On “Bad Intentions”—a raw but smoldering R&B ballad whose lyric video shot to more than a million views soon after its January 2014 release, largely on the strength of her staggering social-media presence—Niykee’s near-lifelong devotion to sharpening her songwriting is more than evident. “I realized early on that the only way to make my voice heard and say what I wanted to was through music,” says Niykee, whose older sister Rachel battled cancer for most of her life and died when Niykee was 12. “It was less like a hobby for me and more like a lifesaver,” she adds. Since her family couldn’t financially support her musical education, Niykee gave herself vocal training by singing along to a Diana Ross greatest-hits CD, and learned to play guitar by holing up in her room with an acoustic handed down to her by a family friend. And when it came to her songwriting, Niykee relied on a natural sense of rhythm she attributes both to her South African roots and passion for hip-hop, yet also drew a great deal of inspiration from the bare-bones authenticity of singer/songwriters like Bob Dylan and Tom Waits (two artists beloved by her sister and older brother).
In her early teens, Niykee began posting pop covers on YouTube while continuing to cultivate her songwriting. “On Friday and Saturday nights when all the other kids were going out, I was staying home and writing songs or, when I got a little older, driving hours to some broke-down bar and begging them to let me get up and play,” says Niykee, who struggled with bullying throughout her school years. “I was doing everything I could to move my music along, but nothing was working out at all.” Having promised her sister that she’d make an impact with her songs, Niykee told her parents that she’d put songwriting aside and go to college if her music career hadn’t made any major strides by the time she turned 18. Then, the day before her 18th birthday—and shortly after she’d ditched the pop covers and started posting her acoustic takes on tracks by hip-hop artists like Chief Keef, A$AP Rocky, Lil Wayne, and Pusha T—Niykee wound up on WorldstarHipHop and found herself fielding interest from a flood of record labels. Instead of aligning herself with a label right away, she graduated high school six months early and self-financed the recording of a host of her own songs, eventually signing with Steve Rifkind and Russell Simmons’ All Def Music and setting to work on her debut EP.
With her personal highlights so far including getting hand-picked by Snoop Dogg to accompany him onstage at the YouTube Brandcast in May 2013, Niykee has kept up a steady songwriting routine despite the whirlwind of recent years. Now a magnet for up-and-coming producers, she constantly combs through beats sent her way and finds that many end up sparking song ideas. “I’ll know if a beat’s good after the first five seconds, and then I’ll get a song in my head and start writing immediately,” she says. “I go out to my back porch with my guitar and the words just come, and usually it’s all done in under 30 minutes.” As she continues develop as a lyricist, Niykee notes that the pain of her past serves as an endless source of unlikely inspiration. “Even when I’m not writing literally about things that have happened to me, all the pain of my childhood and losing my sister ends up getting pushed into my music,” she says. “It shapes my songs and builds this deeper meaning under everything, which is one the most important things to me—I need to know that I could listen to any of my songs 20 years from now, and still be proud of what I had to say.”
Lullaby
Niykee Heaton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
Red cup chilling with my hands up
Killing it, I can't stop
Sinning, but I'm winning, so lifted
I'mma take you there
I'mma take you there
Lips so pretty when I lay low
Pull up in your city with my bass low
Can't go with me
Imma take you there
Imma take you there
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Can't fuck with me, got my lane closed, shifting
Wearing plain clothes, shitting on you lame hoes
Simply tryna take you there
Let me take you there
Hold up, hold up
Can't fuck with another
Can't touch, only wanna make you love
Baby, let me break you off
Tell me, let me take you there
Let me take you there
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
So, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot
Swear to god
Oh, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot
Swear to god
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
In "Lullaby" by Niykee Heaton, the singer is offering to serenade their lover with a lullaby. The singer is promising not to stay the night but just wants to make the other person feel something. From the lyrics, one can infer that the singer is in a physical relationship with someone, but wants to make a deeper emotional connection. The line "Can't fuck with me, got my lane closed, shifting" suggests that the singer is confident and in control of their life, and that they're trying to share that energy with their lover.
The chorus repeats three times throughout the song, emphasizing the singer's desire to make a connection through music. The lines "Red cup chilling with my hands up / Killing it, I can't stop / Sinning, but I'm winning, so lifted" refers to the singer's partying lifestyle, and how they are constantly surrounded by a crowd, yet they still feel lonely. The singer is trying to convince their lover to let them in, to "get inside their mind" and "hit the right spot," both physically and emotionally. Overall, the song is about the singer's desire to make a connection, despite their party lifestyle and the knowledge that they may not be allowed to stay the night.
Line by Line Meaning
Let me sing you a lullaby
Let me soothe you with my voice.
Promise I won't stay the night
I won't overstay my welcome.
I just wanna make you feel something, something
I want to evoke an emotion in you.
Red cup chilling with my hands up
I'm drinking from a red cup and relaxing.
Killing it, I can't stop
I'm doing amazing and can't be stopped.
Sinning, but I'm winning, so lifted
I'm succeeding despite being flawed and elevated.
I'mma take you there
I'll help you reach a heightened state, emotionally or otherwise.
