Ashton Nicole Casey (born February 19, 1996), known professionally as Ashnikko ( ), is an American singer, rapper, and songwriter. They rose to prominence with their 2019 single "

Stupid Stupidity is a lack of intelligence, understanding, reason, or wit. It may be innate, assumed or reactive. The word ''stupid'' comes from the Latin word ''stupere''. Stupid characters are often used for comedy in fictional stories. Walter B ...

" with (Yung) Baby Tate, which gained viral popularity on the video-sharing platform

TikTok TikTok, known in China as Douyin (), is a short-form video hosting service owned by the Chinese company ByteDance. It hosts user-submitted videos, which can range in duration from 15 seconds to 10 minutes. TikTok is an international version ...

and was

certified platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

in the United States and Canada. Ashnikko's debut mixtape, ''

Demidevil ''Demidevil'' (stylized in all caps) is the debut mixtape by American singer-songwriter and rapper Ashnikko. It was released on January 15, 2021, through Parlophone and Warner Records. The mixtape was supported by four singles: "Cry" featuring ...

'', was released in January 2021, and spawned the singles " Daisy" and "Slumber Party" featuring

Princess Nokia Destiny Nicole Frasqueri (born June 14, 1992), known professionally as Princess Nokia, is an American rapper and songwriter. She released her debut studio album, ''Metallic Butterfly'', in 2014, followed by the 2015 mixtape ''Honeysuckle''. As P ...

Early life

Ashton Nicole Casey was born on February 19, 1996, in

Oak Ridge, North Carolina Oak Ridge is a town in northwestern Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 6,185 at the 2010 census, up from 3,988 in 2000. As of 2018, the population had risen to an estimated 6,977. Oak Ridge is northwest of the cent ...

, and raised in the city of

Greensboro Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte, North Car ...

. Their parents exposed them to diverse musical genres, such as

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

and Slipknot. They recall becoming interested in music, specifically rap music, when they listened to ''

Arular ''Arular'' is the debut studio album by British recording artist M.I.A. It was released on 22 March 2005 in the United States, and one month later in the United Kingdom, with a slightly different track listing. In 2004, the album's release was ...

'' by M.I.A. at the age of 10 and did not listen to male musicians until she was 16 years old. As a teenager, her family moved to

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, a ...

for her father's studies, spending a year there before relocating again to

Riga Riga (; lv, Rīga , liv, Rīgõ) is the capital and largest city of Latvia and is home to 605,802 inhabitants which is a third of Latvia's population. The city lies on the Gulf of Riga at the mouth of the Daugava river where it meets the Ba ...

, Latvia. At one point, they were the only American in Latvia to attend a Latvian public high school. At the age of 18, Casey moved to London by themself.

Career

2016–2019: Career beginnings and ''Hi It's Me''

Ashnikko's first song, "Krokodil", was produced by

Raf Riley Rafael Greifer, better known by his stage name Raf Riley, is a record producer and artist from North London. He was formerly a member of ExR alongside Etta Bond, and is signed to OddChild Music and has released on Diplo's Mad Decent label. ExR ...

and published to

SoundCloud SoundCloud is an online audio distribution platform and music sharing website that enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is one of the largest music streaming se ...

in July 2016. They released their first EP, ''Sass Pancakes'', under Digital Picnic Records in 2017. The EP was produced by Raf Riley and features appearances from Avelino. Ashnikko's second EP, ''Unlikeable'', was released in November 2018. The EP spawned the singles "Blow", "Nice Girl", "Invitation" featuring

Kodie Shane Kodie Shantil Marr (born Kodie Williams on October 28, 1998), better known by her stage name Kodie Shane, is an American rapper and singer. She gained recognition in 2016 for her song "Sad" featuring rapper Lil Yachty, and as a member of "Sailing ...

, and "No Brainer". Ashnikko released her third EP, ''Hi It's Me'', in July 2019. The EP was preceded by the promotional single "Special" and was launched alongside the EP's title track and lead single, "Hi It's Me". The second official single, "

", featuring

Yung Baby Tate Tate Sequoya Farris (born May 13, 1996), known professionally as Baby Tate (formerly known as Yung Baby Tate), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. The daughter of singer Dionne Farris, she released her debut project, ...

