# Malaya Watson

Malaya Tina Bandico Watson (born September 24, 1997) is an American singer from Southfield, Michigan, who finished in eighth place on the thirteenth season of American Idol.

## Early life

Watson is of half-Filipino American and half-African-American descent, the daughter of Ronald Watson, a professional guitar player, and Marian Bandico Watson, a nurse who hails from Manila, Philippines. In high school, she played the tuba in Southfield High School marching band. She is an alumna of the Mosaic Youth Theater of Detroit, where she sang in Singsation and Hasting Street. She is also an alumna of the Michigan Opera Theatre Children's Chorus., where she starred in Carmen, Tosca, Pied Piper of Hamlin, The Very Last Green Thing and The Nut Cracker.

## Musical influences

She cites her two grandfathers and her father as her personal musical influences. She described her style in singing from Sly Stone and Beyoncé.

## Career
### 2014: American Idol

At 15, Watson auditioned in Detroit with Aretha Franklin's "Ain't No Way." She is the third youngest contestant in American Idol's history to reach the live finals after Lauren Alaina and Daniel Seavey.
After being deemed as a front-runner to win by judge Jennifer Lopez and fans, Watson was announced as the act with lowest number of votes for Top 8 reveal night. With the Judges save gone, Malaya was eliminated from the competition. She sang "I Am Changing" as her farewell song. After her final performance Watson received a final standing ovation from all three judges.

#### Performances on American Idol

| Episode | Theme | Song choice | Original artist | Order | Result |
| Audition | Auditioner's Choice | "Ain't No Way" | Aretha Franklin | N/A | Advanced |
| Hollywood Round, Part 1 | A Capella | "Brand New Me" | Alicia Keys | N/A | Advanced |
| Hollywood Round, Part 2 | Group Performance | "I Want You Back" with Christina Collins, Olivia Diamond, and Queen Bulls | The Jackson 5 | N/A | Advanced |
| Hollywood Round, part 3 | Solo | "I Believe" | Fantasia Barrino | N/A | Advanced |
| Top 20 (10 Women) | Personal Choice | "Hard Times (No One Knows Better Than I)" | Ray Charles | 10 | Advanced |
| Top 13 | This Is Me | "Runaway Baby" | Bruno Mars | 2 | Bottom 3 |
| Top 12 | Home | "Take Me to the King" | Tamela Mann | 10 | Safe |
| Top 11 | Songs from the Cinema | "I Am Changing" | Jennifer Holliday | 11 | Safe |
| Top 10 | Billboard Top 10 | "When I Was Your Man" | Bruno Mars | 5 | Safe |
| Top 9 | I'm with the Band! | "The Long and Winding Road" | The Beatles | 4 | Safe |
| Top 8 | Back to the Start | Solo "Ain't No Way" | Aretha Franklin | 6 | Bottom 3 |
| Top 8 | Back to the Start | Duet "Lucky" with Sam Woolf | Jason Mraz & Colbie Caillat | 8 | Bottom 3 |
| Top 8 | Songs from the 1980s | Solo "Through the Fire" | Chaka Khan | 4 | Eliminated |
| Top 8 | Songs from the 1980s | Duet "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" with C.J. Harris | Aretha Franklin & George Michael | 8 | Eliminated |
* ↑ When Ryan Seacrest announced the results in this particular night, Watson was among the bottom 3, but was declared safe second, as Kristen O'Connor was eliminated.
* ↑ When Ryan Seacrest announced the results in this particular night, Watson was among the bottom 3, but was declared safe, as Sam Woolf was saved by the judges.
* ↑ Due to the judges using their one save on Sam Woolf, the top 8 remained intact for another week.

### Post Idol

Watson took part in the American Idols Live! Tour 2014 from June 24 through August 24, 2014. Throughout the duration of tour and to date, she worked on her debut EP, My Diary, and her unnamed album.
Watson sang the U.S. national anthem at the Detroit Lions versus New Orleans Saints game at Ford Field in Detroit on October 19, 2014.
In 2018, Watson released her debut single, "Time.", and released her second single "Worry About Myself" two years later in 2020. Later in the year, she appeared on Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder and Kamasi Washington's collaborative EP Dinner Party: Dessert, contributing guest vocals to the song "Love You Bad" with Phoelix.
On December 4, 2020, Watson released her debut EP, My Diary: The Prelude.. This was followed by her second EP, Father's Law, which was released the following year. Later that same year, Malaya would appear on the Terrace Martin album Drones, contributing vocals to "Evil Eye" with rapper YG. She also appeared on two tracks from Snoop Dogg's compilation Algorithm.
In 2022, Malaya was featured on the track "Joint 3" with Cisco Swank and Luke Titus, which was named by NPR as one of the year's best songs.

## Discography
### EPs

* My Diary: The Prelude (2020)
* Father's Law (2021)

### Digital singles (American Idol)

| Year | Song |
| 2014 | "When I Was Your Man" |
| 2014 | "The Long and Winding Road" |
| 2014 | "Ain't No Way" |
| 2014 | "Through the Fire" |

### Singles

| Year | Song |
| 2018 | "Time" |
| 2020 | "Worry About Myself" |

### Guest appearances

| Title | Year | Other artist(s) | Album |
| "Love You Bad" | 2020 | Terrace Martin, Robert Glasper, 9th Wonder, Kamasi Washington, Phoelix | Dinner Party: Dessert |
| "Happy Feet (for dancers)" | 2021 | Theo Croker | BLK2LIFE // A FUTURE PAST |
| "Runnin Away" | 2021 | Tall Black Guy, Ozay Moore | Of Progress and Progression |
| "Evil Eyes" | 2021 | Terrace Martin, YG | DRONES |
| "Anxiety" | 2021 | — | Algorithm |
| "Inspiration" | 2021 | — | Algorithm |