Nilka Opens Up About Spirituality and Mental Health on “Mercy”

November 7, 2022

Written from a place of deep anxiety and fear, Nilka’s “Mercy” is both undeniably danceable and incredibly powerful. The track finds the alt-pop singer breaking down her walls and allowing her weaknesses to show as she leans on the fortitude of faith. She explains that the track was written after losing her bartending job in the wake of the global pandemic and watching her husband work on the front lines as a paramedic. “Fear and anxiety were swallowing me,” she says. “I leaned on my faith and God a lot, and although so many times I felt like I was just putting a new bandaid over a wound that wasn’t healing, I know it saved me from a truly dark place.” Singing the word “mercy” with willful persistence over a dreamy trip-hop beat, Nilka brings listeners right into her mental fluctuations with profound candor. Speaking openly about her mental health and spirituality, Nilka sings “A crack of thunder sends darkness over me. Eclipsing wonder with my anxieties. This storm is strong, but your love secures me. So I’m holding on, covered by mercy.” Committed to practicing healthy habits for her own mental health despite still having bad days, Nilka shares what she’s learned. “Even if everything falls completely out of my control and I have to experience the worst case scenario, I am still anchored by faith and love.” “Mercy” is Nilka’s fourth single off of her 7-song collection written from personal life and faith experiences through the pandemic.

ABOUT NILKA:

Florida-native artist, Nilka, is transcending the soul-pop genre with her fluid vocals and dreamy bedroom production. Nilka fell in love with creating songs as a young girl fusing her thoughts to a string of notes with lyrics originating back to the early age of nine years old. Five years later she taught herself how to play guitar, cementing her melody-lyric combinations and her pensive songs became like entries in a journal. Songwriting was a way for Nilka to confront experiences in her life and music became her outlet. Throughout grade school, she participated in different bands and choirs where she became fascinated with the impression symphonic music could leave on an audience and she has been inspired by a broad spectrum of genres from Motown to Folk music. In 2014 Nilka graduated from Polk State College with an Associate’s of Arts degree emphasized in music where she studied Classical Voice. During the summer of 2014, Nilka relocated to Nashville, Tennessee to finish her Bachelor’s of Music degree at Belmont University in Commercial Voice and Songwriting.

Nilka has been releasing music since 2017 and during that time has gained song placements on HULU’s series “Light as a Feather” as well as the series “Love Island Australia”. Her songs have been released by EDM labels such as NoCopyrightSounds and Magic Records and now in the next 12 months, she is set to release her first self-produced album project consisting of seven songs that reflect on her spirituality and deepest relationships. Nilka’s lyrics undeniably share a message of how powerful and sacrificial true love is and her music captivates listeners with a soul-moving experience revealing a unique and authentic perspective of the human experience.