Nikki Jean

Vocalist and songwriter Nikki Jean, a native of St. Paul, Minnesota, was a member of Nouveau Riche, a Philadelphia-based group featuring Roots affiliate Dice Raw. The group released a pair of EPs and never achieved lift-off, though Nikki did some outside work during that time, including the lead vocal on a cover of Sting's "Be Still My Beating Heart," recorded with ?uestlove of the Roots' Randy Watson Project for Ubiquity's Rewind! 5 compilation. She gained wider exposure in late 2007, when she contributed vocals to two tracks on Lupe Fiasco's The Cool -- "Little Weapon" and t...