallion.

## Life and Career

### Early Life and Career Beginnings

Erika de Casier was born in Lisbon, Portugal on March 21, 1990 to a Belgian mother and a Cape-Verdean father. Shortly after the birth of her younger brother, her family moved to Aarhus, Denmark where she and her family were subjected to racism because of their African ancestry.. Her past-times included painting and writing poetry. At age 16, she stayed with a host family in the United States and enrolled in several music programs throughout her stay.

### 2021: What Do You Want From Me? and International Breakthrough

Erika de Casier released her debut single "What Do You Want From Me?" independently and went viral on social media apps such as Twitter and Tik Tok. Soon enough, she was signed to Republic Records and the single debuted at #12 in the first week, later peaking at #8 in the second week. The single is currently Platinum in the United States.

Acclaim wise, the single opened to rave reviews with celebrities like Rihanna and Carrie Underwood celebrating the track as a refreshing take on R&B music.

### 2021: Sweet Talk

de Casier would release two more singles before the release of her debut album 'Sweet Talk". The second single "C'est La Vie" featuring Normani debuted and peaked at #8 and is certified Gold . While the title track was released as a promotional single and later peaked at #28. The album, a concept record about archetypes and relationships in the internet age, opened to rave reviews and earned a 75 on Metacritic. Commercially, the album debuted at #3 in the United States with 241,000 copies sold in the first week. The album has since been certified gold following a re-issue of the record entitled Sweet Talk: Sugarcoated.

### 2021: A R T I F I C I A L B L O OM

Soon after the release of her album, Erika de Casier flew to Los Angeles to begin production for her second album. While continuing the themes present in her debut, Erika's second album sees a shift, incorporating alternative R&B and hip-hop into her electro-R&B canon. Presented as a tragedy in three acts, Erika de Casier revealed to music journalists and consumers that this record is the second act of a three-part story. While Sweet Talk explores Erika’s transformation while staying at the Ace Hotel, 'A R T I F I C I A L B L O O M' focuses on the events leading up to Erika’s experience at the club of the same name.  The lead single "BLOOD AND TIME" was released, debuting and peaking at #9. The album would debut at #2, thus making it Erika's highest peak on the album charts. The second single "Temperature" was remixed with Raedio artist Teamarr and rose to a peak of #5 on the singles chart, thus being Erika's highest peak as a lead artist.

### 2022: 'SUNDANCER: Secrets Of A Girl' and 'SUPER KIND OF TOUR'

Erika de Casier opted to spend the winter in Rio de Janerio, where she began writing for the next album. Influenced by 90s neo-soul albums and electronica, de Casier wanted to close out the trilogy with "cinematic lyrics" and a "shocking finale" Following the New Year, Erika traveled to the US East Coast, recording in New York and Philadephia for the remainder of the pre-production period. The lead single 'SUNDANCER' is a bright, pop-soul track. Released in the spring, the single debuted and peaked at #6 on the single charts. The album debuted and peaked at #5 on the album charts, marking de Casier's third top five album.

Subsequent singles included 'SUPER KIND OF LOVE' and 'No Malice' which peaked at #11 and #21 respectively. To support the release of her newest album, Erika de Casier embarked on her first world tour, the 'SUPER KIND OF TOUR' which saw Erika touring throughout five continents over the course of the summer.

### 2022: From Vincent's Dream

Following the release of “Sundancer: Secrets of A Girl” , Erika de Casier embarked on her first headlining tour, the “Super Kind Of Tour.’ During the tour, Erika began writing a majority of the album, with some tracks appearing on the “Live In London” live album. The lead single “No Longer The Same” appeared on the aforementioned album, although as an acoustic rendition. The single version is a drill, alternative dance and hyper-pop song produced by Mura Masa. Her third album under Roc Nation, Erika was pleased to find out that her creative control would not only be respected but expanded.

Sessions for the album officially began in late May, where de Casier and her collaborators were sequestered in Glasgow, Scotland for six weeks. On the seventh week, de Casier returned to the United States, completing the album in early August. Out of the thirty-five tracks recorded, only twelve were selected for the final tracklist. When asked about the remaining tracks, de Casier “plans to release them on a deluxe edition or through spontaneous media appearances.

The singer released the song “Let Me Get It” to streaming services internationally as the first promotional single of the era. The promotional single went on to peak at #31 on the singles charts. On September 25, Erika announced that the album would be released on October 7 with the lead single “No Longer The Same” being released on September 30.  The single 'No Longer The Same' debuted and peaked at #10, The album was released to platforms internationally on October 7 on all digital, physical and streaming platforms. The album would debut and peak at #6.

