“I just wanna do my thing,” goes the chorus of Erika de Casier’s addictive new single, “go out to the club ‘til the early morning/ Jump around like ain’t nobody watching/ I don’t really care that my baby calling.” Do My Thing, as you’ll have gathered, is about self-liberation, acceptance and having no shame. Out now on the Copenhagen artist’s own label, Independent Jeep Music, the self-penned self-produced track blends 90s G-funk with R&B and ends up with something that sounds thoroughly now.
Already sold on the single, we’re stoked to be premiering the accompanying music video, shot by Erika’s pal and fellow CPH music maker Catharina from Smerz. Super lo-fi, we join Erika as she bikes from her apartment in Frederiksberg to a club in the centre of town, singing the whole way.
“I grew up watching MTV, and rap videos always had fancy cars, money, bling and all that,” Erika. remembers. “Because the track has a lot of G-funk references, my first thought was: I need to rent a convertible. But I can’t relate to all that, and since the track is called Do My Thing, I thought I’d make a classic rap video in my own style instead. I live in Copenhagen and we all bike everywhere — it doesn’t get more real than that. Plus I am broke and had no budget for the video.” We stan a resourceful artist.
Keep peddling and meet Erika via these 10 interesting facts below.
1. Erika has lived all over the world
“I moved around a lot as a kid, so when people ask where I’m from it’s quite a difficult question to answer. I have lived in Portugal, Denmark and in the US, and my parents are from Belgium and Cape Verde.”
2. It has had its ups and downs
“The best thing about moving around is that you get to see different places and you easily adapt to changes. The worst thing about it is that it has been difficult to keep friendships and family bonds long distance.”
3. Her earliest music memory is very 90s
“I think I was about four years old and dancing in kindergarten around a boom blaster to Ace of Base, All That She Wants.”
4. As is her current sound
“When I moved to Denmark in 1998, I couldn’t speak Danish, so the only TV channel I watched was MTV. I remember being mesmerised by Brandy and Monica’s The Boy Is Mine. I love Aaliyah, Destiny’s Child, Craig David, Usher, Janet Jackson, Toni Braxton and so on. I’m also into house, garage, techno… I’m an open listener and I am influenced by many different genres.”
5. She always wears her helmet when biking
“My friend once got a concussion where he had to sit in a dark room for months. He couldn’t listen to music or read or anything. He was lucky nothing else happened. I don’t want that.”
6. This is her jam rn
“To keep it in the 90s R&B genre I’m going for both 702, Where My Girls At (1999) and Something For The People, My Love Is The Shhh! (1997)”
7. She reckons that the fictional crew her and her buddies Smerz are most like is…
“Maybe The Powerpuff Girls? They’re cute and powerful at the same time.”
8. She once shared a special moment with Pharrell Williams
“I had eye-contact with Pharrell back in 2005. So yeah, guess you could say we’re close. My mum drove me and my best friend for four hours and we stood in line for even longer just to see him perform one song at the Nordic Music Awards. It was Can I Have It Like That ft. Gwen Stefani.”
9. We’re confident that Erika is well on the way to achieving her dreams
“I want to make music that people connect with, and I want to be able to do it full-time without a side job. I’d also like to live in a house so I can have a cat.”
10. Her workout tips double as great life advice
“Me and some friends started running a few months ago, and my friend Catharina, who is an experienced runner, gave this great motivational speech: The only rule is that you can’t stop before you get to the end-point. You can go as slow as you want, but if you stop, you’ll teach your body that it is an option to stop.”