Musical talent shows have given us some of the best musicians we’ve come to know and Melanie Martinez is among that lot. A song lover since a kid, Martinez broke into the spotlight as a high school junior in 2012 thanks to her success on the third season of The Voice, she was eliminated as a top 6.
Martinez parlayed her success in the show into a successful music career. She has had songs that have received gold and platinum certification from the RIAA. Known for her trademark half-dyed hair inspired by 101 Dalmatians, Martinez is on to greater heights.
Who Is Melanie Martinez, How Old Is She?
On the 28th of April, 1995 somewhere in the middle-class commercial neighborhood of Astoria, Queens, New York, a couple of Murcy Martinez and Jose Martinez of Dominican and Puerto Rican descent welcomed their daughter Melanie Adele Martinez into the world. From the age of four, her parents began raising her in Baldwin, New York, on Long Island where they had moved.
Martinez had a passion for music from a very young age. She would grow up listening to music from the likes of Tupac Shakur, Biggie Smalls, Christina Aguilera, Brandy, Britney Spears, Shakira, and The Beatles. From kindergarten, Melanie began to develop her songwriting side by writing poetry. While attending Plaza Elementary School, Melanie was lucky enough to have a teacher in the person of Mr. Nadien who helped to nurture her passion for music.
Nadien taught her how to sing and play the recorder. He made his students Melanie inclusive record a Christmas CD which Melanie described to Long Island Herald as a very exciting experience.
As a kid, Melanie Martinez was very emotional, often crying when overwhelmed due to her inability to express her feelings. When she gained fame, those early experiences would inspire her debut album Cry Baby, a name she was called during those times when her emotions would get the best of her.
In Baldwin High School, at the age of 14, Martinez taught herself to play the guitar. With the help of the internet, she was able to download chordal diagrams of songs she liked. She attempted to make her own music by adding those chordal diagrams to the poetry she had written.
Martinez desired to become a professional musician and made the first step towards fulfilling her dreams in 2012 when she was a high school junior. That first step was taking part in the MSG Varsity Talent Show. Unfortunately, she was eliminated in the second round. Undeterred, Martinez improved on her vocals and kept her dream alive.
She then decided to try out for the third season of NBC’s The Voice. En route the untelevised audition which was held as an open call, at Javits Center, Martinez was driving with her mom when their car broke down. However, they were able to flag down a cab and make in time for the auditions.
Months later after that initial audition, Martinez was hanging out at Roosevelt Field Mall when she was notified of her progress to the second round. She made it to the blind auditions where she sang to woo four judges including; Adam Levine, Britney Spears, Ceelo Green, and Blake Shelton. She selected Spear’s Toxic as her song of choice. Three judges except for Spears turned around their chairs and Martinez selected the Maroon 5 frontman.
As part of Team Adam, Melanie Martinez made it to the top 6 stages before being eliminated on the 3rd of December 2012. The following year 2013, Martinez went under the radar working independently on her own music. And then came February 2014 when she revealed the product of her year-long hard work, a single titled Dollhouse. She then signed a deal with Atlantic Records and followed up the single with the release of an EP of the same name.
In August 2015, Melanie released her debut album Cry Baby. On the 4th of December 2017, she found herself in the middle of a sexual assault allegation. Her former best friend and fellow musician, Timothy Heller whom she had severally performed with went to Twitter to narrate how Martinez sexually assaulted and raped her without her consent. Martinez took to Twitter later the same day to deny the allegations stating that she never did with Heller what she didn’t agree to.
Timeline of Her Life Achievements
1. December 3, 2012, Melanie Martinez emerged 6th place in the third season of The Voice.
2. Her EP Dollhouse received platinum certification in 2014.
3. Her debut album Cry Baby released in August 2015 was praised for its theme. Cry Baby debuted at number 6 on the Billboard 200 chart.
4. On August 17, 2015, she joined forces with cosmetics brand Lime Crime, Inc. to release two “exclusive” lipsticks including one named Cry Baby.
5. On October 25, 2016, her record label, Atlantic Records became the first record label to distribute a fragrance line, her new fragrance called Cry Baby Perfume Milk.
5. Cry Baby went platinum in February 2017.
6. In March 2017, Martinez began writing, detailing the story of her second album.
