Malinda Kathleen Reese

Malinda Kathleen Reese (born June 27, 1994) is an American Internet personality, singer-songwriter and stage actress.[6] She is best known for her Irish music covers on Tiktok (2 Million+ Followers), as well as Twisted Translations on YouTube, in which she previously created songs and performances from song lyrics and other texts that have been translated through multiple languages and back into English using Google Translate; in that guise, she has over one million subscribers.[5] Currently, she releases original music and vlogs on her main channel, MALINDA. Her debut is a 2018 EP, Love Letter. In addition, she has performed in numerous theatre plays in the Washington, D.C., area, including playing Girl in the musical Once, for which she won a Helen Hayes Award in 2020.[7]

Malinda Kathleen Reese
Reese in 2018
Personal information
Born (1994-06-27) June 27, 1994 [1][2]
Washington, D.C., U.S.
EducationVassar College[3]
Occupations
  • YouTuber
  • Singer-songwriter
  • Instrumentalist
  • Actress
  • TikToker
Websitewww.malindakathleenreese.com
YouTube information
Also known asMALINDA
ChannelsMALINDA
Twisted Translations
Years active2014–2022 (Twisted Translations)
2018 – present (MALINDA)
Subscribers1.53 Million (MALINDA)[4]
1.22 Million (Twisted Translations)[5]
Total views
  • 240 Million (Twisted Translations)[5]
  • 179 Million (MALINDA)[4]
100,000 subscribers2014 (Twisted Translations) 2019 (MALINDA)
1,000,000 subscribers2019 (Twisted Translations) 2022 (MALINDA)
Musical career
GenresPop, Folk
Years active2016–present
Last updated: March 23, 2023

Early life and education

Reese was born and raised in Washington, D.C.[8] She is the only child of Mary Hall Surface, a teacher and playwright, and Kevin Reese, an actor.[9][10] She recalls spending much of her youth backstage during theater performances, and spending time in costume shops. As a teenager, she went to Interlochen Arts Camp in Michigan and Broadway Artists Alliance in New York City.[8][10]

She learned to play the Irish flute at the age of thirteen, having been "drawn" to the instrument from a young age.[6] She is also able to play guitar, ukulele, electric piano, cajón and classical flute.[6]

Reese attended Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C., and later Vassar College, New York where she initially studied cognitive science,[10] before switching to Drama, in which she majored,[8] and Religion, in which she minored. She also studied drama in London in 2014.[11]

Career

Twisted Translations

Twisted Translations (formerly Google Translate Sings and Translator Fails) is Reese's initial YouTube channel, in which she translates song lyrics and other texts through Google Translate, through other languages and back into English, to create a parody of the song or text.[11][3]

She came up with the idea of Twisted Translations while she was a student at Vassar College. After watching a video of "Let It Go" sung in various languages, she noticed that the Spanish translation wasn't exact. Her college friends began using Google Translate to create humorous alternatives to famous works of literature, inspiring Reese to do the same with song lyrics.[10] Her first translation video was uploaded on February 10, 2014, and quickly went viral, amassing one million views within a week.[12] On February 14, she announced on YouTube that she would create more translation videos. Other Twisted Translations songs include songs from Mulan,[13] "One Day I'll Fly Away" from Moulin Rouge![10] and "Hello" by Adele.[14][15] She has not posted on this channel since 2022.

MALINDA channel

In 2018, she launched another YouTube channel, MALINDA, which contains vlogs,[16] song covers, and comedic songs, as well as her original songs.[8] In March 2019, the channel surpassed 100,000 subscribers.[4]

Music
Reese at Atlas Performing Arts Center, Washington DC, February 2020

In 2018, Reese launched her singing career. Her debut EP, Love Letter, was released on September 14, 2018.[8][17]

On May 15, 2020, she released the single "More With You", which involved a collaboration of more than 50 musicians from 17 countries.[18]

In 2021, she produced a cover of Wellerman as part of the ‘ShantyTok’ trend on TikTok. She had previously created a shanty-style song about puffins on her YouTube channel, featuring user-submitted lyrics.[19]

On July 16, 2021, she released her second EP, The Folks I Love, a collection of Folk-style cover versions.[20]

On October 22, 2021, she released her third EP, Sea To Sky, a collection of four more folk covers. [21]

In early 2022, she embarked on a Folks I Love Tour.[22]

In a video in October 2022, she announced her debut album would be released in spring of 2023.

