Draft:ANNIKA

Annika Liv Cheyne (née Odegard; born December 6, 1990), known professionally as ANNIKA, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, and pianist. She was the lead singer of country-pop duo, Leaving Thomas, from 2014-2020 and now performs as a solo country music artist.

Biography
Born in Calgary, Alberta, ANNIKA played music and performed from a very young age. She took private voice lessons with Alberta-based vocal coach, Patrice Barnes, from 2001-2012. In 2005 she received her Grade 9 certificate for classical piano from the Royal Conservatory of Music. From 2000-2010, ANNIKA performed as an actress in over 20 major musical theatre productions in Calgary. She was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Leading Actress in a Play in 2006 and for a CAT Award for Outstanding Performance by a Leading Actress in a Musical in 2009.

In 2007, ANNIKA placed eleventh in the fifth season of Canadian Idol. In 2010, she won the Calgary International Blues Festival Competition and in 2012 she won the Calgary Stampede Talent Search. From 2012-2017, ANNIKA performed as a piano bar entertainer for various cruise lines (Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line, Azamara Cruises, and Celebrity Cruise Line) and she hosted the Calgary Stampede Grandstand Show in 2016

It was at the Calgary Stampede Talent Search in 2012 that ANNIKA reconnected with friend and fellow contestant Bryton Udy. They began working on music together and went on to form the country-pop duo, Leaving Thomas. They signed a recording contract with MDM Recordings Inc. in 2016 and received two award nominations for Rising Star and Interactive Artist at the 2018 Canadian Country Music Awards. They released several singles, a self-titled extended play and a studio album before announcing in October 2019 that they were parting ways. They performed their final concert at The Lantern Church in Calgary, Alberta on January 24, 2020.

After a one-year hiatus, ANNIKA began releasing music as a solo country singer-songwriter. Her musical influences include Elton John, Carole King and Alicia Keys.

Career
ANNIKA was named the iHeart Radio Future Star in July 2021. Her debut single, "I Really Don't Want To," reached No.33 on the CBC Country Top 40 chart, was in the Top 40 at Mediabase for five consecutive weeks and was in the Top 50 on Billboard's Canada Country Chart for four weeks. Her sophomore single, "Encore," a duet with chart-topping, Platinum-selling, JUNO and CCMA award-winning Canadian country artist, Brett Kissel, debuted in the Top 10 on the iTunes country store and at No.48 on the iTunes All Genre Chart. The music video for "Encore" premiered on Entertainment Tonight Canada. ANNIKA released her debut solo extended play, Stand Still: Side A, in May 2022 and the record accumulated over 500,000 global streams within two weeks of its release.

In 2023, ANNIKA received three YYC Music Award nominations for her single, “Strangers.” The track was nominated for Country Recording of the Year and Single of the Year. Its music video, directed by Oliver Banyard, was nominated for Music Video of the Year. In 2022, ANNIKA received multiple YYC Music Award nominations for her duet, "Encore". She was nominated for Solo Artist of the Year, and the track was nominated for Single of the Year and Country Recording of the Year.

In August 2022, ANNIKA was a semi-finalist in the Boots and Hearts Emerging Artist Competition.

Discography
Singles


 * "I Really Don't Want To" (May 7, 2021)
 * "Encore" (with Brett Kissel) (September 17, 2021)
 * "The Death Of Me" (January 28, 2022)
 * "Strangers" (November 4, 2022)
 * "It Kills Me (June 2, 2023)
 * "Things I'd Rather Do" (September 29, 2023)
 * "Love You For Life" (March 15, 2024)

Extended Play


 * Stand Still: Side A (May 6, 2022)

Music Videos

 * "I Really Don't Want To" (May 26, 2021)
 * "Encore" (September 28, 2021)
 * "The Death Of Me" (February 17, 2022)
 * "Stand Still" (June 9, 2022)
 * "Strangers" (December 8, 2022)
 * "It Kills Me" (June 29, 2023)
 * Things I'd Rather Do" (November 29, 2023)