Mikky Ekko Biography

Mikky Ekko (born John Stephen Sudduth; 1984) is an American singer-songwriter and record producer from Louisiana, signed to RCA Records. He is best known for featuring on Rihanna's 2013 single "Stay", which has charted in multiple countries worldwide, becoming Ekko's first-charting material.

Early life

Born John Stephen Sudduth in Louisiana, Mikky Ekko had a nomadic childhood, moving around America's deep south with his preacher father (John Sudduth) and mother (Karen Sudduth) along with his two younger siblings, Kirk and Joanna. Having settled briefly in Tupelo, Mississippi and absorbed as much gospel as he could, he relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, and started playing in bands. Mikky Ekko began working as a songwriter for other artists, but realized that he wanted to be a singer himself. He released his first EP, "Strange Fruit" (produced by Tim Lauer) on February 15, 2009 containing the first songs he'd written by himself, most of them a capella. Ekko says of his location, Nashville, United States "fortunate to be in a city that's so loving and hospitable." From September 2009, he toured with the Nashville-based collective group, Ten Out of Tenn.

Career

2008-12: Career beginnings

In 2008 he partnered with producer Tim Lauer and engineer Dan Hansen to record an a cappella version of "Sedated". That led to his first EP Strange Fruit which released February 15, 2009. Lauer and Hansen continued to collaborate with Ekko for 2010's Reds and Blues. They worked together to develop the character and sound of Mikky Ekko which led to growing attention in the Music Business. One of the tracks from Reds, "Who Are You, Really?", caught the attention of experimental hip-hop producer Clams Casino, who has also worked with ASAP Rocky, Lil B and The Weeknd. The single, "We Must Be Killers" was released to his YouTube account on July 17, 2012, accumulating over 100,000 views. The song was featured in the second season of the American supernatural drama, Teen Wolf. It was released to iTunes on August 6, 2012. The video for his second official single, "Feels Like the End", produced by Nick Ruth and Ekko, was released to YouTube on September 25, 2012, with the digital release following on September 25. Ekko's third single, "Pull Me Down", written and produced by Ekko and Clams Casino, was released digitally on October 30, 2012. The official video was uploaded to YouTube on November 16, 2012. Ryan Hemsworth released a remix of the song to iTunes on December 7, 2012.

2012-present: Breakthrough

In November 2012, Ekko was featured on Barbadian singer Rihanna's seventh studio album, Unapologetic, on the track "Stay", which later became a single in 2013. The song has charted in multiple countries, becoming Ekko's first-charting material. It gave Ekko his first entry on the UK Singles Chart, charting at number four, and on the US Billboard Hot 100 at three. The song has charted in the top five of nineteen countries worldwide including in Australia, France, Germany, Ireland, New Zealand and Switzerland. The singer performed "Stay" together with Rihanna for the first time at the 2013 Grammy Awards on February 10, 2013. Mikael Wood of Los Angeles Times positively reviewed the performance and wrote that it was the most memorable moment of the night. Ekko and Clams Casino, who have become friends, have been working on tracks (including "Pull Me Down") for Ekko's forthcoming debut album, which also features collaborations with Ariel Rechtshaid, Greg Kurstin, Elof Loelv, and Justin Parker. Ekko released his first official music video on February 6, 2013, for his third single "Pull Me Down", through his VEVO account. "Who Are You, Really?" from Reds was featured during the closing credits of HBO's season six premiere of "True Blood" on June 16, 2013. Ekko premiered the video for "Kids" through VEVO on July 8, 2013. It will be officially released via iTunes on September 8, 2013.

Discography

Extended plays

Title	Details
Strange Fruit	Release date: February 15, 2009 Label: Catapult Formats: Digital download
Reds	Release date: June 29, 2010 Label: Colour & Sound Collective Formats: Digital download
Blues	Release date: December 14, 2010 (Digital) January 7, 2011 (CD) Label: Colour & Sound Collective Formats: Digital download, CD

Singles

As lead artist

Title	Year	Album
"We Must Be Killers"	2012	TBA
"Feels Like the End"
"Pull Me Down"
"Kids"	2013

As featured artist

List of singles as lead artist, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name

Title	Year	Peak chart positions										Certifications	Album
		AUS	CAN	DEN	FRA	GER	IRE	NZ	SWI	UK	US
"Paint It Red" (Two Inch Punch featuring Mikky Ekko)	2012	"?	"?	"?	"?	"?	"?	"?	"?	"?	"?		Single release
"Stay" (Rihanna featuring Mikky Ekko)	2013	4	1	1	2	2	2	4	2	4	3	ARIA: 3"? Platinum BEA: Gold BVMI: Gold FIMI: Gold IFPI DEN: Gold RIAA:3x Platinum RIANZ: 2"? Platinum	Unapologetic
""?" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.