by West Duncan

Crunk isn't dead because Nicky Click says so. Her independent record label, Crunk's Not Dead, bears testament to her electro eccentricity, while her albums leave her legacy all over the stage.

Click will be plugging in at two Portland shows with female-to-male rapper Katastrophe, both of whom rock the same indie label. Their Lil' Twin Star Tour will also feature Show Me the Pink and DJ Beyonda, covering both coasts and all that is queer.

"This tour is gonna blow people's minds!" exclaims Click via phone from New Hampshire.

Before moving to the East Coast, Click lived in Olympia, Wash., then Northeast Portland, finding her musical path after graduating from Evergreen State College. Now an underground diva, she wears her shabby-chic tiara and ruby-red smile unabashedly.
Having done her act for the past 2 1/2 years, Click has found her place behind the mike and in the forefront of speaking out about sexuality. The 26-year-old queer performer realized the instant audience among the gay community as her new best friends in the music industry.

Click's first album, You're Already a Member, was released one year ago on her self-owned label and was received well by a fickle hipster following. Now, with many tour miles logged and more studio time under her jumper, her second disc, I'm On My Cell Phone, will be released in the coming weeks. Both albums explore Click's alter egos and follow a string of character developments, arriving at her present state of funk.

"It definitely feels good to do this totally on my own," she says. "I really talk about queer politics and feminism, and ultimately I'm trying to represent different facets of myself onstage."

Growing up, she found music to be intimidating and geared toward men, giving her the perfect platform to launch from in developing Nicky Click. Using a postmodern style and pro-femme approach, her music is made for the ladies, about the ladies.

Click is also no stranger to the eclectic, warping her own sounds into a funky beat that the most hip can hop to. In the vein of Peaches and Tracy + the Plastics, her sound can most aptly be called queer electro pop, with a bold aftertaste of politics for queer visibility.

With the advent of music by Mac, the electro-synther is a one-woman and one-computer kind of band. Performing solo onstage with only a laptop to back her up, Click can rock the room like '80s hair bands in their heyday.

"I think technology makes music more accessible for me," she says. "I'd love to perform with a band, but I think being a solo artist, it's easier to get my message across this way."
Staying in touch with her roots, Click looks toward recording a country-folk album with her father, a musical inspiration to her both in and out of the studio. Keeping it all in the family, her upcoming album features Papa Click on five tracks.

While the indie music scene rapidly approaches a midlife crisis, Click promises to add a fresh, young dose of vibrancy to pick things up: "I'm really trying to empower women and people, and help them to just let go during the show. I decided consciously to discuss being femme and being queer. Thankfully, the queer community has been really open—and I feel really lucky to be part of it."

Nicky Click headlines a free all-ages show with Katastrophe 8 p.m. Jan. 27 at Reed College,

3203 S.E. Woodstock Blvd., followed by a $5 show 9 p.m. Feb. 3 at Berbati's Pan, 231 S.W. Ankeny St. For more information visit www.myspace.com/nickyclick.

Portland freelance writer West Duncan can be reached at westofaminor@yahoo.com