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Meliki, at 22, is a full time musician. She has forged an original sound fusing the familiarity of all that has come before with a fresh, contemporary perspective. Her training as a jazz and classical multi-instrumentalist, varied live experience backing other artists and performing her own material has led her to combine rhythms collected from around the globe with popular music making for a new musical blend of folk-pop with rootsy world influences.

The backbone to her songs is the rhythms, gathered from traditional sources and embedded in her fingerstyle performances on guitar and further enhanced by percussion beats created on the guitar to accompany her via a loop pedal. While mostly performing live as a soloist, her debut CD released May 2008 features full band recordings with her playing most of the instruments.

Meliki’s songs explore people’s perceptions, finding individual strength and purpose, and feelings of carefree abandon. Born from an enthusiasm for fantasy fiction and story writing, the synergy of her long appreciation of literature and joy of playing music come together.

Much of Meliki’s influences came while growing up in Australia to a regular dose of western songs peppered with exotic music CDs of popular indigenous artists sent by family from locations like Hawaii, Brazil, Cuba, Ethiopia and other countries rich in musical culture. When she took up playing instruments she leaned towards the nylon string guitar to study composers from these foreign shores while developing a strong foothold in contemporary jazz and popular music improvising on piano and bass. In her teens she travelled to many of these places and absorbed the unique feel that makes these rhythms resonate worldwide.

She began on piano at 3 years old, later adding guitar and bass while still in primary school and dabbling in trumpet, clarinet, percussion, violin and voice. After studying classical guitar, jazz piano and bass guitar at the Victorian College of the Arts, she went on to study Music Industry Business at Victoria University transferring to NMIT mid 2007 to obtain concurrent qualifications in Music Business and Music Performance (keyboard) and later gained qualifications as a music instrument instructor and conductor/music director through ongoing professional development.

She has played in music theatre orchestras, worked as a session musician recording on original artists albums, accompanying singers and composing music for multimedia, animation, radio, tv and film projects.

From 14 years old she won awards at the Frankston International Guitar Festival 3 years in a row along with a number of credits for her compositions. She often performs impromtu shows outdoors with her guitar and regularly plays festivals and markets.

She continues to collaborate in duos and bands, writing and playing originals or performing covers as opportunities arise as well as maintain a solo performance schedule on electric classical guitar and vocals. In a short time Meliki has developed a regular live performance schedule playing both original, instrumental and covers sets around Melbourne at venues, festivals, private or corporate functions and special events as well as travelling regionally and interstate. She began overseas touring in February 2009 to Hawaii USA and followed that up with New Zealand June 2009.

For more information on Meliki's music projects check her official website www.meliki.com

Recordings ©2008 Ashley Meliki Shoup

Meliki in New Zealand

Meliki live on Channel 31 - 1700 Music Show April 09

Meliki @ Noise Bar Jan 08: One More Time

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Meliki Pana @ Melbourne Afrobeats Festival 2007 April

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