Melissa Menago

Melissa Menago is a Philadelphia-based singer and songwriter, known by many as the lead vocalist for rock group June Divided.

Beginnings

Since their beginnings, June Divided have been quite the busy band. They’ve released an EP and a full-length album, landed singles on commercial radio, shot two music videos, appeared on Vans Warped Tour and at South by Southwest, been seen on MTVu, NBC, The CW, and in Alternative Press, and snagged a handful of endorsements. The bands' whirlwind of a journey started with a college graduation and an economic recession. To keep sane during a slow post-graduation job hunt, Melissa Menago (vocals/guitar) and Chris Kissel (guitar) picked up on where they left off with a college music project. On a whim (and somewhat of a joke), they turned to Craigslist for a drummer, not expecting to find Keith Gill, who had been searching around the Philadelphia area for a band to play with. As they came to find out, Gill lived right down the street. The three hit it off and released their first EP, The Other Side of You in February 2011.

Business

The band got business-savvy when college peer, Lenny Sasso stepped in as manager. Sasso eventually completed the line-up as their permanent bass player when the band realized that the chemistry and connection between the four of them was truly perfect. They went on to record and release their first full-length album, Backbone in 2012. The release of Backbone played a significant part in the bands successful touring experience. Whether it be on Warped Tour, independent national tours, or local shows, the albums sales have enabled JD to function independently. Being an independent artist, is part of what Backbone is all about. In 2014, they were among the Top 3 of the New Music Seminar Artist on the Verge Top 100.

Quotes

• "At the center of the album is Menago’s confident voice" - Bruce Warren, WXPN
• "The delicacy of Menago’s vocals really shine" - Harris Fogel, Mac Edition Radio
• "Her enunciation of her lyrics in combination with her pitch gives her a sound very similar to Adele" - Colin Peterson, The Triangle
• “little crimes shows off her incredible songwriting and creativity to match her timeless voice.” - Rudie Humphrey, AmericanaUK

Future

On Little Crimes, she embarks on her first solo record, released on July 22, 2016 on Chesky Records.

Discography

• 2011 The Other Side of You
• 2012 Backbone
• 2016 Little Crimes (Chesky)