Get to Know Songstress Nicole Elocin, New Money Gang’s Champion of Vulnerability
New Money Gang vocalist and singer-songwriter Nicole Elocin has been poised to mount herself among the stars since dropping her debut project Money Heist (2020) alongside amapiano star producer Tyler ICU, accompanied by hits such as “Bella Ciao” and “Risky”. Over the past five years, she released two more bodies of work to strengthen her foothold in the game: Trinity, with singers Nia Pearl and Bontle Smith; as well as Mi Amor in 2024. Between this time, she also shook the streets with “Become One” and “Fortune Teller”, both alongside BET Award-nominated singer and rapper Blxckie. And with 2025 already on the road, she has released her EP, A Symphony, featuring five new songs led by the single “Wena”.
Born Nicole Chigariro, the songbird’s journey began in the Eastern Cape, where she nurtured her love for music by being part of the choirs in school and in places of worship.
“I grew up in Grahamstown for five years, and that was between Grade 1 to Grade 5. That’s where I got in touch with music, with the choir and all because it was an artsy school. Then I moved to Jo’burg in 2011, where I continued being in the church and the school choirs. Music has always been a part of my life, and I would go as far as saying that Nicole is music,” she said, speaking of her beginnings and her love for music.
Nicole Elocin | SUPPLIED
With the drop of her most recent extended play, her sophomore as a solo artist, she debuted “Wena” with producer Shaunmusiq. Describing it as a “mirror of her being”, she spoke about staying true to her Piecien influences when channeling the energy for the song, which is a romantic epistle and only a facet that represented a part of the project with many other aspects of her.
“When I got into the studio with Shaun, it was a rainy day, and I like going into the studio on such days. I am a Pieces, and I connect with water and anything that has to do with it. So, when I got there, I already was energised. When he put on the beat, it had that jazzy effect that I liked, so I wanted to see what I could so with it. And since amapiano is usually done in vernac, I thought it would be cool to do the song in English and then finish it off with Zulu towards the end. Everything – the recording – was done in thirty minutes to about an hour, with mixing included,” she said.
Nicole Elocin | SUPPLIED
Nicole spoke about the time-consuming journey of compiling the extended play, from honouring the process by working with a multitude of producers to unearth the chemistry needed to make a song pop to cherry-picking which songs would fit the bill.
“The project has been a long time coming. I’ve been in different studios working with different people trying to get the sound that I had in mind for my upcoming album. It was a lot of work with producers who knew my sound, but without chemistry then nothing actually comes out. It was a good two years of carefully selecting which songs would make it into the EP.
“A Symphony is a dreamy and emotional journey of who I am. I am very euphoric and live in a fairytale life. Soft but strong. Spiritual and delicate. Every song is a side of me, and each one gives a glimpse of the different parts of me,” she said.
Nicole Elocin | SUPPLIED
Nicole expressed her desire to bring back emotional openness and to do away with the shame of supposed weakness that came with the expression of one’s feelings. The warbler’s aim? To be a champion of vulnerability through her musicianship.
“I want people to learn to be vulnerable and to be honest with their emotions. Because I feel like we live in a world where people are trying to run away from their emotions as much as they can. And with my music, I’ll always come back to vulnerability and emotion and feeling that love. That’s the impact I wish to leave with my music, holding space for people who want to feel all their emotions without thinking that doing so is weak,” she said.
The versatile muso shared her insight on how she has stayed the course on the path of evolution, highlighting the vitality of keeping things fresh by trying out new tricks whenever the chance availed itself.
“I am obsessed with anything that sounds new, so I love listening to new sounds. Because of that I think it’s important as an artist to not keep yourself in a box otherwise your music is going to sound the same and people might eventually get bored so it’s important to open up to learning from new songs and not doing the same thing. It’s also important to learn new languages so as to incorporate them into the music too,” she said.