Nicki Richards (born

Honolulu Honolulu ( ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, located in the Pacific Ocean. It is the county seat of the Consolidated city-county, consolidated City and County of Honol ...

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, United States on March 24) is an American singer, songwriter, producer and actress based in Manhattan, New York City. She is also known as a backing singer for a number of artists and on a big number of studio recordings. Her father was a high-ranking African-American naval officer and her mother, Donna Blackmon, a singer. Nicki's brother, Philip Richards is a singer / musician in his own right and collaborated with her in her works. Nicki Richards had her first public appearances in commercials when she was only five years old. She had her break when she won the Grand Prize on the singing competition

Star Search ''Star Search'' (later known as ''Ed McMahon's Star Search'') is an American television show that was produced by T.P.E./ Rysher Entertainment from 1983 to 1995, hosted by Ed McMahon, and created by Al Masini. A relaunch was produced by 29 ...

. In 1991, she released her own debut album ''Naked (To the World)'' on

Atlantic Records Atlantic Recording Corporation (simply known as Atlantic Records) is an American record label founded in October 1947 by Ahmet Ertegun and Herb Abramson. Over the course of its first two decades, starting from the release of its first recor ...

written and co-produced by her after being signed to a deal by

Ahmet Ertegun Ahmet Ertegun ( ; , ; July 31, 1923 – December 14, 2006) was a Turkish-American businessman, songwriter, record executive and philanthropist. Ertegun was the co-founder and president of Atlantic Records. He discovered and championed many lead ...

. The set featured two Top 40 singles in "Naked" and a cover of Seals & Crofts' "Summer Breeze." Subsequently, she recorded and performed for several years with

Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone ( ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. Referred to as the "Queen of Pop", she has been recognized for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, ...

, (including ''

Confessions Tour The Confessions Tour was the seventh concert tour by American singer-songwriter Madonna, launched in support of her tenth studio album, '' Confessions on a Dance Floor'' (2005). The tour began on May 21, 2006, at the Forum in Inglewood, Califo ...

'', ''

Sticky & Sweet Tour The Sticky & Sweet Tour was the eighth concert tour by American singer Madonna, launched in support of her eleventh studio album, ''Hard Candy (Madonna album), Hard Candy'' (2008). It marked her first major undertaking under a new 360 deal with ...

'', ''

MDNA Tour The MDNA Tour was the ninth concert tour by American singer Madonna, launched in-support of her twelfth studio album, ''MDNA (album), MDNA'' (2012). Comprising 88 shows, the tour began on May 31, 2012, at the Ramat Gan Stadium in Tel Aviv Dist ...

'' and ''

Rebel Heart Tour The Rebel Heart Tour was the tenth concert tour by American singer Madonna, staged in support of her thirteenth studio album, ''Rebel Heart'' (2015). Comprising 82 shows, the tour visited North America, Asia, Europe and Oceania. It began on S ...

''),

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey ( ; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Songbird Supreme" by ''Guinness World Records'', Carey is known for her five-octave voc ...

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Linda Ronstadt Linda Maria Ronstadt (born July 15, 1946) is an American singer who has performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music. Ronstadt has earned 11 Grammy Awards, three A ...

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and many more. She made her acting debut in the 1999 film ''Colorz of Rage'' directed by

Dale Resteghini Dale Anthony Resteghini (born August 28, 1968), known professionally as Rage, is an American music video director and film director. He has been credited on music videos for prominent music industry acts in the genres of hardcore, heavy metal, ...

and in ''

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'', as part of a female ensemble and in two musical comedies by Robert Klein. She took part in a number of theater productions Cy Coleman's ''Like Jazz'' in Los Angeles, Jim Steinman's ''Over The Top'' on the East Coast, and the Penumbra Theatre Company's "Spunk" by

Zora Neale Hurston Zora Neale Hurston (January 7, 1891 – January 28, 1960) was an American writer, anthropologist, folklorist, and documentary filmmaker. She portrayed racial struggles in the early-20th-century American South and published research on Hoodoo ...

and "Beehive" both in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. She performed on the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

television show ''

Between the Lions ''Between the Lions'' is an American animated/live-action/puppet educational children's television series designed to promote reading. The show is a co-production between WGBH in Boston, Sirius Thinking, Ltd., in New York City, and Mississipp ...

'', a puppet educational show. She has also appeared on a number of commercials (Burger King, Coca-Cola and Colgate). After a string of singles with Frankie Knuckles, Tony Moran, and other dance artists, she continued her recording output as an independent artist with the self-titled ''Nicki'' (2008) and ''Tell Me...'' (2012). The former album produced two singles "Bring the Love" and "Why You Wanna Hurt Me So Bad" that made chart showings in the Top 40 oF the Billboard Dance Club Play charts. After another hiatus, she released the jazz effort ''Asta Hairston Songbook'' (2022) with Christian McBride and Gustavo Casenave. In September 2024, she released a New Orleans-inspired single "Anything" from a forthcoming studio album. Richards' latest studio album ''Love Life'' was released July 1, 2025.

Albums Discography

*1991: ''Naked (To the World)'' *2008: ''Nicki'' *2012: ''Bedtime Story (Tell Me)'' *2022: ''Asta Hairston Songbook'' (with Gustavo Casenave & Christian McBride) *2025: ''Love Life''

Singles Discography

*1991: "Naked" *1991: "Summer Breeze" *1991: "Sunshine" *2001: "Keep On Movin" (Frankie Knuckles feat. Nicki Richards) *2008: "Bring the Love" *2008: "Why You Wanna Hurt Me So Bad" *2012: "Lay Your Hands On Me" *2024: "Anything" *2024: "You Become More Beautiful" *2025: "Tether Me" *2025: "New Orleans"

Filmography

*1999: ''Colorz of Rage'' .... Debbie *2000: ''Robert Klein: Child in His 50s'' .... Singer (TV) *2002: ''

'' .... Female ensemble (credited as Nicky Richards) *2005: ''Robert Klein: The Amorous Busboy of Decatur Avenue'' .... Singer (TV)

Theater

*''Like Jazz'' written by Cy Coleman and Marilyn & Alan Bergman, directed by Gordon Davidson (world premiere, Los Angeles) *''Over the Top'' directed by Jim Steinman (East Coast) *''Spunk'' directed by Zora Neale Hurston (Saint Paul, Minnesota) *''Beehive'' (Saint Paul, Minnesota)

References

External links

Official website
*
MySpaceNicki Richards
on

Discogs Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Nicki Year of birth missing (living people) Living people American women singer-songwriters American actresses Musicians from Honolulu 21st-century American women Singer-songwriters from Hawaii Steely Dan members