Shan Malaika
Shan Malaika
Genres: reggae, youtube cover pop female artist
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About Shan Malaika
Rich and emotive, it is her voice that first spreads goose bumps across your arms. And then the whole artist emerges: spunky, gorgeous and boiling with passion for her art. Shan Malaika will be a challenge to classify in an increasingly categorized music world; the energetic 20 year-old’s honey dewed voice can sultrily lead a sassy pop song as easily as she can sing to reggae beats. Her way of singing a sweet tune has been compared to all time greats and crooners of legend such as Whitney Houston, Leona Lewis and Alicia Keys. But don’t let those big names fool you—Shan’s voice is unique. Flexible enough to go from dulcet and breathy to a strong and electric timbre in an instant, her voice is about to make the world sing with it. Her talent is only matched by her perseverance and precocity— Shan started singing at the age of 5, soloing in the school choir at 7, studying piano at 8 and was the lead singer of a jazz band at the tender age of 11- the same age that she wrote her very first song. “I couldn’t get enough of song writing, it became a part of me. I’ve written one song almost everyday ever since.” As her natural gift blossomed, Shan developed as one of the main performers at her high school, where fellow students loved to test her perfect pitch during lunch breaks. In between music and dance classes, Shan also threw herself into musical theatre, and performed the main role of Jenny Diver in her school’s production of Brecht’s ‘Threepenny Opera.’ At age 16, she was asked to become a singer and songwriter for Kinyama Sounds, a Swiss label focusing on reggae music. Aside from her own songs, Shan sang back-up for reggae sensations Chezidek and Prince Alla. “I got a taste of the world I have always wanted to be a part of,” Shan says. The songster spent countless hours in studio writing and recording over a dozen songs for the label, as well as putting her own spin to popular covers such as Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah” and Etta James’ “At Last”, but never had enough courage to record her own music in studio. Until now. While studying at university, the singer-songwriter will release 8 original tracks on an acoustic EP entitled “Daybreak”. Though the artist dabbles in genres ranging from jazz and motown to hip hop and rock, she admits a penchant for acoustic music. “This EP is a small and intimate collection of songs,”she says. “I wanted my first step to be something raw and real.” With her mature and soulful voice, her ability to learn musical instruments by ear, her ever-growing list of complete compositions and her first record underway, Shan continues to profess her passion for music. She holds no doubts that this is her future. “I feel like it’s what I was meant to do, to be,” she grins. After nearly a decade of silent song writing, Shan Malaika is ready to share her gift with the world. “This is just the beginning,” she says with a smile. By Alexandra Ulmer.
Taken from Last.fm
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