The highly talented Floridian grew up with music his entire life, beginning to play instruments at the young age of 10. Fike, a master of guitar, piano, and especially his own vocals, is a relatively new artist, with only two comprehensive projects out. His rise to popularity began shortly after being featured on BROCKHAMPTON‘s YouTube channel in a video titled “This Is Dominic Fike“, in which a music video for his hit “3 Nights” is rolled. Fike has a very unique and authentic sound, laying often raw vocals over anything from flowing guitar melodies to choppy synth beats. Below are his projects, as well as some notable singles.

 

#1 – What Could Possibly Go Wrong (2020)

Dominic Fike’s debut studio album, What Could Possibly Go Wrong is a 14 track full length album that was released in the summer of 2020. The project has a very wide wide range of sounds. Early in the project, “Double Negative (Skeleton Milkshake)” includes strong electric guitar chords partnered with an organic drum pattern. One track later, “Cancel Me” brings the tempo down, as Fike laments about being away from his family and hopes to be “cancelled” so he can get out of the spotlight and return to a life of normalcy. The seventh track on the album, “Chicken Tenders” received popularity as it was a pre-release with Dominic Fike’s vocals pitched-up. “Vampire” is marked by a sharp fingerstyle guitar melody and Fike’s blood-sucker themed lyrics. The project is wrapped up with the track titled “Florida” in which piano keys dominate the first half of the song, before switching up to a moody rap track detailing the singer’s upbringing. The project demonstrates Fike’s ability to further develop his sound and produce complete, full length projects.

 

#2 – Don’t Forget About Me, Demos (2018)

Don’t Forget About Me, Demos was Dominic Fike’s first publicly released project, the first collection of music that was put out months before he was featured on BROCKHAMPTON’s YouTube channel. This album offers a snapshot of Fike’s unique talents from cheery and catchy sing-alongs to Red Hot Chili Pepper-esque tracks. The opening track “3 Nights” received a lot of popularity, most likely due to its sing-song nature as well as being promoted by the more popular rap collective BROCKHAMPTON. One track later, Fike sings over punchy electric guitar chords about materialism and fame on “She Wants My Money“. “King of Everything” is another notable track, with an extended intro that is cut by the entrance of an electric guitar layered with Fike’s raw vocals (I’d also suggest the live version of it on Vevo). Don’t Forget About Me, Demos is really an impressive project for being Dominic Fike’s first major collection of music, and this ability to put together projects is fulfilled with the later release of What Could Possibly Go Wrong.

 

Notable Singles

 

“Açaí Bowl” (2019)

This track — released in between Fike’s two full length projects — opens up with melancholy guitar strings. Fike’s vocals then enter, muddied with autotune (a characteristic not common of Fike). The lyrics discuss Fike’s comparison to his life then and now, how when he was in jail his girlfriend stuck by his side, and now how he has made it, buying Prada and running up his credit card. “Açaí Bowl” is a demonstration of Fike’s versatility, as he begins with slow and heartfelt strings and transitions into smooth, autotuned rap.

 

“Rollerblades” (2019)

One of Fike’s sadder songs, “Rollerblades” showcases the softer side of the Florida native, as he sings of the impermanence of love, all while describing the love he had for a girl from her “shoulder blades to [her] rollerblades.” The song also includes background vocals of Fike echoing his own lyrics. The slow percussion pattern wraps all of these elements up to produce an emotional ballad that reminisces on times past.

 

“Phone Numbers” (2019)

On this track, Dominic Fike pairs up with producer and songwriter Kenny Beats. The song features a distorted Fike singing “Can you break bread with me?” The melody is carried by beauty guitar strings, as well as a hard hitting drum kicks. Fike’s powerful delivery varies between singing and rapping, again demonstrating his versatility. Interestingly, this song was featured on the FIFA 20 official soundtrack.