Melissa Reese | |
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 Reese in 2012 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | (1990-03-01)March 1, 1990 (age 35)[1][2][dubious –discuss] Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
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| Instruments |
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| Years active | 2006–present |
| Labels | Geffen |
| Member of | Guns N' Roses |
| Website | melissareesemusic |
Melissa Reese (born March 1, 1990) is an American musician who has collaborated frequently withBryan "Brain" Mantia and is a current member ofhard rock bandGuns N' Roses.[3]
Reese was born inSeattle, Washington.[4] She is the youngest of three children.[4]
Reese began singing and playing piano at age 4.[5] She started writing music on the piano at age 12.[6] At 13 years old, her talents were discovered by musicianTom Whitlock, who helped her get into the music industry.[6] When she was 17, she learnedPro Tools,Reason, andLogic Pro then began performing and producing her own music.[7] She attendedRoosevelt High School, where she sang in the vocal jazz ensemble.[4] Reese won an outstanding soloist award at theLionel Hampton Jazz Festival in high school.[4] After graduating school, Reese began experimenting with recording, creating a module that featured a Boss BR-8 and aRoland Groovebox.[4][dubious –discuss]
In her early 20s, she moved to Los Angeles to study music full-time.[5]
Her first EP was released under the nameLissa (2007), and featured collaboration withBryan Mantia andPete Scaturro.[8] Three of the songs of the EP were featured in various TV shows, includingGossip Girl andKeeping up with the Kardashians.[5][7][4]
Reese has worked with funk artistBootsy Collins, rapperChuck D, singerVanessa Carlton, soul artistGoapele and singerTaylor Swift.[5] In addition to composing, Reese has produced work for artists such asDrumma Boy. She also did work on the soundtrack for the movieThe Assignment.[6]
In October 2016, Reese sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" before aSeattle Seahawks game.[9]
Reese has worked on several projects with Mantia, a composing team dubbed "Brain and Melissa".[7] In 2010, along withBuckethead, they released the multi-CD setsKind Regards andBest Regards. Brain and Melissa composed part of the soundtrack in the video gameInfamous 2, for which they were nominated for "Outstanding Achievement in Original Composition" by theAcademy of Interactive Arts and Sciences awards.[10] Other video games the duo worked on includePlayStation Home,ModNation Racers,Twisted Metal,Fantasia: Music Evolved andInfamous: Second Son.[7] They also scored the filmsDetention andPower/Rangers. They have worked with music video directorJoseph Kahn on several television commercials forNASCAR,SEAT, andQoros. In addition, they scored a commercial forJohnnie Walker Blue which featured a computer-generatedBruce Lee.[11] They also worked on several remixes of songs fromChinese Democracy for a planned remix album.[3] In addition, the two created astock music album calledEclectic Cinema alongside former Guns N' Roses guitaristPaul Tobias, and Guns N' Roses and Buckethead collaborator Pete Scaturro.[12] They are currently working on the soundtrack for the upcoming movieDeath Race 4: Anarchy and the upcoming Joseph Kahn filmBodied.[6][5]
The duo performed at aHouston Rockets halftime show on November 10, 2017, performing remixes of "Sorry" and "If the World" fromChinese Democracy, and a cover ofKISS's "Do You Love Me?" fromDestroyer.[13] They played another NBA halftime show, this time for theLos Angeles Clippers, on November 27, 2017.[14]
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Reese joinedGuns N' Roses in March 2016 as the band's second keyboardist, replacingChris Pitman, while also playing synthesizer,sub-bass, background vocals, andprogramming for all electronic sounds during live performances. She first performed with the band on theNot in This Lifetime... Tour.[15] Upon joining the band, she had two weeks to learn 50 songs to prepare for the tour, working 15 hours a day to learn them.[5] Reese described how she joined the band, stating "They knew of me as a producer and heard about my poetry work. I knew a lot of people in their camp. It just came up as an idea: what about her? I thought it was a joke." Axl later called her composing partnerBrain, and asked "Do I have your blessing on this? [...] Can she pull it off?"[1]
As well as singing backing vocals, Reese's role in the band has been described as the "enhancer", usingAkai samplers among other tools to produce sounds fromChinese Democracy songs, as well as playing theMoog synthesizer on "Paradise City".[5] Speaking of her role, she stated "I don't want to get in the way of these songs. On the keys, I add sonic layers to thicken our sound, without sticking out like a sore thumb. Anything from synths [to] organic patches and samples."[5] She first appears with the band on "Absurd" and "Hard Skool", released in 2021.[16][17]
EP
Other appearances
Brain & Melissa
with Brain and Buckethead
The Valence Project
Guns N' Roses
Other projects
Session work
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