Primarily an artist and jazz vocalist, Melissa Newman is also a writer and third generation teacher. She lucked into an early lucrative career singing jingles, and around the same time began assistant teaching in various disciplines at a women’s correctional facility in New York, a role she would continue in for almost twenty years. She has also continued to lead art and vocal workshops in various other communities. As a visual artist she has designed everything from packaging to theater posters to tattoos, and has shown her porcelain sculptures and paintings in galleries in New York and Connecticut. She also continues to perform with her jazz trio and quartet.