Alyssa Meilin Gray was born and raised in Northern California, growing up in a musical family with roots in music and the performing arts going back to the early days of vaudeville.  A recording enthusiast, her father built a home project studio, and through experimenting and creating music with her family, Meilin learned the basics of her craft as a musician, songwriter and performing artist. 

 

Meilin’s early exposure to music and the recording arts evolved into a love and passion for songcrafting and production. She and her father shared their passion for music together in the studio, which became her first recordings and tracks used for public performances.

 

As a young child, Meilin was immersed in the study of the performing arts: broadway theater, vocals, classical piano, jazz flute, ballet, tap and jazz dance, allowing her to shape her voice and style to the incredible sound we know today.

 

Having a mother of Chinese descent, Meilin travelled frequently between the US and China, embracing the cultural influences, music and traditions of both. She and her family eventually relocated to Beijing, China, where she continued living her passion of music, participating in and winning various talent shows, such as Beijing Television’s ‘Arts of Our Land’ international art and cultural talent competition, where she performed with her sister. Meilin also won first place in CCTV’s (China Central Television) Star Search competition, China’s foremost national talent competition.     

 

Meilin hosted a 26-episode television series in Mandarin, and performed in over 60 shows as both a solo artist and in duet with her sister. This included a state dinner hosted by China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs attended by over 200 foreign ambassadors during which she performed a solo part in the closing song.  She also was invited as a guest artist to perform in the prestigious Chinese Spring Festival Evening Concert, and in 2009, she performed in the opening ceremonies of the 24th World University Winter Olympiad held in Harbin.

Honored as the lead vocalist for the official theme songs for the 2008 Beijing pre-Olympics promotional tour of America, Meilin was the only foreign artist among China’s top 100 singers to perform “We Are Ready” for the official 2008 Beijing pre-Olympics one-year countdown celebration.

As a new rising star, Walt Disney invited Meilin to sing a duet with Hong Kong singer and actor, Xie Ting Feng (Nicolas Tse), the movie theme song and music video for Walt Disney’s Mandarin language release of the film ‘Beauty & the Beast’.  This gave Meilin her first commercial success, with the song reaching position #2 on Pepsi’s Chinese Billboard Pop Charts.

 

Meilin’s strong family support and unique background is the foundation upon which she has developed her musical interests into the performer and songwriter that she is today.  Relocating from California with her family to China, and traveling frequently to the US and Europe, Meilin has developed a world cultural view and perspective that is unique among performers which she expresses as an artist through her music & lyrics, skillfully merging genres into a new and fresh style that is her own.