|
THE
CONTENDER
Don’t be fooled by her petite frame and pixie-like
charm. Melissa Indot has a voice that packs
a punch as great as any music heavy weight and
she’s ready to take on everything at this point
of her life.
TEXT
SHANTI GANESAN
| |
 |
If you’re wondering
what singer Melissa Indot’s present state of
mind is, she’ll tell you she’s very focused,
excited and determined. “There are just so many
things that need to be done and I can’t wait
to do them. My mind is just like a washing machine
of goals, ideas, adventures and targets. I’m
so excited about all these things I need to
do and want to do,” she says. It’s plain to
see that the gamine Melissa’s all geared up
and bursting with energy, not just for her music,
but for other aspects in her life too. Yet music
still complements her journey as she constantly
has tunes playing in her mind. “Right now, it’s
Mary J. Blige’s What Love Is,” she says.
Growing
up, KL-born Melissa studied here as well as
in the UK due to her father’s work. But when
she hit 13, the songbird who comes from mixed
parentage (father being quarter Japanese and
Malay; mother, quarter Japanese and Chinese)
was sent to the UK to continue her secondary
school and further education. Although the youngest
of three children for high-profile couple—former
managing director of Shell Malaysia, Datuk Jaafar
and wife Datin Patricia Indot, she wasn’t the
sort who would just kick back and relax knowing
she had the wealth of her parents to reap from
later in life.
Instead, Melissa
was always keen to make it on her own accord.
Perhaps she was following in her great-great
grandfather’s footsteps, visionary Chinese leader
and keeper of the law, Yap Ah Loy. Whatever
the reason, she definitely had a dream of her
own…never mind if she had no clue what it was
when she was younger.
“I never grew up thinking I wanted to be a writer,
a musician, singer or doctor. I didn’t really
know. That is why when I decided not to complete
my university course (she was reading management
and systems at City University) and go to work,
I thought maybe I needed to throw myself out
there and try a few different things and then
I’d have a better idea of what I wanted to do.
|
