A stage at Lollapalooza, conversations with Tim Cook, and revamping her musical direction marks a busy year for city-based composer Maalavika Manoj
Maalavika Manoj performs on stage during a show
Each song has an emotional connection to its creator. Walk away, the latest single by Maalavika Manoj aka Mali, is an example. While the song has been a part of her repertoire through these years, the singer has released a new version on June 21 that captures its original sound. “Over the years after playing it live with different bands, it changed and became faster. Its key changed. We were moving away from how it was originally structured,” she reveals.
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The new version is a mellow piece that uses melody to uplift the poetry. The song speaks about acceptance as much as it does about loss of love. Yet, it is the singer’s emotive vocals and the stellar orchestration that stands out in the production. The lilting piano touches blend into the rhythmic synth and guitar to draw the listener into the emotion.
Manoj shows off her skills to Tim Cook. Pic Courtesy/Instagram
“No other song in my repertoire has stood the test of time as Walk away has,” she says, adding that it was a conscious effort to strip the song down to its original form. It has certainly been an interesting year for the singer-songwriter who began 2023 on the Lollapalooza stage. “It was the first time I took stage with my band after three years of the pandemic. I looked around from the stage, and it almost felt like being on a green screen,” she laughs. This was topped by the meeting with Apple CEO Tim Cook at the launch of the Apple Store in Mumbai in April this year. “I knew only two days before the event that I was going to meet someone from upper management. But never did I imagine it would be the man himself,” Manoj says.
Did they discuss Artificial Intelligence in music, we ask. “Not really. Music just brings out a different vibe in people. He had just met developers and techies earlier in the day. So, when we met, he told me how he wanted to be a musician once,” the 29-year-old shares. In fact, Cook just might have gotten a preview of the singer’s upcoming single. “I played the song for him to demonstrate how apps and technology like Logic help in the creation process. He was amazed to learn that I use an app to tune my guitar. In fact, he told me that understanding this was vital for him because they formed the company to help people work through technology, which is touching,” the singer shares. The Apple CEO was curious about technology used by musicians and listened keenly, she reveals.
For the rest of her fans, the song will come out in the next couple of months. “I want to take my time and make sure there is a proper release plan in place. I am going to pick up my pace with releases,” she signs off.
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