It’s always nice to talk to a new talent before they go onto success. Melissa Steel the twenty year old Bradford born singer songwriter is just such a name. In truth Melissa is not ‘new’ to music-ten years of pushing her trade to get that break and finally she gets signed to Atlantic.
“It was a massive achievement and it was a super exciting time for me.” she states with no hint of understatement, “I brought my mum down with me and we went out on the balcony and my A and R did a speech about me which was really nice and the I did a little speech and then we signed. I just thought this is where the real hard work begins but I am naturally a very driven person so hard work does not scare me.”
Meeting the totally gorgeous Melissa at the Atlantic offices it’s evident that she is relishing every inch of the journey that awaits her. After all, every artist’s journey consists of trials and tribulations which make that eventual success even sweeter.
“I think every artist has thought of giving up because it is a hard profession to get into. I remember one of my family members asked me what my plan ‘b’ was and that really offended me because to me they were saying that I was not good enough to make it.” While she is honest enough to admit that she did think of giving up, the moment was as short as an X factor contestant’s career.
“The lowest point was literally just before I met my A and R. I think I was on the phone to my best friend and I was saying that I am not doing this anymore. I think it was the stress because if you want something so much you wonder why it is not happening. I got to a point where I was thinking I will go to university and then the thought passed because I knew that if that was to happen it would always be on my mind ‘what if’”
With the ‘what ifs’ but a mere memory since signing to Atlantic the vigour and energy is palpable while we sit chilling, talking and joking (Melissa has a wicked sense of humour). Jokes aside, Melissa is deadly serious on trying to blow this whole UK scene (and of course global scene) apart. Her second single (which follows the The Way We Are produced by Kove) is the catchy summer vibe, Kisses For Breakfast.
“My A and R played me Kisses For Breakfast as a demo and straight away I heard it I said ‘I want that song’. It just sounded like a song that I would write from vocals to sound. The following week I came down to London and recorded it and then it got signed as a single”
Kisses For Breakfast is pop to its core ‘infused with dancehall vibes’ courtesy of Popcaan a name waiting to take his name global.
“We went out to Jamaica last month and shot the video and a couple of days before the shoot Popcaan and I went out because we did not just want to meet, we wanted to chill a bit with each other. We went to a couple of parties in Kingston-he is just very down to earth. He is massive over there so he is really going to be huge.”
Popcaan adds the required element to make a track that is able to bring something ‘urban’. Dare I say there’s a Rihanna type vibe and delivery present in the video and of course the track itself-for me that’s all good! Could she reach a Rihanna level well of course it is way too early to be even thinking that but Melissa certainly has her sights set on some huge steps towards global adoration?
“There are things in the pipeline that are happening that I cannot say at the moment-I am doing something that is huge but it is not related to music. Of course I am in the studio getting my album together but I don’t want to rush it but I have quite of lot of material so hopefully sometime next year it will be released. I want to keep a vibe kind of like Kisses-I want the island infusions in there.”
Kisses For Breakfast July 14th BUY
TUMBLR//TWITTER//FACEBOOK//SOUNDCLOUD
