Meet Melanie Fontana

Today we’d like to introduce you to Melanie Fontana.

Melanie, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I started singing before I could speak, according to my mom. Fast forward a few years, besides begging my mom & dad for dance & vocal lessons, I always managed to sneak my way into the school plays, “select choir” etc. Even before it was my career, I always found extreme peace & joy in performing, no matter the capacity. Even though I did, my high school teachers didn’t love my affinity for leaving class early & my auditioning in NYC instead of studying. I left high school & my mother homeschooled me so I could better focus on my songwriting, auditioning & recording. I moved to NYC just shy of my 18th bday & eventually worked my way as far up the ladder as I could on the east coast. I was approached by a very prominent producer who’d caught wind of my music online. He asked me to fly to LA to audition for a girl group he was creating. While that girl group flopped in a matter of months & this producer’s interest in me dissolved into moments of him telling me “to worry less about songwriting & more about losing weight”, I didn’t give up.

I did, however, go flat broke trying to live a lifestyle with this new group of Hollywood socialites that I was completely incapable & unprepared to do. I ended up joining a show band on a carnival cruise ship to make ends meet while simultaneously renting my North Hollywood apartment to another one of the girl group this not so super “superproducer” also had signed (they also flopped, much like much group did). After a year of saving up & singing in the Caribbean, I came back to LA, musical guns blazing. I performed & wrote everywhere. I said yes to every opportunity, every writing session & every gig, no matter how small. From all those “yesses” I found my first management team, who at the time, was writing for super artists like Jojo, Bieber, Jason Derulo, David Guetta & more. They believed in one little song I wrote, “Home this Christmas”, which inevitably, they placed on Justin Bieber’s Christmas album. From then on, I was off.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
It’s never been a smooth road. Are they ever? I’d love to meet someone who has ridden a smooth road to their wildest dreams. My struggles began with weight issues as a kid and then led to major self-esteem problems & eating issues as an adult. I was bullied out of schools, I was bullied into hating myself. Even though years had passed since those school days of misery, I used to let the voices of self-loathing take over my mind & disrupt my writing sessions. As I’ve grown & especially since meeting my best friend/writing partner/ husband, those demons have been sent back to Hell where they belong. Self-esteem really dictates how far you can take yourself.

We’d love to hear more about your work.
I’m a songwriter first and foremost. I started out as a singer & that’s my first love, but I specialize in making great music for great artists. My husband, Lindgren, is my production partner & is truly a young Mark Ronson meets Diplo meets something otherworldly. We are really fast & the quality of songs we write is remarkable.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
Luck is everything. You have to have a certain level of talent to sustain you into certain high-level circles of artists, but luck is probably the most important factor in my successes. I just happened to be in a lot of the right places at the right time, but “luckily”, I was prepared for many of those moments via years & tears & practice.

Contact Info:

• Email: justin@dreamadopters.com
• Instagram: @melaniejoyfontana
• Facebook: Facebook.com/melaniejfontana
• Twitter: @melaniefontana
• Other: Melaniefontana.com

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