Melissa Anne Leoni Reyes

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Melissa Reyes
Also known as	Leesa Leoni Melissa R.
Born	March 31, 1988 (1988-03-31) (age 20)
Genre(s)	Pop, R&B,
Occupation(s)	Singer, Dancer
Associated acts	The Pussycat Dolls, Girlesque

Melissa Anne Leoni Reyes (better known as Melissa Reyes) (born March 31, 1988) is an American singer, dancer and performer. She was the first runner up on the reality show Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll.

1 Early life
2 Career
- 2.1 Pussycat Dolls Presents: Search for the Next Doll
- 2.2 Post Show Career
3 References

[edit] Early life

Reyes was born to two Filipino doctors^[1], Elizabeth "Belle" and, Orson Nick. She grew up in a Catholic family and went to a Catholic school. She attended and graduated from Rosary High School, an all-girls school in Fullerton, California. Reyes started taking dance classes (hip hop and jazz) and voice lessons when she was in the eighth grade. Reyes' parents hoped she would take interest and pursue a career in medicine, but were still supportive of her dancing and singing. She joined Team Millennia , a hip hop dance team, when she was younger, then later joined Mavyn Entertainment.

[edit] Career

Reyes is currently with a well known dance/talent agency, Bloc Agency LA. She has been in a few music videos including Marques Houston's "Wonderful", DJ Shadow's "3 Freaks" featuring Keak Da Sneak and Turf Talk, NLT's "That Girl", B5 "U Got Me", Romeo's "Girlfriend", Corbin Bleu's "Deal With It" and she appeared briefly in Paris Hilton's "Nothing in this World". She has also appeared on Nick Cannon's Star Camp under the nickname Leesa Leoni^[2].

[edit] Pussycat Dolls Presents: Search for the Next Doll

On the show Pussycat Dolls Present: The Search for the Next Doll, Reyes, age 18 at the time was chosen to be one of nine finalists and made it to the top two. One rumoured reason why she didn't win on the show is that she somewhat resembled the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls, Nicole Scherzinger.

[edit] Post Show Career

Thanks to the show, she got many fans that still keep in touch with her even after the show. She has also performed the Pink Panther/Fever Medley with the English burlesque group Girlesque (alongside fellow contestants Chelsea Korka and Melissa Smith) at the Fashion cares event^[3] She was Audrey Magazine's cover girl for the June/July 2007 issue, which included a five-page spread titled A Real Doll where she stated that she hopes to become a recognized artist as well as a role model for Asian girls, whom she thinks are not represented enough in the industry.^[4]. She has been a special guest at the Northern California dance contest in Hayward, CA where she gave a pre-show performance^[5]. Reyes even has her own fansite and official fan Myspace which she personally updates (www.myspace.com/officialmelissareyes). In one of her blogs, she has mentioned she is in the studio recording an album, and her first single is said to be released soon. Melissa recently released her first single Can't Stop This Girl on her official music MySpace and on iTunes. It has a B-Side title Pedal To Your House^[6]