Manuka

Manuka is an Indie folk inspired artist - born into a Sikh family in East London (Barking) and grew up in Leeds. It was when she first started singing Kirtan (hymns) at the Gurdwara from the age of 12 that she realised she had a voice. Her parents then introduced training in Indian Classical Music. Her training took her all around the UK and to Kolkata, India. Inspired by her culture, and her love for the 90s/00s artists such as Corinne Bailey Rae, Nelly Furtado and Norah Jones she started writing her own music building her sound through combining her love for folk, pop, and her Indian musical background. Right now Manuka is a BBC Introducing Artist with her single release Forest Fire which was followed by her single Thora Sa as ‘Track of the Week’ on Bobby Frictions Show. At the start of 2020 she had planned an international tour starting in India, but due to the Pandemic this didn't go as planned. So instead she has decided to settle in Goa for now - exploring the Independent Indian music scene, collaborating with artists and creating new sounds!

Alongside her passion in songwriting Manuka has been working in mental health for 6 years. Through her work she has been delivering music sessions for wellbeing to individuals living with dementia and groups with learning disability and difficulty. Her work has resulted in her being showcased in the Guardian and a feature on a BBC NEWS piece with Naughty Boy music for 'Dementia Awareness Week' 2020.