North Bergen Honors Resident, Grammy Winner Erika 'Kika' Parra

Press release from the Township of North Bergen:

April 5, 2023

Last month, the Township of North Bergen was proud to honor one of its residents Erika “Kika” Parra, with a proclamation for her musical achievements. This includes recently winning three Grammy Awards for her role as one of the recording musicians for the Disney movie “Encanto,” for which she also won an Oscar Award.

“A Grammy and Oscar award is a testament to Erika’s exceptional talent and hard work, and North Bergen couldn’t be more proud to call her one of our own,” said Mayor Nick Sacco. “We are thrilled to honor Erika with this proclamation and celebrate her achievements with the entire community.”

A graduate of the Lincoln School as well as the North Bergen High School, Ms. Parra has always had a passion for music, and her talent and dedication have now earned her widespread recognition and praise. Under her father’s guidance she started playing percussion at the age of thirteen and later studied with Moris Canate, her musical mentor and Rebolu bandmate. She enrolled at the Boys & Girls Harbor Conservancy in New York, where she studied and performed with both the Colombian and Latin Jazz ensembles under the direction of Pablo Mayor and Louis Bauzo.

“It brings me immense joy to congratulate Ms. Parra for her many achievements,” said North Bergen Board of Education Superintendent, Dr. George Solter. “We are all incredibly proud of her and thrilled to see a former student reach such lofty heights. We wish her nothing but continued success in the future.”

In addition to her contributions to the silver screen, Ms. Parra has also performed at festivals and events such as Montreux Jazz Festival, Montana Folk Festival, Richmond Folk Festival, Lincoln Center Outdoors, Kennedy Center’s Millennium Stage, Kimmel Center, SXSW, Mundial Montreal, Carnaval de Barranquilla, the Library of Congress, Getty Center, Hollywood Bowl, and many more.
A graduate of Berklee College of Music with a BM in Music Education, Ms. Parra has since worked and collaborated with FolkColombia, center for Traditional Music and Dance, Folklore Urbano, Gregorio Uribe Big Band, La Cumbiamba Eneye, Mestizo Dance Compan, Toto La Momposina, Sonia de Los Santos, Ruben Rodriguez, Miss Yaya and C&C Music Factory. She is currently teaching at Avenues: The World School.

This press release was produced by the Township of North Bergen. The views expressed here are the author's own.