Born in Oxnard, California and brought up in Bakersfield, Malik Malo was raised between rich musical cultures as he absorbed rancheras, pop and R&B. With a bi-racial family (African-American and Mexican), his maternal grandmother exerted a strong musical influence via the impassioned vocals of Vicente Fernandez and other artists in the traditional Latin genres. “I love the emotion in those singers,” Malik notes. 
 Although his father had toured Europe with a rap group and other members of his family were in the entertainment business, initially it was football that appeared to be his destiny. Attending college on an athletic scholarship and excelling as a running back, he was sidelined by an injury. Gravitating toward musical endeavors, he began shooting performance videos in his college dorm room, and sharing them with an online audience. 
 “I always wanted to be a singer and to do it full throttle,” Malik says. “I thought, ‘What if I took all the effort I’d put into football and transferred it over to music?’” Malik’s uncle, producer and industry executive Edward “E-Dub” Rios offered him an opportunity to work in the studio as a vocalist on songwriter demos. In the recording booth, it became apparent that Malik possessed both the enthralling power to interpret songs and the necessary charisma to connect them to listeners. A melodic approach was crafted that acknowledged Malik’s essential influences – from Latin crooners to Sade - to showcase his undeniable musical signature.