Great music is in the ear of the beholder but all can agree it takes passion, hard work & pure talent to create it. Luckily for Malik, he possesses large amounts of all three. Storming onto the scene last summer with the breakout hit “Crazy” he is determined to make his mark in 2011. “Making music is what I’m meant to do in life. Period”.

Fresh off the release of his 2nd single “Try” and it’s accompanying music video – Malik is gearing up to release his dynamic debut album, Night Before Dawn. The 16-track set is part one of his two-part album and touches on the obstacles one must overcome to reach greater heights. “It’s about the situations we face that force us to stop and think. Learning from those moments make the brighter days so much sweeter” says the promising upstart.

The artist’s latest single is reflective of this powerful theme. It describes the process of falling in love as a figurative jump off a cliff. “The willingness to embrace that risk takes real courage and there’s a lot of beauty in that”, remarked the 18 year-old who wrote & produced “Try” and most of his album. The introspective ballad was preceded with the infectious “Crazy”, a well-crafted blend of feel good pop and club-thumping R&B. Both of the aforementioned singles come with equally striking music videos that add a fourth threat to the young musician’s singer, songwriter, producer status; entertainer. “Being on stage is like 2nd nature to me. When I’m up there, I’m more alive than ever”. It seems his calling was predestined based on how early music became a part of his life.

Born in Philadelphia, PA, Malik grew up in a household where listening to music was as common as speaking. His parents shared their love of music with him since before he was born. “My mom always says that whenever someone would play Michael Jackson, I would kick. I would literally start dancing when MJ came on!” So much that Malik was a risk of suffocating when his mother went into labor.

Fortunately he made it into the world safely where he can now share the results of being raised on everything from Eric Clapton, Phil Collins, Prince, & James Taylor to TLC, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Janet Jackson, & Usher. “I learned from a very early age that above all else, songs were about stories being told; how much humanity was in the lyrics.” Having cultivated his own skills as a songwriter, Malik traces his start back to a yard sale he and his mother attended shortly after his 7th birthday. “We went into this one house and I saw this keyboard and I had to have it. So I asked my mom if she could buy it and she said, no (laughs) but that I could use the money my grandma had sent me. So we went to Western Union and the rest is history. I was practicing for 5 or more hours everyday.”

Many years later, those hours of practice are starting to pay off.

With the release of “Night Before Dawn”, Malik will set free a collection of recorded works 4 years in the making. His promising journey continues at the top of May with the release of his most daring single yet, “Take You Away” featuring another talented newcomer, Mark Murrille. Shot on location in New York City, the music video for the single is as electric as the song itself, showcasing the artist leading a quintet of dancers through a fun night out.

“The greatest thing about music is it’s ability to celebrate people and what connects us to one another. To that end, I like to think of my music as a sort of human soundtrack; there’s a song for every moment”. Equipped with inspiring material & focused ambition, Malik is more than ready to share his soundtrack with the world and reap the global stardom that will surely come with it.