: About Me

Melanie Lowe, Jhb based singer/songwriter, has just returned from a sell-out tour as the support act for Katie Melua! Since coming third in the first South African Idols, she has been performing constantly around SA, at concerts, corporate functions, music festivals, fundraisers, schools and charity events. She has also performed many times with the KZN Philharmonic Orchestra (who have arranged several of her original compositions for the orchestra to accompany her with), was an opening act for the Durban Westlife concert and supported Belgian artist, Sarah Bettens (ex K's choice) on a countrywide tour, along with Stealing Love Jones.

Melanie's show is quite versatile. Her love for singing jazz and blues means she will happily include jazz into any show she does. She performs with her guitarist, or with a few musicians doing an unplugged set of her original songs, or with her full band (Melanie plus drums, bass, keyboard and guitar). But perhaps her favourite show, and certainly the one that does her the most justice, is just Melanie and her ovation guitar, singing her own compositions. Drawing directly from her own life experiences, Melanie's songs are soul-barring, emotionally driven and often heart-rending songs that draw you in, to such an extent, that you begin to experience the emotion with which she sings them, yourself. Melanie's debut album Yesterday's Diary has sold over 12 500 units, and she has two new CD's out, a 12 track English album called Unspoken Truth and a 5 track Afrikaans single called As. All tracks on these CD's have been written and composed by Melanie. Three music videos have been filmed for TV. Melanie's songs are played on major radio stations throughout SA with her latest single.

With one South African Music Award already under her belt, Melanie's english album was nominated for a SAMA this year in the "Best english adult contemporary album" category. The production and design of her latest two releases was done with international standards in mind and that is exactly where Melanie plans to take her music in the next year. Melanie's success can be attributed solely to a passion and a love for music that has driven her since she uttered her first note. It's for this reason that she decided to relocate to Jhb. A born and bred Durban girl, Melanie loves her home town, but she also understands the sacrifices one has to make when pursuing a music career and so, as of 1st of July, Melanie relocated herself to Jhb and started her own company called Mellow Music. Mellow Music's primary aim was a means of managing her own career but Melanie has another purpose in mind for Mellow Music. Over the years Melanie has become very aware of how difficult the music industry is and how hard it is to make it alone, especially if you don't know where to start. It is for this reason that Melanie has decided to use the knowledge that she has gained over the years to help young, up and coming artists to kickstart their careers. Mellow Music is all about powerful women in the music industry and so she is focusing on female singer/songwriters specifically. Mellow Music is set to become a powerful force in the music industry creating a platform for talented women to grow in music.

Being the type of person that likes to keep busy, Melanie has now decided to officially add writing to her list of things to do. She has always loved writing. One only has to look at her lyrics to know that she is gifted with waxing lyrical. She plans to start small and see where it takes her but, knowing Melanie, she will have written a 500 page novel within 6 months. Once she puts her mind to something, she is pretty much unstoppable!

Melanie plans to keep following the path that she was destined to, to keep living life to the fullest and to keep living the music.

My passion is ...

books and music

I know too much about ...

Life is full of lessons and I am always learning.

My parents always told me ...

to get a practical job and get my head out of the clouds!

My childhood ambition ...

was to learn to play an instrument so I could write my own songs

My favorite memory ...

Singing a duet onstage with Sarah Bettens from K's Choice.

Why I write ...

I write, therefore, I am.

What I am reading/watching/listening to ...

Reading:Life's Lessons, Listening to Tori Amos.

My first job ...

was singing in a bar for R50 a gig.

My best moment ...

The day the love of my life stepped through the door and into my heart.

My inspiration ...

Life and love

Home & Garden > Home & Garden (Other) Recycling: Creative ideas for household discards

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It's that time of the year again. The stores are dusting off their Christmas decorations, we're dragging out our old bits of wrapping paper we've been saving all year (hopefully), and broadcasters and businesses are preparing to assault us via television with every available seasonal advert and promotional goodie they can muscle into their prime time slots. Yes, it is the season to be jolly! I love Christmas. It's a beautiful time of year no matter where you are; whether the snow is falling, the log fires are crackling or the rain is running rivulets down your window panes with 30o tempera...

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