Lips so pretty when I lay low
My lips are attractive when I'm quiet and relaxed.
Pull up in your city with my bass low
I'm arriving in your town with my music playing softly.
Can't go with me
You can't handle my lifestyle.
Imma take you there
I'll bring you on a journey with me.
Can't fuck with me, got my lane closed, shifting
Don't compete with me, I'm in my own lane and making moves.
Wearing plain clothes, shitting on you lame hoes
I'm dressed simply and outshining those who are trying too hard.
Simply tryna take you there
I just want to help you reach new heights.
Hold up, hold up
Wait a minute, pause.
Can't fuck with another
I'm not interested in anyone else.
Can't touch, only wanna make you love
I just want you to experience my love.
Baby, let me break you off
Let me show you a good time.
Tell me, let me take you there
Let me be your guide to a better place.
So, baby turn the lights off
Dim the lights for intimacy.
Hit the right spot
Touch you in the right place.
Swear to god
I promise it's true.
Contributed by Connor H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Aaryan Panwar
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Red cup chilling with my hands up
Killing it, I can't stop
Sinning, but I'm winning, so lifted
I'ma take you there
I'ma take you there
Lips so pretty when I lay low
Pull up in your city with my bass low
Can't go with me
I'ma take you there
I'ma take you there
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Can't fuck with me, got my lane closed, shifting
Wearing plain clothes, shitting on you lame hoes
Simply tryna take you there
Let me take you there
Hold up, hold up
Can't fuck with another
Can't touch, only wanna make you love
Baby, let me break you off
Tell me, let me take you there
Let me take you there
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
So, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot, swear to god
Umm, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot, swear to god
Ohh, ohh
Let me sing you a lullaby (Sing you a lullaby)
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby (Sing you a lullaby)
Promise I won't stay the night (No I won't stay the night)
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Sing you a lullaby (A lullaby)
Andrés Montiel
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
Just wanna make you feel something, something
Red cup chilling with my hands up
Killing it, I can't stop
Sinning, but I'm winning, so lifted
I'mma take you there
I'mma take you there
Lips so pretty when I lay low
Pull up in your city with my bass low
Can't go with me
I'mma take you there
I'mma take you there
Can't fuck with me, got my lane closed, shifting
Wearing plain clothes, shitting on you lame hoes
Simply tryna take you there
Let me take you there
Hold up, hold up
Can't fuck with another
Can't touch, only wanna make you love
Baby, let me break you off
Tell me, let me take you there
Let me take you there
So, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot
Swear to god oh, oh
Oh, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot
Swear to god
Sing you a lullaby.
Kalenna Kellz
[Chorus]
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
[Verse 1]
Red cup chilling with my hands up
Killing it, I can't stop
Sinning, but I'm winning, so lifted
I'mma take you there
I'mma take you there
Lips so pretty when I lay low
Pull up in your city with my bass low
Can't go with me
Imma take you there
Imma take you there
[Chorus]
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
[Verse 2]
Can't fuck with me, got my lane closed, shifting
Wearing plain clothes, shitting on you lame hoes
Simply tryna take you there
Let me take you there
Hold up, hold up
Can't fuck with another
Can't touch, only wanna make you love
Baby, let me break you off
Tell me, let me take you there
Let me take you there
[Chorus]
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
[Bridge]
So, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot
Swear to god
Oh, baby turn the lights off
Let me get inside your mind
Hit the right spot
Swear to god
[Chorus]
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Let me sing you a lullaby
Promise I won't stay the night
I just wanna make you feel something, something
Dalton Baldauf20
Can we have a moment of silence for how underrated she is
Longshot
@WappaMan 1 🤔😅🤣
Shayla Hope
She will not always be ❤✨☺️ I hope she releases more I love the one she recently posted too ✨❤️🔥✨
Lauren Ashley
It's because at beginning she was signed and would need signed to big nig label ,but she had to much Respect for herself. Niykee always been a riderr - for what's real . And plus Lauren P tht hella older women swooped her up amd fed her big dreams...But Niykee was smart enough to get away fr om her LP used her amd used Niykers young beautiful looks to get herself infeomt of all the rappers Niykee just wanted to write and make music n sing so sensual n pretty but hella swag to it . She's first I put on in my car to ride to when I'm driving long ways amd vibin . I'm so happy for her tht she's married now to a handsome , real man tht also is a go getter has his own . And, they have a beautiful baby. I loved her from first time I heard her n watched couple interviews .
Henry Ventura
Lol
Dalton Baldauf20
@Bruno I never said she was dead. I was saying can we have a moment of silence for how underrated she is. I feel like I shouldn’t have to explain myself to you.
Sumit Singh
Her voice wasn't meant to be lost in time while not being top charts. I hope she returns with new songs soon, listening to her way back since she was only there on SoundCloud.
NNNNNNNEZUKO CHAN
I never heard of her until last week,and now I can't stop listening.feel like I've missed out on so much
Robbin Steen
@Brandie Lambright ever princess queen Kate ja es joplin i do j butt
Robbin Steen
nEVER sir charles butt-scoopp sip pi piaw awwe