Chika (rapper)
Jane Chika Oranika (born March 9, 1997),[3] known mononymously as Chika (often stylized CHIKA), is an American rapper. She first garnered attention on social media before signing to Warner Records in 2019. The following year, she was included in XXL's 2020 Freshman Class and was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.
Early life[edit]
Chika was born in Montgomery, Alabama.[4] Because of her interest in music and slam poetry, she attended Booker T. Washington Magnet High School. She was accepted at the prestigious Berklee College of Music, but due to tuition costs, she enrolled at the University of South Alabama instead. She dropped out after her first year to focus on a music career.[5]
Personal life[edit]
Chika is the youngest of her Nigerian-American parents' three daughters. She is of Igbo descent and was raised in the Pentecostal faith.[4]
Chika is bisexual and addresses her sexuality in her music and videos.[39] In her video for "Can't Explain It", she put her own queer spin on A Different World, one of her favorite sitcoms.[40]
On May 30, 2020, Chika was briefly detained by police at a Los Angeles protest following the police murder of George Floyd. She addressed the incident on social media the following day, emphasizing the peaceful nature of the demonstration prior to police involvement.[41]
Chika shared her mental health struggles in a 2023 interview with Rolling Stone magazine published alongside the release of Samson: The Album. She described how the project had been influenced by her experiences processing trauma and disclosed that that she had been diagnosed with bipolar II disorder the year prior.[42]
Chika discography
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