, gained viral popularity on the video-sharing platform

. The song reached number one on the ''Billboard'' Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart, the ''Billboard'' Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop chart, and the Spotify Viral 50 chart. "Stupid" was also

certified gold Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

in the United States in August 2020, as well as in Canada. Another song from the EP, "Working Bitch", also found popularity on TikTok. Ashnikko embarked on a North American tour supporting American rapper

Danny Brown Daniel Dewan Sewell (born March 16, 1981), better known by his stage name Danny Brown, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He has been described by MTV as "one of rap's most unique figures in recent memory". In 2010, after amassing ...

in October 2019. They released the promotional single "Halloweenie II: Pumpkin Spice" in October 2019. They co-wrote eight songs, two of which they are featured on, on

Brooke Candy Brooke Dyan Candy (born July 20, 1989) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and tattoo artist. Raised in the suburbs of Los Angeles, daughter of Tom Candy, former CFO of ''Hustler Magazine'', Brooke rose to prominence after starring in Gr ...

's debut album, '' Sexorcism'', which was released in October 2019.

2020–2021: Breakthrough and ''Demidevil''

Ashnikko co-wrote the song "

Boss Bitch "Boss Bitch" is a song by American rapper and singer Doja Cat, featured on the ''Birds of Prey'' soundtrack '' Birds of Prey: The Album'' (2020). It was released as the soundtrack's third single on January 23, 2020. The song was written by Doja ...

" with American rapper

Doja Cat Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini (born October 21, 1995), known professionally as Doja Cat ( ), is an American rapper and singer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, she began making and releasing music on SoundCloud as a teenager. Her song ...

, which was included on the ''

Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...

'' soundtrack, '' Birds of Prey: The Album''. Prior to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, Ashnikko was scheduled to accompany Doja Cat on her Hot Pink Tour throughout the United States in March 2020 before it was canceled. In March 2020, they released the standalone single "Tantrum". Later that month, they performed "Tantrum" live as part of ''

The Fader ''The Fader'' (stylized as ''FADER'') is a magazine based in New York City that was launched in 1999 by Rob Stone and Jon Cohen. The magazine covers music, style and culture. It was the first print publication to be released on iTunes. It is o ...

''s Digital Fader Fort event. "

Cry Crying is the dropping of tears (or welling of tears in the eyes) in response to an emotional state, or pain. Emotions that can lead to crying include sadness, anger, and even happiness. The act of crying has been defined as "a complex secreto ...

", featuring Canadian musician

Grimes Claire Elise Boucher (; born March 17, 1988), known professionally as Grimes, is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer. Her early work has been described as extending from "lo-fi R&B" to futuristic dance-pop, and has in ...

, was then released in June 2020, alongside an animated music video. The song's music video was nominated for "Best Pop Video - UK" at the 2020 UK Music Video Awards. Following this, " Daisy" was released in July 2020, and a music video for the song was released in collaboration with

Beats by Dre Beats Electronics LLC (also known as Beats by Dr. Dre, or simply Beats by Dre) is an American consumer audio products manufacturer headquartered in Culver City, California. The company was founded by music producer Dr. Dre and record company exec ...

and TikTok a month later. "Daisy" became Ashnikko's breakthrough hit, charting internationally in countries including Australia, Belgium and the United Kingdom. It reached a peak of number 24 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, becoming her first charting and first top 40 hit in the UK. Ashnikko's third Halloween song, "Halloweenie III: Seven Days", was released in October 2020. She was nominated for Best Push Act at the

2020 MTV Europe Music Awards The 2020 MTV Europe Music Awards were held on 8 November 2020 at the Breakfast Television Centre in London. The ceremony was hosted by Little Mix, making them the first group ever to host; however, only three members -- Perrie Edwards, Leigh-An ...

. "Cry" and "Daisy" both appear on Ashnikko's debut mixtape, ''

'', which was released on January 15, 2021. "Deal with It" featuring

Kelis Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perform ...

and "Slumber Party" featuring

served as the third and fourth singles from the mixtape, respectively. In support of the mixtape, Ashnikko announced The Demidevil Tour, which was set to take place in October 2021, with shows in North America, the UK, and Ireland. More recently, Ashnikko co-wrote the song "Frost" released on May 31, 2021, which figures in Korean boy band

Tomorrow X Together Tomorrow X Together (, ; Tomorrow by Together, stylized TOMORROW X TOGETHER), commonly known as TXT ( ), is a South Korean boy band formed by Big Hit Entertainment, now known as Big Hit Music. The group consists of five members: Yeonjun, Soobin ...

