“She’s back with “Twenty Something”, a lively offering with nods to her home country’s reputation for anthemic pop as well as a love of Afrobeats” - Complex
“The perfect cocktail of contemporary production and timeless songwriting, reich with personality and prowess” – Wonderland
“Superbly soulful pop music..it’s time for the rest of the world to sit up” - Clash
The Swedish Grammy winner Zikai and hit producers Hitimpulse team up for their single ‘Hero’. Together, this hot collab delivers a laid back R&B-Pop interpolation of the 1984 classic by worldstar Bonnie Tyler. .
Zikai explains, “When we did ‘Hero’ we started writing the verses - about the feeling that many of us have felt in the last year of longing for something bigger and something different. After a while we realized that the chords were the same as the classic ‘Holding Out For a Hero’ by Bonnie Tyler so we played with the idea of having it as a chorus and shape the verses based on it. When we were done, it just felt like a completely perfect mix!”
Only 23 years old, Zikai has already been appointed “Artist of the future” by Swedish radio station P3, certified Gold as a songwriter and released her debut EP for which she received a Swedish Grammy in the category “Soul / R&B”. Zikai’s sound resonates with traces of global artists, but the overall artistry and attitude remains very much her own. Her songs including ‘Twenty Something’ and ‘Champagne For Breakfast’ touch upon Snoh Aalegra’s cinematic soul, Brandy’s throwback R&B, Mabel’s crossover appeal and Dua Lipa’s postmodern disco. There’s a palpable African pop element too, sourced from her Ivorian father’s love of the influential Afropop favourites Magic System, plus the star quality of early 2000s MTV icons Rihanna and Omarion.
She has now teamed up with Hitimpulse - a multi-talented collective with German and international roots whose had previous hits such as ‘I’m in Love with the Coco’ and produced international hits such as Nea’s ‘Some Say’, to name a few.