On April 28, 2023, she released her debut album, It's All True. It is accompanied by a visual album, premiering on April 30, 2023. [23]

Singing in empty churches
Iglesia de la Incarnación, the church that Reese sang in.

In 2018, during a trip to Montefrío, Spain, she sang "O Come, O Come Emmanuel" impromptu in Iglesia de la Incarnación when it was empty, so the sound resonated.[16][24] Footage of the singing was uploaded to YouTube and went viral, to Reese's surprise. It was shared by Spanish news outlets and artists, including Alejandro Sanz.[25]

In 2019, she sang "How Can I Keep from Singing?" in Washington National Cathedral while empty.[26][27]

Acting

Reese frequently performed as a child actor at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.[8]

In 2017, Reese played the titular character in Ella Enchanted, a stage musical adapted from the book of the same name.[28][29] The play was directed by her mother, Mary Hall Surface.[30] DC Theatre Scene praised Reese's performance, calling it "truly enchanting".[31]

In 2019, she starred as "Girl" in the stage production Once at the Olney Theatre Center.[10][32] She received positive reviews. DC Metro Theatre Arts called her and Gregory Maheu, who portrayed "Guy", "standouts" and commented they "bring depth to both their solos and duets"[33] while Washington Post said she was "effectively direct".[34] Her performance won her a Helen Hayes Award for Best Actress in a Musical[7][35] and a BroadwayWorld Washington, DC Awards for Best Actress in a Musical - Large Professional Theatre.[36]

Personal life

In October 2022, Reese came out as bisexual in a video entitled "I have some things to tell you".[37] She said she was inspired to come out publicly, after having previously been a "quiet queer", through her involvement with Irish music, which she saw as "music of the oppressed".[37]

Theatre
Year Title Role Location
2016 The Second Shepherd’s Play Sheep/Ensemble Elizabethan Theatre, Folger Shakespeare Library,

Washington D.C.[35]

2017 Ella Enchanted Ella Adventure Theatre, Glen Echo, Maryland[35][28]
2017 Back to Methuselah: As Far as Thought Can Reach Ecrasia Undercroft Theatre, Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, Washington DC.[35]
2017 Drumming with Dishes Child Lab Theatre at Convergence, Arlington, Virginia[38]

Atlas Performing Arts Center, Washington, D.C.[35]

2018 The Skin of Our Teeth Gladys Source Theatre, Washington, D.C.[35]
2019 Once Girl Olney Theatre Center, Olney, Maryland.[35]
2021 Andrew A. Isen Cabaret Series Herself Olney Theatre Center, Olney, Maryland[39]

Discography

EPs
  • Love Letter (2018)[40]
  • The Folks I Love (2021)[41]
  • Sea to Sky (2021)[42]

Album
  • It's All True (2023)[43]

