Miki Ratsula Announces SXSW Showcase + Celebrates Year Anniversary Of Top Surgery 

Today, Miki Ratsula celebrates the first anniversary of their top surgery – a defining event for them and key to the music on their debut album i owe it to myself, out later this month. They detail their fears and anxiety around having the surgery in their powerful song and accompanying video for “second.” of the video, Miki noted, “I knew I wanted the video to represent queer bodies and relationships in the most authentic way. Before getting my top surgery, I wish I had seen more representation of what queer bodies can look like, and that they can be loved.” Listen and watch “second” here: https://youtu.be/OkYhm7GXMAg. 

They are also set to appear at SXSW this year, with a performance at the Nettwerk Showcase – taking place in conjunction with Ones to Watch, The Ally Coalition and Women in Music. They also recently shared details on their first national tour where they will be a support act for friend and collaborator Lauren Sanderson. See all dates below. 

MIKI RATSULA @ SXSW
Wed, Mar 16: Nettwerk Showcase @ The Victorian Room (The Driskill Hotel)

8:45pm Set Time 

Miki has built a sizable audience by openly and honestly welcoming people into their world and will release i owe it to myself on March 25 via Nettwerk – a deeply intimate record that touches on mental health, loss, love, and everything in between. The album from the Southern California-based nonbinary singer, songwriter and producer is an acoustic pop dream guided by Miki’s lush, lofi-inspired production that captures the full emotional seesaw that rocks between youth and adulthood. 

Additional singles from the album include “sugarcane” ft Dana Williams, which is “about the type of love that is just as enjoyable and as effortless as eating your favorite dessert”; “reeboks” which is about feeling so anxious about the future that they end up running themselves into the ground; “i walked a mile in my room” which discusses their mental health struggles and its impact on the people close to them; and “suffocate,” their powerful track that they recorded with Sanderson and released in the fall of 2021. 

i owe it to myself is a testament to self-love and a gift to anyone seeking the same, and sees Miki at their most vulnerable and fully realized. They use their platform to candidly document their life: from coming out to getting top surgery to their mental health journey. It’s the kind of storytelling that listeners, especially young queer kids, crave and deserve.  “I just want to be the artist I needed growing up,” says Miki, and that’s exactly who they’ve become on this heartfelt and impressive debut record. Throughout the record, Miki effortlessly floats between R&B slow jams and acoustic numbers laced with sensual groove, and some of the album’s more powerful moments exist in the soft, nostalgic spaces in between, which often deal with the pain that lives behind closed doors. 

“a warm, cozy affair… the song plays out like a gentle hug from someone who has found the radiance of simple love” – BILLBOARD

“shines with plaintive honesty and shimmering melodies” – Under The Radar “They are trying to find their place in (the world)… Maybe that is world-changing—in the transcendent sense. – PopMatters

“accepting love can become complicated when it feels impossible to show love to yourself… Ratsula’s wispy vocals deliver the unease with a gentle demeanor, lyrics gracefully bearing the weight of such a tender message” – The Wild Honeypie

“beautiful, breathtaking” – Variance

MIKI RATSULA TOUR DATES
Tue, Apr 26 Seattle, WA – Vera Project
Wed, Apr 27 Portland, OR – Holocene
Fri, Apr 29 Salt Lake City, UT – Kilby
Sat, Apr 30 Denver, CO – Marquis
Mon, May 2 St. Paul, MN – Amsterdam
Tue, May 3 Chicago, IL – Bottom Lounge
Thu, May 5 Toronto, ON – Velvet
Fri, May 6 Columbus, OH – Newport Music Hall
Sat, May 7 Indianapolis, IN – Deluxe @ Old National Center
Mon, May 9 Philadelphia, PA – Foundry
Thu, May 12 New York, NY – Irving Plaza
Fri, May 13 Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
Sat, May 14 Washington DC – 9:30 Club
Mon, May 16 Carborro, NC – Cat’s Cradle
Tue, May 17 Nashville, TN – Mercy Lounge
Wed, May 18 Atlanta, GA – The Loft
Fri, May 20 Houston, TX – House of Blues
Sat, May 21 Dallas, TX – House of Blues
Mon, May 23 Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom
Wed, May 25 Los Angeles, CA – El Rey
Thu, May 26 San Francisco, CA – Cafe Du Nord
*all tour dates supporting Lauren Sanderson