Today I’m going to be telling you about our Artist of the Week, Singer-Songwriter
Dama Vicke
( IG: @damavicke )
Here’s her story in her own words, enjoy!
VMS: “Tell me about your beginnings and When did you start writing and performing your music.”
Dama Vicke: “I grew up in a house of music lovers, musicians. My mom loved to sing, besides that she was model. I was exposed to all kinds of genres, I have a big family so I had the privilege to listen to a little bit of everything. The first time I experienced my first live show, was at one of uncle’s concert, he’s a guitarist and had a rock band; I was around 5 or 6 years old when I first sang on stage at one of his concerts. When I heard and saw the crowd clapping and cheering, that’s when I knew this was for me.”
VMS: “What artist or bands inspire you and your sound.”
Dama Vicke: “I pretty much listen to everything, from experimental, to krautrock, to bossanova, boleros. Some of the bands/artists I love are Thom Yorke, Radiohead, Can, Massive Attack, Portishead, Caetano Veloso, Miles Davis, Yussef Dayes, Hiatus Kaiyote, Knower.”
VMS: “What’s your writing process and inspiration for your lyrics.”
Dama Vicke: “My writing process has to be very intimate, I love spending time on my own to truly get connected with my feelings and emotions. I could easily seclude myself for days. I like to stay home, away from everything, I feel satisfied with what I want to accomplish.
Also, I start by identifying the sound I want, I imagine what I want to hear in that moment, I’m always looking for that something that can lead me to get into the zone. I love poetry, surrealism, visual arts, film, contemporary dance, so I try to get deep into my thoughts so that I can put together and reach all of the ideas I have in my mind.”
VMS: “I love your songs “Won’t Feel Sorry For You”, “Elefante”, “Te Quiero Mal” and “Entre Sus Piernas” .What is the inspiration or story behind these songs.”
Dama Vicke: “Thank you! “Elefante” is a song that was created for a film my friend Carla Forte (filmmaker) is writing and directing, it’s about patriarchy, the elephant represents power, intelligence, love, strength. It was written between me, Omar Roque, and Javier Guell. On drums we had Alfonso Andre (caifanes) as special guest.”
Listen to “Elefante” on Spotify:
“Won’t feel sorry for you”. ..That song was born in Miami, I was playing bass in a band I had with my friend Daniella. We started this project called Fantastic Oms in honor of the film Fantastic Planet (La Planète sauvage). “Won’t feel sorry for you” also won Best Song at International Music Video Awards in Paris and also I was awarded as Revelation Artist at the same Film Festival.
We had been jamming for weeks writing songs as an electronic duo for the new project. One night I grabbed the bass and I came up with this bass line that had an obscure trip hop vibe, Daniella started playing the keys and wrote this dark and pretty melody for the intro. recorded the bass line so that I could focus in melody and lyrics. That same night we came up with a big part of the song.
Unfortunately we put that project aside and never released it.
Later on, I reached out to keyboardist/producer Jason Matthews, I really liked the production in one of his projects called Twyn, so I thought he would be perfect for WFSFY. He’s an amazing artist, I truly respect his work and the production he did on this song.”
Listen to “Won’t Feel Sorry For You” on Spotify:
“Te Quiero Mal” and “Entre sus Piernas” were both written around the same time, they both talk about toxic relationships. Those are my angry love songs. Both were produced by Sam Fisher who I met through John Tovar, a manager I had back then. Sam and I clicked as soon as I showed him my songs, we both have a similar taste in music, which I love because that made everything easier for both, he understood exactly what I was looking for. Since then, we’ve been working together, he is currently producing my album.”
Listen to “Te Quiero Mal” on Spotify:
Listen to
“Entre sus Piernas” on Spotify:
VMS: “What do you want your audience to feel and experience at one of your live shows.”
Dama Vicke: “I want to be able to project my emotions and have my audience embrace them as their own.”
VMS: “Which local artist would you like to work with and why.”
Dama Vicke: “There are several artists I’d love to collaborate with, for example, Coco Jenkins and Uhmeesa, I just love their style and stage presence.”
VMS: “Do you have a favorite song that you like to perform.”
Dama Vicke: “Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday.”
VMS: “Do you have any crazy or interesting stories from working in the music scene.”
Dama Vicke: “A couple of months before I moved to Vegas, I was researching the local scene, I wanted to know what was it like before the pandemic so I found a vibrant scene with really good bands, I came across Sam and Leo’s Instagram and loved their videos of them playing guitar and keys.
Not long after moving here I stumbled on them playing on the re-opening First Friday after the pandemic. I recognized them so I was pretty excited to meet them. Eventually, I’d end up working with them and a lot of other great musicians from the local scene, including Jeymar Perez.”
VMS: “What’s your overall theme or message of your music.”
Dama Vicke: “My music carries my essence, it’s like a diary, if you peek, you will learn a lot from me. I love exploring with weird sounds, weird chords, moods, and dynamics, like if it was an experimental ride in a film. When I’m on stage, seeing people’s reactions is what gives me fuel to keep doing this, it enchants me every time. My message is to not be afraid of our dark side, to embrace it, confront it, acknowledge it, and take care of it, our brain and mind is like a garden, it has different weather all the time. However, as artists, we have the power to influence, it’s a big responsibility that we have, music is magic, is a superpower.”
VMS: “What does the future hold for Dama Vicke.”
Dama Vicke: “I’m releasing my album, we have a bunch of things planned out, so as soon as we have everything ready, we will announce it.”
It’s hard to put into the proper words what exactly I love about Dama Vicke, since there are so many pieces to the puzzle, so I will focus on how her music makes me feel, which is probably the most honest opinion I can give.
She dives into your soul, making you experience on a deeper level all the emotions that sometimes as humans we might forget to tap into sometimes; like love, loss, longing, and everything in between. Creating an expansive and beautiful ethereal landscape that she paints with her haunting vocals and devastatingly peotic and beautifully tragic music, all while blending an intoxicating otherworldly sound that leaves you begging for more.
She is a master of pushing the boundaries of music, and I appreciate that she’s not listening to what’s popular, instead, she’s listening to her instincts and what feels right for her, which is incredibly smart and shows that she doesn’t need outside influences. She will create the pulse, not replicate it, and I know for one I’m genuinely excited to see where she takes me next on this amazing journey.
—-VMS
Dama Vicke’s new song, “Soft Soap” is available now on all digital platforms including MTV, MTV Tr3s, Vevo, and VEVO tv.
For more information about Dama Vicke please visit her website: