Ashlee M
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, United States | SELF
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The Miami Herald
Plantation teen's talent shines at famed Apollo
A Plantation teen wins a talent showcase at the Apollo but keeps spotlight on her faith.
Plantation teen Ashlee Madhukar recently took second place in an Amateur night Talent Show at the world renowned Apollo Theater in New York. Here, the 17-year old outside the famed marquee on the day of the show.
JULIE LEVIN / FOR THE MIAMI HERALD
Plantation teen's talent shines at famed Apollo
Plantation teen's talent shines at famed Apollo
On the same stage that has launched the careers of artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Bessie Smith, Ashlee Madhukar stood ready to stake her claim to fame.
The 17-year-old Plantation singer recently conquered a few butterflies in the stomach and a rambunctious crowd to find success at the Apollo, the fabled Harlem theater. She took second place in an amateur talent showcase in early July, beating out more than a dozen other contestants.
``It was an unbelievable experience,'' said Ashlee, a graduate of the Westminster Academy who is heading to the University of Miami in the fall.
On Tuesday, she will help kick off the National Paralyzed Veterans Association Conference at the Miami Veterans' Administration by singing the national anthem.
Ashlee got her foot in the Apollo thanks to a talent scout who heard her perform at another vocal competition in New Jersey last year.
The legendary venue has launched the careers of icons such as Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, James Brown and Lauryn Hill and has maintained its position as the nation's most popular arena for emerging and established African-American and Latino performers.
Ashlee, who is of Indian descent, gave the crowd her rendition of Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You. ``Because of the background and history of the place, this was my biggest performance yet,'' Ashlee said.
She started violin lessons at age 3 and voice lessons seven years ago. Along with singing, Ashlee is an actress, composer and songwriter, with 15 original compositions to her name.
She recently signed with the Carson Adler Casting Agency in New York, and is working with producers there to release a remix of Jordan Sparks' One Step at a Time.
She is a pop singer, but likes to include elements of her Indian heritage with instruments like the sitar and tabla, a type of drum.
Her goal is to become a recording artist, but one that can make a difference.
``I want them to know what I stand for and that there is a message in everything, there is a positive side to everything,'' Ashlee said.
At the Apollo, the crowd is not shy about booing a performance they don't like -- and they'll readily cheer the ones they love. Luckily for her nervous dad, the crowd was with Ashlee from the start.
``As soon as she started the difficult part of the song, they knew she was a singer and they were standing up and cheering, '' said Joel Madhukar, a physician's assistant.
Despite all her dedication to music, she hasn't neglected her academic education. She was a straight A student through high school and is a recipient of several scholarships, including the University of Miami Dean's Scholarship.
For more on Ashlee, visit her website at www.ashleem.com. - Julie Levan for The Miami Herald
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Bio
Ashlee, who seems like the girl next door; funny, loves food, dancing; is stacked with prodigious talents, an amicable personality and a diligent work attitude that packages her into someone very special.
Her aptitude for music and song started at the age of two when she memorized the Lord’s Prayer. With an ear for music she started playing the violin at age three and gave her first solo performance at age six, singing "silent night" at a church service. A career in music began to take shape under the direction of Wallace Peterson when she was selected for the Florida All State Choir. She started her formal voice lessons at age eleven under a well-noted singer/songwriter Kathyryn Farnham and later with Sarah Jamison a broadway/opera singer from New York.
During high school she leaped into opportunities to sing with mega church choirs. At age fourteen she performed her first grand solo accompanied by the Westminster Women’s Choir under the guidance of Lisa Wilson at the Coral Ridge Presbyterian church, Fort Lauderdale, FL. The service was a national telecast titled "Coral Ridge Hour".
In year 2009 she was a winner at the world famous Apollo Theater Amateur talent competition in Harlem, NY. She took a daring step and performed the popular Whitney Houston "I will always love you". This made news in the local media world. She was featured in Miami Herald, Plantation Forum, South Asian Times and many other newspapers and websites. Local radio stations caught the story through a series of interviews directing a high count of clicks on the google search engine. This win also caught the attention of agent Shirley Faison and Ashlee was signed with the Carson Adler Casting Agency in New York .
Accounting to a significant pat on the back, Ashlee joined with producer "Rajstar" in New York and recoded a new version of the pop song " One step at a time" originally done by the American Idol Jordin Sparks. This free download available at http://www.soultaprecords.com/blog/?p=219 features Indian percussion-tabla and inspired Ashlee to add more Indian flavors in her original music.
In describing her sound Ashlee says “ My music is a fusion of Bollywood and American pop. I grew up in America so most of my music relates and sounds like pop music here but in embracing my original background there is an eastern feel to it on stage, through costuming and in the beat. India has such a beautiful culture and I’d be a fool to not let it influence me.”
Ashlee had the honor of performing at the MLK celebration featuring Congressman John Lewis who marched along with Martin Luther King, Jr. Her performance and a short conversation with Sir. Lewis is available on youtube.com
Last fall, Ashlee’s visit to India added diversity with her performance of “Jai Ho” from the 2009 Oscar winner movie "Slumdog Millionaire" composed by the award winning Music Director- AR Rehman. She was accompanied by 200 school children that made the experience an unforgettable one.
Summer 2010 was eventful with the Premios Juvented 2010 in Miami, Fl where Ashlee performed alongside Shakira for the World Cup song "Waka, Waka" as a backup singer/dancer.
As a songwriter, she was granted the Patricia Frost Award from the University of Miami. She started to write at the age of 7 and has retained all her writings from then, in a little book gifted by her dad for Christmas.
This multitalented young American with roots in India is now a part of the BMI songwriting community along with other South Asian Artists like A.R Rehman and Jay Sean. She has also been invited by Randy Goodrum a pop/country hall of fame songwriter to co-write with him. Mr. Goodrum has had many hit songs including "I needed you" by Anne Murray.
Instrumentally, Ashlee enthralls audiences during her performances, by displaying her fine music abilities on the violin, piano and the guitar. She got her fingers attached to the strings at the age of three. Her performances from early school won her bigger opportunities and awards.
As she kept performing, her opportunities grew wider with broader exposure to stars from around the world. Having a great mix of being a singer, writer, composer, instrumentalist and actor the young Ashlee has all the ingredients for great entertainment and a variety performance.
Academics were never left far behind. She is a national scholar with math being one of her favorite subjects. Ashlee now studies Music Business Entertainment Industries at the prestigious University of Miami.
A bright kid in school and very talented in music and acting, Ashlee is doing a fabulous balancing act in retaining top grades and acclaiming fame in state circles with her music abilities. The one thing she always wanted to be was a performer, and she strives to reach that notch much sooner.
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