– TXT's album '' The Chaos Chapter: Freeze'' and its repackage album ''The Chaos Chapter: Fight or Escape'' released on August 17, 2021. She sent the hyper-pop, trap-based song over to TXT in English. The song was then translated to Korean.

2022-present: Hiatus, ''Weedkiller'' and world tour

After a year hiatus since the release of the two-side singles "Panic Attacks In Paradise" and "Maggots" on September 29, 2021, Ashnikko released her first single, "You Make Me Sick!", on February 8, 2023. On March 1, she announced the release of her debut album, ''

Weedkiller Herbicides (, ), also commonly known as weedkillers, are substances used to control undesired plants, also known as weeds.EPA. February 201Pesticides Industry. Sales and Usage 2006 and 2007: Market Estimates. Summary in press releasMain page fo ...

'', for August 25; the Weedkiller World Tour across Asia, Oceania, North America and Europe and will start on March 24 in Japan and end on December 11 in the UK; and the second single from the album, "Worms", which was released a day later. Ashnikko performed at the Coachella Arts and Music Festival on the second day of performances during the festival's two week run on April 22, 2023 in Coachella, California.

Artistry

Ashnikko's musical style has been described by critics as a fusion of several genres, including pop,

indie pop Indie pop (also typeset as indie-pop or indiepop) is a music genre and subculture that combines guitar pop with DIY ethic in opposition to the style and tone of mainstream pop music. It originated from British post-punk in the late 1970s and sub ...

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

alt-pop Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...

, hip hop,

bubblegum pop Bubblegum (also called bubblegum pop) is pop music in a catchy and upbeat style that is considered disposable, contrived, or marketed for children and adolescents. The term also refers to a rock and pop subgenre, originating in the United States i ...

indie rock Indie rock is a Music subgenre, subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the mu ...

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

, and

electropop Electropop is a hybrid music genre combining elements of electronic and pop genres. Writer Hollin Jones has described it as a variant of synth-pop with heavy emphasis on its electronic sound. The genre was developed in the 1980s and saw a re ...

. She described her style of music as "angry, punk, hip hop, sad-girl-

feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...

, bubblegum, poo-poo music", and has clarified that her music is not intended to be comedic or parody-based. Ashnikko is known for her Tokyo-inspired street fashion. She is also known for her unique, bright blue hair, which is originally brown. In the video for "Nice Girl" and some of her early

vlog A video blog or video log, sometimes shortened to vlog (), is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in ...

s, her hair is pastel green. Her hair in the "Daisy" music video is yellow, pink, and red. Ashnikko has cited her musical influences as M.I.A.,

Gwen Stefani Gwen Renée Stefani (; born October 3, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, fashion designer and actress. She is a co-founder, lead vocalist, and the primary songwriter of the band No Doubt, whose singles include "Just a Girl", "Spiderwebs ...

Lil' Kim Kimberly Denise Jones (born July 11, 1974), Those giving 1974 include: * * * * * better known by her stage name Lil' Kim, is an American rapper and reality television personality. Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York City, she lived much of he ...

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct three-octave vocal range and eccentric persona, she has de ...

Paramore Paramore is an American rock band from Franklin, Tennessee, formed in 2004. The band currently consists of lead vocalist Hayley Williams, guitarist Taylor York and drummer Zac Farro. Williams and Farro are founding members of the group, whil ...

Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, ''Let Go (Avril Lavigne album), Let Go'' (2002), is the ...

Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (; born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian-born rapper based in the United States. She is known for her musical versatility, animated flow in her rapping, alter egos and accent ...

Missy Elliott Melissa Arnette Elliott (born July 1, 1971), better known as Missy Elliott or Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliot, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. She embarked on her music career with R&B girl group Sista in the earl ...

Dolly Parton Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer-songwriter, actress, philanthropist, and businesswoman, known primarily for her work in country music. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton made her album d ...

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known Rock music, rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage ...

