Originating in Washington, D.C and raised across every letter of the DMV, but primarily from the suburbs of Baltimore in Laurel, Maryland and Jhelum, Pakistan, MALIKAH is the alter-ego of artist, DCPS educator, published scholar and community builder Neha Karam Malik. Bending guitar strings, genres, and words to her will, MALIKAH uses her self-taught music skills to serve the stories and communities at the heart of her art. An alumna of Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service where she majored in International Relations with a focus in Culture and Politics, her work exists at the intersection of socio-political- and self-transformation, bolstered by her near decade of experience in community organizing. She has been featured in the 2023 Smithsonian Folklife Festival, the 2025 & 2024 New York City Poetry Festival with the Human Arts Collective, Howard University’s Summer for Democracy Teach-In and D.C’s grassroots music community, Incubator on the Web. Additionally, she has hosted community events including house shows and a vinyl swap / pop-up fair at SOST DC in collaboration with Home Rule and Rhythm Lingo Records which was featured and recommended by The Washington Post. Homegrown, honest, and here to stay, MALIKAH invites you to come along for the ride.