Melly Goeslaw

Goeslaw was born in Bandung on 7 January 1974. She is the daughter of Melky Goeslaw, a singer and songwriter, and his wife Ersi Sukaesih. After her parents' divorce, Goeslaw was raised by her mother; with her sister Yuli, who now serves as her manager, was born from a second marriage. While in elementary school, she enjoyed writing poetry, later recalling that she "was happiest when doodling on paper, writing [her] poetry". While she was in the fifth grade, she began singing after being convinced by her mother, who was convinced that Goeslaw could sing like her father; although originally she did not want to be a singer.

She later switched to songwriting while in high school, writing lyrics on her napkins and schoolbooks and recording her humming on a Walkman because she could not play any instruments. During high school, she worked as a backing vocalist for Elfa Secioria. Her family eventually moved to Jakarta to further her singing career, and she was requested to be a backing vocalist for three different pop singers. At one point, she was recording at three different studios every day. The money that she earned convinced her to continue singing.