, and

Joan Jett Joan Jett (born Joan Marie Larkin, September 22, 1958) is an American singer, guitarist, record producer, and actress. Jett is best known for her work as the frontwoman of her band Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, and for earlier founding and per ...

, and has stated that her favorite song is " Bossy" by

. She has also listed

Tierra Whack Tierra Helena Whack (born August 11, 1995) is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. She originally performed as "Dizzle Dizz" as a teenager, but later on reverted to her birth name in 2017. Her debut studio album, ''Whack World'', was releas ...

, Rico Nasty,

Kim Petras Kim Petras (born 27 August 1992) is a German singer and songwriter based in Los Angeles, California. Between 2016 and 2020, she released music as an independent artist under her own imprint, BunHead Records, before signing with Amigo and Republ ...

, and

Charli XCX Charlotte Emma Aitchison (born 2 August 1992), known professionally as Charli XCX, is an English singer and songwriter. Born in Cambridge and raised in Start Hill, Essex, she began posting songs on Myspace in 2008, which led to her discovery ...

as her "peers" and artists she "really respects".

Personal life

Ashnikko stated on Twitter in June 2019 that she is

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whi ...

and later clarified in a 2020 interview that she is

pansexual , meaning "all" , definition = Sexual or romantic attraction to people regardless of gender , classification = Sexual identity , parent = Bisexuality , synonyms = , associated_terms = Polysexual, queer, heterofl ...

. In May 2021, Ashnikko came out as

genderfluid Non-binary and genderqueer are umbrella terms for gender identities that are not solely male or femaleidentities that are outside the gender binary. Non-binary identities fall under the transgender umbrella, since non-binary people typicall ...

on Twitter, saying that "i just didn't feel ready to tell the internet yet but i guess now's a good time since everyone's doing a dissection into my sexuality and gender identity". She uses she/her and

they/them Singular ''they'', along with its inflected or derivative forms, ''them'', ''their'', ''theirs'' and ''themselves'' (or ''themself''), is a gender-neutral third-person pronoun. It typically occurs with an unspecified antecedent, in sentence ...

pronouns. In July 2020, while discussing the meaning behind the lyrics of her single "Daisy", she said that while her family practices

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

, she does not. In December 2021, Ashnikko began dating fellow singer

Arlo Parks Anaïs Oluwatoyin Estelle Marinho (born 9 August 2000), known professionally as Arlo Parks, is a British singer and songwriter. Her debut studio album, ''Collapsed in Sunbeams'', was released in 2021 to critical acclaim and peaked at number thr ...

Advocacy

Ashnikko has described herself as a feminist and has attributed discovering

intersectional feminism Intersectionality is an analytical framework for understanding how aspects of a person's social and political identities combine to create different modes of discrimination and privilege. Intersectionality identifies multiple factors of adv ...

through

microblogging Microblogging is a form of social network that permits only short posts. They "allow users to exchange small elements of content such as short sentences, individual images, or video links",. Retrieved June 5, 2014 which may be the major reason for ...

website

Tumblr Tumblr (stylized as tumblr; pronounced "tumbler") is an American microblogging and social networking website founded by David Karp in 2007 and currently owned by Automattic. The service allows users to post multimedia and other content to a sho ...

as a teenager as a turning point for her. She has been vocal about a range of social justice issues, having spoken out about the commercialization of feminism in November 2019, while advocating for victims of police brutality through social media.

Discography

*''

'' (2023)

Awards and nominations

Tours

* The Demidevil Tour (2021) * Weedkiller Tour (2023)

Notes

References

External links

* * {{Authority control 1996 births Living people 21st-century American rappers 21st-century American women singers 21st-century American singers 21st-century American LGBT people 21st-century women rappers American expatriates in Estonia American expatriates in Latvia American expatriates in the United Kingdom American hip hop singers American indie pop musicians American indie rock musicians American LGBT singers American punk rock singers American women singer-songwriters Feminist rappers LGBT feminists LGBT people from North Carolina LGBT rappers Non-binary musicians Pansexual non-binary people Pansexual musicians Parlophone artists People from Guilford County, North Carolina Pop rappers Rappers from North Carolina Singer-songwriters from North Carolina Warner Records artists Genderfluid people