“Earth Is Ghetto” – Meet the artist behind the viral hit
Yes, The Earth Is Ghetto.
It’s often said that the worst of times, produces the best of music; while the world sits patiently waiting to see what big stars have produced during the apocalyptic year just gone by, Youtuber Nikkialiah may have already created the perfect song for 2021 – Earth Is Ghetto.
Entitled ‘Earth is Ghetto’ the track is a brutal observation of the world’s shortcomings while hilarious in its imagery and creative refinement. Recently the track went viral thanks to social media and audiences relating very closely to the track’s message.
We caught up with Nikkialiah to discuss her Youtube ‘I wrote this for’ series, ‘Earth is Ghetto’ and how she worked quickly to ensure ownership over her creative content.
Tell us more about your “I wrote this song for” series, where did the idea come from and why did you start doing them?
I wrote this song because I was literally standing at the corner store on 15 the street by my house, and thinking about everything that has happened over the last 4 years. I was in a really dark place while writing this, but usually cope with being depressed about things with humor and sarcasm.
‘Earth is Ghetto’ is really taking off, can you tell us more about your headspace when you were writing the song?
This song came from a sense of helplessness. I felt like everything was wrong with the world, and I couldn’t do anything about it. I’m really into sci-fi and I’m always saying I sure hope the aliens will beam me right on up. I also happened to be watching a tik tok video by a creator named flossy, who I linked in the youtube video that I posted.
The response has been so great, tell us about the moment you saw it starting to take off?
The moment I saw it taking it off was after a blog shared it. @doyouknowdono1 on Instagram and the blog called TheBlack media also shared it. It’s been a crazy ride, and it has been a bit overwhelming since I am handling it all on my own, but I am happy that people can connect to the song.
Black creators are often seeing their work going viral and appropriated without credit or correct recognition, have you taken steps to copyright and protect it?
I was lucky enough to have this song copyrighted before this song went viral, as well as registered with BMI. I have had a lot of people expressing concerns about that and I appreciate that. The only advice I have is to make sure you have great legal representation. That should be the first thing you get.
Can we expect to hear Earth Is Ghetto getting a release on streaming platforms?
Yes, the song will definitely be released on all streaming platforms. currently working on it with people that I respect very much.
Who are your biggest musical influences?
My biggest musical influences are Aretha Franklin, Donny Hathaway, and Marvin Gaye.
What does music mean to you?
Music means everything to me. Music has saved my life more times than I can even begin to tell you.
What is your FAULT?
My FAULT is I have trouble seeing the good in everyone. I usually only see the bad. I don’t know if I should work on that or not.
Follow Nikkialiah on Youtube, Instagram, SoundCloud