Meghan Kabir

This exotic Afghan-Irish singer/songwriter, at the young age of 20 years old, is well on her way to becoming the next successful artist on the scene. She tastefully infuses her rich Middle Eastern background in her music and has been described as No Doubt meets The Killers. “My musical taste is so eclectic…I like it all…good music is good music, and I feel that all has been an influence in the blending of my sound. I grew up listening to whatever my parents listened to, which was very broad…I mean, my dad would have on Ravi Shankar and my mom would be playing music like Celine Dion and The Judds. You can’t get any broader than that. It’s cool because some of my dad’s Middle Eastern music has made it into the way I phrase words and even hinted at in my melodic structures, so I’m proud to have some of my heritage in the music too.” Meghan often found herself drawn to the arts. From a young age she began taking dance lessons, anything from Hip-Hop to Ballet, and continued to hone the art for many years. “I always found interesting, the rhythmic patterns of a melody and how it would fall over a particular beat in the music, combined with the movement of dance. It intrigues me!” Along with dance lessons, she took voice lessons as well as many other musical activities. “It’s weird…from an early age I always knew what I wanted to do. When people asked what I wanted to be, I’d immediately say, a singer of course! It’s in my blood. I can feel it. I can’t imagine a world without music and know it’s what I’ll always be doing.” She quickly caught the attention of Grammy-winning songwriter/producer, Dennis Matkosky (Diana Ross, LeAnn Rimes) known for many hits including Michael Sembello’s, “Maniac.” In Meghan’s traditional style, she graduated no less than an entire year early with top marks. She entered into a production deal with Keith Follesé (Faith Hill, Martina McBride) and Nick Trevisick (The Kinks, Natalie Imbruglia), both highly accomplished in the industry. Upon graduating, she began learning the ins and outs of Music Row firsthand. “Nashville is an amazing place to be. There is so much talent, all across the board, and I love being part of such a creative town. There’s a sense of community between us all, which makes it even more the better.” Among other producers Meghan has cut songs with are Darrell Brown (Bon Jovi, Rascal Flatts) and Butch Baker (Michael McDonald, Lee Greenwood). Little did Meghan know, her future producer, Kyle Cook (of Matchbox Twenty), would be filling in for a session for a song written to be pitched for “The Kite Runner” written by Khaled Hosseini, a book about her father’s war torn homeland, Afghanistan. Meghan and Kyle quickly developed a musical chemistry. Meghan completed her first EP at the well known, Ocean Way Studios in Nashville, Tennessee. As they laid down the tracks, a tasteful fusion of Kyle’s musical skills and experience and Meghan’s unique sound began to emerge. Among her many talents, Meghan plays guitar as well. From the first strum of her guitar it was a match made in heaven. Guitar engaged Meghan in the world of songwriting and hopes piano and bass will take her into another place as well. “In the years to come, I hope to have learned many instruments and expand my skills in production. I would love to open my own production company and mentor young aspiring artists and help them develop their own sound.” Not only is Meghan a knockout singer, she also writes her own material. She has written with such heavyweights as, Craig Wiseman, Stephony Smith, Chris Tompkins, Luke Laird, Robin Lerner, Greg Becker, Jeff Cohen, Gary Burr, Andrew Dorff, and Busbee to name a few. Recent collaborations include: Leigh Nash (of Sixpence None The Richer), Butterfly Boucher (Interscope), Dawson Wells, Jeremy Lister (Warner Brothers), Cary Barlowe (of Luna Halo), Gavin Jones (Lily Allen), Stephen Wilson (of Autovaughn), Josh Hoge (Atlantic), Jason Jones (Warner Brothers), Dylan McDonald (son of Michael McDonald), and Will Champlin (son of Bill Champlin of Chicago) among many, many others. Meghan plays regularly around the Nashville area. “I love performing! The energy I get from being on stage and having a good time is the best high you can get! I also love going out to shows. Seeing a killer show can be extremely inspiring. I love riding the energy from a great show, and going home and writing something into the late hours of the night!” When asked her plans of the near future, she replied “A record deal of course (laughs)!” “I plan to continue writing and recording, and playing shows, so I certainly have a lot on my plate.” Meghan recently signed management with Sanctuary Artist Management with former A&R executive, Tom Storms; whose roster hails Elton John, ZZ Top, Fleetwood Mac, Tommy Lee, The Who, and James Blunt. Everyone around her can see she’s vivacious, extremely driven, talented, a hard worker, and she has a vision for what she wants. Meghan is not just the next fad in music, she is here to stay and entertain us, for she truly understands what it means to produce art and entertain her audiences. It’s clearly evident, we can expect great things from Meghan Kabir. “It’s a really tough business, but the love of it keeps me in there. I think the greatest reward is creating something that not only touches me, but also touches someone else in a different way. That’s the great thing about music. It is so interpretive and open to anyone regardless of race, gender, and religion. There are no boundaries. The journey I’ve undergone so far I feel has been preparing me all along, whether I knew it at the time, all of the pieces are slowly coming together, and it’s exciting to see it happen. To live your dream and do what makes you happy is truly a blessing I’m very grateful for!”