Chelsea Nikkel

### Associated Acts

The Brunettes • Jonathan Bree • Teenwolf • The Cosbys and Disciples of Macca • Hang Loose

### Website

https://princesschelsea.lilchiefrecords.com

**Chelsea Nikkel** (born September 4th, 1985), better known by her stage name **Princess Chelsea**, is a singer-songwriter and producer from Auckland, New Zealand.

A classically trained pianist, Nikkel lent her talents to self-professed "circus punk" act Teen Wolf in the mid-2000s, and later in the touring lineup of indie pop outfit The Brunettes. When she wasn't performing, she worked as a composer for a local recording studio, all the while refining her songwriting and production skills.

Her full-length debut as Princess Chelsea, Lil'Golden Book, was released in late 2011 by New Zealand label Lil' Chief Records. The album was a collection of songs about her youth presented with innocent melodies and baroque arrangements to create a musical fairy tale. She made videos for many songs from the album, and the clip for "The Cigarette Duet" earned over 20 million views on Youtube. The song was a duet with an ex-member of The Brunettes, Jonathan Bree. He featured on the next Princess Chelsea album, The Great Cybernetic Depression, a synth-heavy sci-fi opera about a future world rendered helpless in the face of depression brought on by technology. The album was released by Lil' Chief Records and Flying Nun in June 2015.

In 2016 Nikkel released an album of covers, recorded between 2010-2016. It was titled Aftertouch after the song of the same name by *Disasterradio*. In 2018 a single "I Love My Boyfriend" was released to promote Nikkel's then upcoming fourth studio album, The Loneliest Girl. The accompanying music video earned over 4 million views on Youtube and became the second most known Princess Chelsea's song. The album was recorded between 2016 and 2017 in her home studio in West Auckland, New Zealand. The Loneliest Girl examines the loneliness and ultimately the artistic satisfaction a strong work ethic can bring.

In 2019 Chelsea began working on her fifth full-length album, while she was going through a rough patch in her life. Dubbed as her "*nervous breakdown album*", Everything Is Going To Be Alright heavily incorporates guitars and live-like quality of the recording. It takes the listener through Chelsea's healing journey in a hopeful but melancholic way.

## Fun trivia

* Chelsea can play piano, guitar, drums and clarinet.
* Her parents are Jehovah’s Witnesses.
* Chelsea's lyrics are often a narrative, because she's afraid she might reveal too much of herself.
* If Chelsea was a dog, she would be a Golden Retriever. And her bandmates think she would either be a Siamese or a Maine Coon, if she was a cat.
* Paul McCartney is her favourite Beatle.
* Chelsea's top three movies are *Drive*, *The Notebook* and *Lars and the Real Girl*.
* Chelsea's favourite novel is *The Dice Man* by Luke Reinhardt. She also enjoys Flannery O’Connor’s and Roald Dahl‘s short stories and a fan of Richard Brautigan‘s prose.
* Her favourite meal is Buffalo Wings with celery and blue cheese dip, and an iceberg salad with roasted pecans, green apple, scallions and balsamic dressing.

## Social media & other links

* Twitter
* Instagram
* Facebook
* Bandcamp
* Soundcloud
* Merch
* Linktree