I THINK OF THINGS, THEN MAKE THEM HAPPEN PERIOD. - M
malia dishon aka maliaSHUTup is a multi-hyphenate artist. based in atlanta, ga.
When malia dishon (intentionally lowercase) wrote her 2024 breakout single “King of Lies,” it was fresh off a whirlwind trip to London. She’d traveled to the city to oversee the stage design for Summer Walker’s Wireless Festival set, a lush green backdrop with an abundance of florals that mirrored the growth the pregnant singer was experiencing in her personal life. In her spare time, malia went on dates and partied at The Shoreditch bar. She quickly found herself inspired by the city’s vibrant energy. Although she was thousands of miles away from her native Atlanta, the singer/songwriter recognized many similarities in the two cities: they were both melting pots that inspired artists to explore existing sounds and innovate future trends.
A longtime creative, malia turned to songwriting as a way to grieve the loss of her close friend Simon Illa in 2022. Following his death, she gave her first public performance in celebration of his heavenly birthday, singing a rendition of “MAPS” by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. She’d been experimenting with writing her own songs for much of the year but, returning from London over the summer, malia found she was overwhelmed by lyrical concepts and melodies.
It wasn’t long after returning to Atlanta that she wrote “King of Lies,” a buoyant dance track about an unreliable lover. The single cover was shot in Jamaica, an ode to the many summers malia spent visiting her grandparents’ home on the island. The song, along with its successor “Queen of The Dancefloor,” introduced fans to the glimmering productions and affirming lyrics that would form the foundation of malia’s signature sound, even as she’s experimented with genres ranging from pop, R&B, dance and amapiano.
Before she was a singer and songwriter, malia played a pivotal role in the success of several era-defining artists, including Summer Walker and Latto. She currently works as the creative director for jazz legend Earl Klugh’s Weekend of Jazz festival, a role she earned after years of running his social media accounts. In 2014, she introduced rising artist Raury to Andre 3000 before becoming his social media manager and directing the stop motion video for his 2015 single “Fly.” She spent five years working with the Atlanta-based label Love Renaissance (LVRN) as a social media manager and senior marketing director for artists such as Summer Walker, 6lack, DRAM and WS Boogie. The job introduced her to various parts of the industry and allowed her to work on Kendrick Lamar’s DAMN tour, supporting DRAM who was an opening act (“In hindsight, it inspired me as a performer,” she said).
When Summer Walker released her critically acclaimed R&B album Over It in 2019, malia worked with digital streaming services Apple and Spotify to create viral fan experiences surrounding the project. She conceptualized custom candles to send to fans and influencers including Jordyn Woods and Kylie Jenner to promote Walker’s breakout single “Girls Need Love” before overseeing an apothecary event with Spotify and Candlefish where fans created unique candle scents pegged to songs from Over It. malia directed the music video for the album’s single “Stretch You Out,” creating the hazy, kaleidoscope-colored world in which Walker seduces fans with a pole dance. The video has garnered more than 40 million views to date and helped malia realize her passion for directing.
Since leaving LVRN in 2020 to focus on this work, malia has directed music videos such as Latto’s “FTCU” with Glorilla and the late Gangsta Boo, and Amorphous and Kelly Rowland’s “Finally (Cannot Hide It)” performance for Jimmy Kimmel Live. She’s also directed live performances for Latto’s VEVO Lift series, as well as an acoustic version of Tems’ “Me & U.” Based on her work as a director and her forthcoming music, malia was named a Creative to Watch in 2023 by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
This is a career that the singer/songwriter has been manifesting for most of her life. malia’s upbringing wasn’t just soundtracked by Atlanta’s biggest artists. Thanks to her parents, she was deeply immersed in the city’s music scene from a young age. Her dad, Ray Murray, is a member of the production trio Organized Noize alongside Sleepy Brown and the late Rico Wade. Her mother, Dalethian "Dee Dee" Murray, served as the general manager for the producers, whose work with Dungeon Family artists Outkast, Goodie Mob and others captivated listeners at a time when southern hip-hop was still fighting to prove its legitimacy.
malia was at the center of this renaissance. In 1998, Outkast filmed a portion of the music video for the Aquemini track “Skew it on the Bar-B” inside her home, then known as Dungeon East. Later, Goodie Mob filmed a music video in her front yard. Oftentimes, the 808s from her dad’s studio could be heard from her bedroom. “Every day. All night. That’s what would put me to sleep,” she said. malia took advantage of this access, asking directors such as Bryan Barber questions on set and observing the creative process of her dad and Dungeon Family uncles as often as possible. She spent time with Rico Wade in the year and a half before he passed, playing unreleased music and taking in his feedback. “Before he died, I got to see him and tell him ‘thank you for your advice because it has made me a better singer,” malia said. The moment took place in February 2024, during one of Wade’s last recording sessions.
Although she’d been behind-the-scenes on many productions during her childhood, she became the star in her own right when MTV’s My Super Sweet 16 covered her birthday party in 2007. At the time, malia’s mom was the general manager for Big Boi’s Purple Ribbon Records and malia was working as a JR A&R. The hit series, which was broadcast to millions of viewers, not only documented malia’s star-studded upbringing – Big Boi performed “Kryptonite” at the televised party – it also shed a light on the fact that she was captain of her high school’s varsity cheerleading team and excelling academically. malia graduated from Dekalb’s Martin Luther King Jr. High School as co-valedictorian before obtaining a marketing degree from the University of Georgia.
In 2005, malia met Usher and began participating in his youth leadership program New Look. As a “Mogul in Training,” she attended her first red carpet, appeared on cable news programs for CNN and MSNBC, and hosted her first press conference alongside Usher. She also announced the non-profit’s Powered By Service initiative onstage with the singer and former President Bill Clinton. “I feel like that’s why I’m not afraid to do public speaking,” she said, adding that she also had her first run-in with the paparazzi while being mentored by the superstar.
Following the release of malia’s debut single, “King of Lies,” malia has been in the studio preparing new music, has released singles “Say You Love Me” and “Queen of The Dancefloor”, a set of remixes and perfecting her debut EP, The Star. The project will feature her first professional collaboration with her dad, Ray Murray. The song, “On His Mind”, which pulls inspiration from amapiano, was co-written by Marqueze Etheridge, the songwriter behind TLC’s "Waterfalls." Recently, malia performed at Criminal Records 35th anniversary show, 2025 One Music Fest and The Listening Room at Smith's Old Bar!
bio written by Jewel Wicker