Home » Member Page

Melissa Gilstrap

Jazz lyricist, artist, photographer, producer, lawyer, lover of music and the arts!

About Me

Called “a brilliant songwriter” by WRTI 90.1 FM Philadelphia Jazz Host Jeff Duperon, Melissa Gilstrap is a multi-talented lyricist with a passion for music, art and poetry. Her latest work as a lyricist is showcased in the late guitarist Tom Giacabetti’s September 2016 CD release that she produced, “Tender Heart: Songs of Tom Giacabetti And Melissa Gilstrap.” Her songs are earning praise:

“Her words are artfully tailored to the music, and her sensitive use of vowel sounds (almost a lost art) allows the singers to achieve fluency and full vocal sonority. The flowing quality of the words and music gives the songs a feeling of familiarity like a jazz standard rather than sounding like a new piece that one must stretch to appreciate.” –Victor L. Schermer, AllAboutJazz.com

The Giacabetti/Gilstrap original bossa nova, “Fantasy of You and Me in Love” debuted by vocalist Joanna Pascale, was voted the #3 song out of 100 for 2016 and the #5 song out of 100 for 2017 by the listeners of WRTI 90.1 FM Philadelphia. This song with Melissa's lyrics was also voted onto the station’s “Hot 11 Countdown” of favorite new releases for 13 consecutive weeks in 2016, with five weeks at #1.

Over the past 10 years, Melissa has written songs with the great tenor saxophonist Larry McKenna that received warm praise from fans, critics and jazz radio hosts. Their debut song on Larry’s “Profile” CD, “Perhaps This Wintertime,” hailed by one critic as “destined to become a jazz standard,” has been recorded by The Hot Club Philadelphia with Denise King and by Mary Ellen Desmond and performed by several others, including Lisanne Lyons in Florida and Jackie Ryan on both coasts. More recently, the McKenna/Gilstrap bossa nova “One Falling Tree” sung by Joanna Pascale on Larry McKenna’s “From All Sides” CD that Melissa co- produced was voted the #2 song out of 100 for 2013 by listeners of WRTI, who also voted it onto the station’s “Hot 11 Countdown” of favorite new releases for 18 consecutive weeks, with four weeks at #1.

Musical from an early age, Melissa studied classical piano for 10 years and classical clarinet for eight years, performed and competed in many concerts, competitions and festivals through high school, and earned a merit scholarship as a teenager to study clarinet at The Levine School of Music in Washington, D.C. She continued to perform clarinet in college and deepened her knowledge in several music appreciation courses, including History of Jazz. She sings on two songs (”Batidinha” and “Japama”) and performs a guitar duet with Tom Giacabetti (the song “Like The Sky” that she composed on piano and he arranged for two guitars) on his new CD, “Tender Heart: Songs Of Tom Giacabetti And Melissa Gilstrap.”

Melissa excelled in the study of literature at The University of Virginia, where she graduated With Distinction, an English Major with a Concentration in American Studies, a French Minor, and a member of Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. She subsequently earned her J.D. at The University of Virginia School of Law.

A busy corporate lawyer in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for many years, Melissa has consistently found time to pursue her lifelong passions for art and music. She has always loved to draw, and her work as a child and young adult won many awards. She has also developed her skill in photography with numerous darkroom courses, and her work has appeared in several shows including the prestigious Photography 20 show at The Perkins Center for the Arts, Morristown, New Jersey.

An avid concertgoer, today she is known in Philadelphia jazz and classical music circles for drawing hundreds of musicians in live performances, and many of the world’s leading classical and jazz artists have signed these portraits. Her artwork graces the covers of tenor saxophonist Larry McKenna’s jazz CDs “Profile” and “From All Sides” and guitarist Tom Giacabetti's jazz CD ”Tender Heart: Songs Of Tom Giacabetti And Melissa Gilstrap.” In addition, her photography is featured on the cover of jazz bassist Lee Smith’s jazz CD “Sittin’ On A Secret.” Several of her musician portrait drawings were presented in the juried art exhibitions “Transforming Jazz: A Visual Journey” (2018) and “All That’s Jazz” (2015), and several of her musician photographs were shown in the juried photography exhibition “Live Philly Jazz – Through the Photographic Lens” (2016) and the invitation- only photography exhibition “Live Philly Jazz II” (2017), all held at the Art Gallery at the Philadelphia City Hall. Her artwork also resides in private collections.

Contact Me

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.