Moon teen wins national songwriting competition
Maleena Dominick had already written a song about how she felt losing the last few months of her senior year at Moon Area High School to the covid-19 shutdown.
So when the 18-year-old heard about the “Living in a Covid World”-themed Robbie’s Hope Foundation songwriting contest, she immediately entered.
Dominick’s song, “Don’t Forget Me,” won as the top entry, earning her a cash prize and a trip to Colorado to record at The Keep studio in Denver.
“I thought it was a perfect fit,” Dominick said. “I’m putting the money that I won back into my music, and I’ll be going (to Denver) sometime later when the restrictions are lightened on traveling.”
Robbie’s Hope is a Colorado nonprofit focused on preventing teen suicide.
“As a teen musician, it’s important for me to use my voice to provide comfort and hope to my peers,” Dominick said. “Robbie’s Hope does such wonderful things for teen suicide prevention and I’m proud that we were able to connect through this contest.”
Dominick has always been interested in music — her father Chip is a songwriter and both are part of Pittsburgh-area band Chip & the Charge Ups, and she’s spent time at the For Those About to Rock Academy and School of Rock, two local music education programs — but around 16 years old, “I decided that if I was really passionate about it, I should start writing music for iTunes and Spotify,” she said.
“Don’t Forget Me” lays out Dominick’s thoughts in the wake of having to say an early goodbye to schoolmates and spending time cooped up at home during quarantine: “I worry about all the memories/What will happen when you say ‘bye to me?”
Dominick will record a new version of “Don’t Forget Me” at The Keep studio in Denver, which partners with the Robbie’s Hope Foundation, and she also plans to bring several other original tunes with her to record.
“I’m thinking I might write some more material that kind of fits their content, because I do want to use my power as a musician to help them out,” she said.
Every Monday night, Dominick sits down with her guitar and tries to write a new song.
“I just love being able to create something that’s totally my own,” she said.
Patrick Varine is a TribLive reporter covering Delmont, Export and Murrysville. He is a Western Pennsylvania native and joined the Trib in 2010 after working as a reporter and editor with the former Dover Post Co. in Delaware. He can be reached at pvarine@triblive.com.
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