References
  1. Reese, Malinda Kathleen (June 27, 2021). "MALINDA on Twitter: 27 is already filled with beauty, connection, complexity and joy. Thank you for the birthday wishes, friends". Twitter. Retrieved June 28, 2021.
  2. Richman, Simmy (November 16, 2014). "Mind your language: Song lyrics literally lost in translation". The Independent. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  3. Matthews, Cate (November 2, 2014). "'Let It Go' According To Google Translate Is A Hilarious Mess (VIDEO)". Huffington Post. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  4. "MALINDA's YouTube stats". Socialblade. Retrieved September 13, 2020.
  5. "Translator Fails's YouTube stats". Social Blade. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  6. "Customer Spotlight: Malinda Kathleen Reese". Sweetwater. December 25, 2019.
  7. Floyd, Thomas (September 26, 2020). "As D.C. theater honors the best of 2019, actors long for a return to the stage". Washington Post. Retrieved November 23, 2020.
  8. "MALINDA". Submithub.com. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
  9. "I wrote a song with my parents in quarantine". YouTube.
  10. Himes, Geoffrey (February 7, 2019). "A locally grown YouTube star returns to the stage in Olney's 'Once'". Washington Post. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  11. Richman, Simmy (November 16, 2014). "Mind your language: Song lyrics literally lost in translation". The Independent. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  12. "Malinda Kathleen Reese '16: Singing a New Tune". Vassar Info. Vassar College. July 29, 2015. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
  13. Kennard, Koster (October 4, 2016). "UTubers: Mulan gets Google translated". Deseret News. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  14. Locker, Melissa (February 19, 2016). "Google's Translation of Adele's 'Hello' Is Gloriously Weird". Time. Retrieved June 4, 2020.
  15. "How Not to Use Google Translate". Learning English. VOA News. April 19, 2017. Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  16. Megan, Briggs (December 17, 2018). "Hear What It Sounds Like to Sing in a Church With Perfect Acoustics". Church Leaders. Retrieved June 23, 2020.
  17. "Love Letter". Genius. Retrieved June 5, 2020.
  18. "More With You". YouTube. Retrieved September 9, 2023.
  19. Hendler, Micah. "Meet The Wellermen Taking TikTok Sea Shanties To The Top Of The Charts". Forbes. Retrieved January 25, 2021.
  20. "The Folks I Love". Genius. Retrieved August 19, 2021.
  21. "Sea to Sky - EP by MALINDA". Genius. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  22. "I'M GOING ON TOUR". youtube.com.
  23. "I made a movie. It's going to be in theatres". YouTube. March 29, 2023. Retrieved March 31, 2023.
  24. Macdonald, Kyle (August 10, 2020). "Vocalist sings an ancient hymn in an empty Pantheon-style church, with awe-inspiring 6-second acoustic". Classic FM. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  25. "El Ave cantado en una iglesia vacía que pone los pelos de punta [in Spanish]". La Voz de Asturias. November 24, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2020.
  26. Hugue, Juston (January 24, 2020). "Woman Sings 'How Can I Keep From Singing' In An Empty Church And It's Hauntingly Beautiful". Godupdates.com. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  27. "Girl Singing Gospel Song In Cathedral Will Cover You In Chills". Faithpot.com. April 16, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  28. Quattlebaum, Mary (February 7, 2017). "'Enchanted' novel comes to life in a new musical". Washington Post. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  29. Minter Jackson, Debbie (February 9, 2017). "Exciting. Electric. Enchanting. Ella Enchanted at Adventure Theatre MTC (review)". dctheatrescene.com. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  30. Press, Allie (February 6, 2017). "Review: 'Ella Enchanted' at Adventure Theatre". DC Metro Theatre Arts. Retrieved September 12, 2020.
  31. Jackson, Debbie Minter (February 9, 2017). "Exciting. Electric. Enchanting. Ella Enchanted at Adventure Theatre MTC (review)". DC Theatre Scene. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  32. Abramson, Andra (February 10, 2019). "Review: 'Once' at Olney Theatre Center". DC Metro Theatre Arts. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  33. Abramson, Andra (February 11, 2019). "Review: 'Once' at Olney Theatre Center". DC Metro Theater Arts. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  34. Pressley, Nelson (February 13, 2019). "Review | The musical 'Once' sounds fit as a fiddle at Olney Theatre". Washington Post. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  35. "Malinda Kathleen Reese". Abouttheartists.com. Retrieved September 5, 2020.
  36. BWW News Desk (January 17, 2020). "Winners Announced For 2019 BroadwayWorld Washington, DC Awards". BroadwayWorld. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
  37. Reese, Malinda Kathleen (October 4, 2022). I have some things to tell you. YouTube.
  38. Aymar, E.A (October 10, 2017). "Review: 'Drumming with Dishes' at Arts on the Horizon". DC Metro Theatre Arts. Retrieved January 14, 2021.
  39. Rabinowitz, Chloe (June 9, 2021). "Olney Outdoors Full Schedule Released Featuring Over 50 Events and 100+ Artists". Broadway World. Retrieved June 26, 2021.
  40. "Love Letter - EP". music.apple.com.
  41. "The Folks I Love - EP". music.apple.com.
  42. "Sea to Sky - EP". music.apple.com.
  43. "It's All True". music.apple.com.
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