| Intro | American singer songwriter |
| Is |
Musician Composer Songwriter |
| From | United States of America |
| Type | Music |
| Gender | female |
| Birth | 22 November 1994, Miami, Miami-Dade County, Florida, U.S.A. |
| Age: | 25 years |
| Star sign | Sagittarius |
Briana Alexa Martinez (born November 22, 1994), commonly known by her stage name Brika, is an American Singer and Songwriter. She releases music under independent record label Art House Records. On February 23, 2015, Brika was included as one of New Music Seminar’s ‘Artist on the Verge’ by “a hand-selected A&R committee comprised of NMS partners, talent scouts, buyers, booking agents, taste-makers and other industry experts”, as reported by Billboard. Brika’s music has circulated Annie Mac’s Musical Hot Water Bottle program on BBC Radio 1. She was selected for ASCAP’s Latin On the Spot feature on June 10, 2014. Her debut album Voice Memos was released December 16, 2014.
Early Life and Career
Brika was born November 22, 1994 in Miami and is of Cuban descent. She is the second eldest of two sisters and one brother. Brika was intrigued about music since she was an infant, which eventually led to teaching herself how to play the piano and write her own songs.
She met music producer Julio Reyes Copello through his son, Alejandro Reyes, whom she was romantically involved with. After being together for a year, he told his father about her ability to sing. She stated “one day we were having dinner and Julio asked when he would hear me sing. I said never!” and said “Then my boyfriend physically carried me down the stairs, took me to their in-home studio, and I was kind of forced to play an old song I made up… that was that!”. Brika began to work with Reyes Copello in 2012 and signed with his independent record label in 2013.
On December 20, 2013, Brika released her first single “Mumbai” on iTunes followed by “Expectations”, “Options”, and “Gold” in 2014. Her critically acclaimed single “Expectations” is considered to be her “breakout single” and was listed on the established blog aggregator, Hype Machine’s Zietgeist Most blogged and Favorited Tracks of 2014′.
Her debut album Voice Memos, a creative process that lasted approximately a year and a half, was released December 17, 2014 and circulated through college radio stations around North America. It includes a collaboration with rapper BOGART on a track titled “Go”. Voice Memos was listed on HillyDilly’s Top 25 Debuts of 2014. The album had an exclusive premiere on Hype Machine a week before its official release, after climbing to the top of its ‘Most Popular’ Chart throughout the year. Notable blog Indie Shuffle listed Brika as an “Artist To Watch in 2015”.
Brika took part in an acoustic performance with electronic artist, Kygo, in Miami, Florida on the weekend of his performance at Ultra Music Festival in 2015. She is set to tour during the year.
Artistry
Her sonic identity has been characterized as “alt-soul… simplistic yet powerful in nature” with a vocally “sultry tone”. Brika has expressed that she draws inspiration from “bits and pieces of everything, even visuals”. Journalist Brianne Nemiroff, of Viva Glam Magazine, has compared her sound to Billie Holiday and Banks. Brika states her “greatest inspiration is being in the middle of action”.
Discography
Albums
Voice Memos
- Released: December 16, 2014
- Singles: “Mumbai”, “Expectations”, “Options”, “Gold”