### 2023: "QT", Worldwide Erika, and upcoming tour

Erika would fulfill her contract with the greatest hits record "Eternally, Erika". With minimal promotion, the album debuted and peaked at #9, marking the lowest debut of any Erika de Casier album. Erika would go radio silent for the rest of the year, citing personal issues as well as a lack of inspiration. In the fall of 2023, Erika would return to Tootland and surprised release her single "QT", which debuted and currently holds a peak at #18 on the singles charts. The following week would see her remix the track with Olivia Rodrigo under the "Buffering Butterfly Mix". She would also appear on the latter's remix of the number one single "never be like her", which would go on to peak at #2.

Erika would announce the title of her album "Worldwide Erika" alongside a world tour of the same name. Expected for a late November release, Erika has stated that the record takes a piece of her previous albums in an effort to make something new and fresh, noting it as her "Last Y2K inspired record".

Erika de Casier took to Tootland to tease a new single, and revealed the song to be a collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion and The Weeknd. The song, titled "Click" was released on Sunday, November 12th and the music video would be completed a day later. The single would peak at #8, marking Erika’s return to the top ten as a lead artist.

On the evening of November 14, 2023, Erika announced via her Tootland account that her album, entitled "Worldwide Erika", would be released on November 21, 2023 on digital and streaming platforms, as well as on vinyls and CDs.The album debuted at #6 and currently holds a peak at #5 after a viral re-issue.

## Artistry

### Music and Voice

Erika de Casier is a mezzo-soprano "with a voice that has an overarching sweet and warm timbre that carries throughout the range, which works beautifully to create layered harmonies" says Dani Bloom of Pitchfork. Erika de Casier has been heralded as one of the most versatile newcomers with albums covering every corner of R&B and venturing into the alternative and the experimental. UK garage, electronica, alternative dance and bossa nova are some of the genres de Casier's albums contain.

#### Influences

Erika de Casier cites The Weeknd, Rihanna and Troye Sivan as major influences on her music and marketing. Following her collaboration with Normani, de Casier admitted that Kordei-Hamilton was "a huge inspiration on the single Jezebel". The 'Artifical Bloom' era has been likened to Rihanna's INDUCIA record while 'From Vincent's Dream' has been compared, aesthetically, to Demi Lovato's recent efforts.

## Public Image

Erika de Casier has been described as the internet's 'it-girl' due to her viral success and her introverted nature. Outside of music, Erika de Casier has partnered with NPR and Apple Music, creating a podcast titled 'From Erika's Imagination' where she discusses internet phenomenon with established academics, pop stars and YouTubers alike. ' Echo' is a venture created by Erika de Casier and Tim Cook of Apple Music. Many were quick to call 'Echo' a rival to the COLORS platform on YouTube.

### Fashion

Erika de Casier typically dresses in earth toned colors, donning heavy jackets and comfortable, solid color pants. She also opts for relaxed combinations of blue jeans and pastel tops.

## Other Ventures

### Politics

Due to her Danish upbringing and her relationship with her blackness, Erika has frequently shared leftist perspectives about the world. She is an avid supporter of the LGBTQ+ community and frequently speaks about her role as a woman of color in the electronic scene.

## Awards and Achievements

*Main article: Erika de Casier/Awards*
Best New Artist • Billboard Music Awards

## Discography

*Main article: Erika de Casier/Discography*
#### Studio Albums

* Sweet Talk (2021)
* A R T I F I C A L B L O O M (2021)
* SUNDANCER, Secrets of A Girl (2022)
* From Vincent's Dream (2022)
* Worldwide Erika (2023)

## Tours

### Headlining

* Super Kind of Love Tour (2022)
* Worldwide Erika Tour (2023)

## Galleries

### Artwork Gallery

**Albums**

Sweet TalkSweet Talk - SugarcoatedARTIFICIAL BLOOMARTIFICIAL BLOOM (GOLDEN EDITION)SUNDANCER :SECRETS OF A GIRLLive In LondonFrom Vincent's DreamFrom Vincent's Dream: ReimaginedE T E R N A L L Y , E R I K AWorldwide ErikaWorldwide Erika (The E-Verse)
**Singles**

What Do You Want From Me?What Do You Want From Me? (Y2K House Mix)C'est La VieC'est La Vie (Blue Dreaming Mix)Sweet TalkJezebelJezebel (Babylon Remix)BLOOD AND TIMEBLOOD AND TIME (JLin Rework)TEMPERATURETEMPERATURE (Remix)SUNDANCERSUNDANCER (LET IN THE LIGHT MIX)SUPER KIND OF LOVESUPER KIND OF LOVE (RADIO EDIT)NO MALICELet Me Get ItNo Longer the SameSaintOut Of SightOut Of Sight (Remix)QTQT (The Buffering Butterfly Mix)ClickClick (Remix)Into The UnknownLightsHoliday LightsGLOSSY