Jessica Mimi Porfiri (born 13 October 1994), who performs as Kota Banks, is an Australian pop singer-songwriter and musician.[1] She signed to Nina Las Vegas's label, NLV Records, in May 2017, which released Banks' ten-track extended play, Prize (styled as PRIZE), as a mix tape in mid-2018.[2][3] Banks has co-written songs for fellow Australian artists.[4] She supported What So Not on his national tour.[5] By November 2017, her music had accumulated over 20 million plays on Spotify.[1]
Early life
Kota Banks was born in 1994 in Sydney, Australia, as Jessica Mimi Porfiri,[6] in Sydney. She spent her late childhood and teens in Florence, a formative time that shaped her identity and connection to her heritage. Banks has been singing since the age of 9.[7] She returned to Sydney.
"I just feel like it [praying] gives me more depth to my songwriting and opens my mind."[8]
Career
Banks' debut single, "N.F.F.A.", was issued in 2016 and was co-written by Banks with Lee Chew (or Toby Chew-Lee) and Cameron Nacson.[9] It was produced by the duo as MOZA.[10] Troy Mutton of Pile Rats described how she, "dabbles in some seriously fun electronic-pop", and described her single as a "bold track both production-wise and lyrically, catchy as and slotting right alongside artists such as Nicole Millar, Jess Kent and Danish artist MØ."[10]
Her second single, "Holiday", appeared in 2017, which was co-written with Danny Omerhodic,[11] who produced the track for NLV Records, as Swick.[12] "Empty Streets" featuring MOZA, was her next single in that year, which was also co-written with Chew and Nacson.[9][13][14][15] For the Junior Eurovision Song Contest of 2017, Banks, Chew and Nacson, with Chloe Papandrea, co-wrote Australia's entry, "Speak Up".[16] It was performed by Isabella Clarke in Tbilisi, where Clarke finished third.[17]
For the FOMO Festival in Adelaide, Banks joined Nina Las Vegas (a.k.a. Nina Agzarian) on-stage to perform "Holiday" in January 2018.[18] The pair co-wrote "Alibrandi" with Omerhodic, which Las Vegas performs using Banks on vocals.[19] In March her single, "Zoom", was premiered on Triple J's Good Nights and subsequently received high rotation on the national youth radio station.[20] Triple J's Al Newstead declared, "this [track] has grown on us hard. It's a fun, flirty mix of dancehall and pop elevated by the fanciful production."[21]
Banks released her debut extended play, Prize (styled as PRIZE), in mid-2018, as a ten-track mix tape.[22][23] It was produced by Omerhodic, who shared the song writing with Banks on most of its tracks.[20][22]AltMedia's Jamie Apps rated it at three-and-a-half stars and explained, "[she] is not just a one hit wonder though as throughout the remainder of the record Banks carries the momentum forward as she celebrate feminine strength and empowerment."[24] Following the release of PRIZE, Banks announced her debut national headline tour, selling out her hometown show.
^"'Holiday' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 8 August 2018. Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' &/or 'Performer:'
^"'Speak Up' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 8 August 2018. Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' &/or 'Performer:'
^Nguyen, Jenny (9 January 2018). "FOMO Adelaide Review". theMusic.com.au. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2018.
^"'Alibrandi' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 8 August 2018. Note: For additional work user may have to select 'Search again' and then 'Enter a title:' &/or 'Performer:'
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