Nikki Jean  Nicholle "Nikki" Jean Leary (born August 25, 1983) is an American singer-songwriter and occasional actress from St. Paul, Minnesota. Aside from her solo career, Jean was once a part of the Philadelphia-based music group Nouveau Riche. She first gained major recognition in 2008, when she was featured on Lupe Fiasco's single "Hip-Hop Saved My Life", from his second album "The Cool". In 2011, she signed as a recording contract with indie record label, S-Curve Records. In 2011, she released the concept album, "Pennies in a Jar". The lead single, "Steel and Feathers (Don't Ever)" was co-written by Bob Dylan. As an actress, she performed in the award-winning independent film, "On the Outs". In 2018, she signed a recording contract with Rhymesayers Entertainment for the release of her new EP. Nikki Jean was born on August 25, 1983, in St. Paul, Minnesota, United States. She moved around with her mother spending time in both South Dakota and Minnesota. She ended up attending High School in both St. Paul, Minnesota, United States and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. During her years as a child actor in the Minneapolis theater scene, she spent two years under the musical tutelage of JD and Fred Steele. The Steele family are pillars of the Minneapolis gospel scene and were back up singers for Prince, and she credits them with her sense of harmony and vocal arrangement. She attended college early and graduated from Howard University with a degree in Sociology. While at Howard University, she was invited to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and would soon join the band Nouveau Riche as the lead singer. In Philadelphia, she began posting music online. As her fanbase grew from the acoustic music she posted on, producers Chris & Drop discovered her and reached out. They would in turn introduce her to Lupe Fiasco while he was working on his second album The Cool. She would write the hook and feature on Hip-Hop Saved My Life and guest feature on "Little Weapon". On the day The Cool was released. Nikki uploaded a video of her opening the CD for the first time. The video exploded online and she was subsequently interviewed on CNN. From April 16, 2008 to August 6, 2008, Nikki Jean was part of the Glow in the Dark Tour with Kanye West, Lupe Fiasco, Rihanna and N.E.R.D.