Shouted out by Billie Eilish as ‘one of the coolest up and coming artists right now’, New York Dominican artist Melli, is racing her way to the top with bilingual bars and incendiary instrumentals. Her debut album, phAses, has been praised by critics as showcasing her ‘wide-ranging and obvious talent’, providing her growing fanbase with a taste of what’s to come.

Rihanna recently included the album’s opening track, ‘Icey’, in an Instagram post promoting her fashion brand Fenty, which gained Melli a lot of love. Rap has always been part of Melli’s life: even as a child in Harlem she was journaling and writing poetry. Her music teacher in high school claimed that she was going to be the next big thing – and they really were not wrong. After some bad experiences with managers in her late teens and early twenties, Melli took things into her own hands and started to promote herself through remixes posted across online platforms.

She caught the attention of millions when she uploaded an incredible bilingual remix of Cardi B’s ‘Bodak Yellow’ to YouTube, which has since reached over two million views. Her viral video caught the attention current management team, and still grabs her interviews to this day. While Melli is still fresh in her music career, her raw confidence, drive and passion mean that right now, the industry is watching her every move.