Meet Melissa Greene | Personality, Musician, Student of Life

We had the good fortune of connecting with Melissa Greene and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Melissa, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I grew up in the outskirts of Omaha, Nebraska. My upbringing was a picture of a midwestern family where I had a dad that worked a lot and a mom who decided to be a homemaker once they had kids. It wasn’t always picture perfect, being from a household where emotional and alcohol abuse were very present, but it molded me into a strong-willed, compassionate and determined person. Music was always on and that was the easiest way we knew how to communicate, through songs and sounds. I feel very fortunate to have been surrounded by people who valued music, nature, good food and spirituality over everything else. There were things about the atmosphere I grew up in that made me lose myself, so I’ve learned the valuable lesson that sometimes life is about finding your own voice, and really peeling off the layers to remember who you are at the core. Radio, music and spirituality are what I love doing because they help me chip away at that idea of remembering who I am.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Whenever I tell someone I work in public radio, they instantly say they can hear it in my voice. As someone who also does voice over on the side, it’s such a lovely compliment, but I always want to make a much bigger impact than that. One best compliments I’ve ever gotten was my personality made someone feel like everything is going to be okay. Radio came easy to me, I don’t know if you can really teach anyone to be a personality, but I’ve got so much left to learn. I do think my personality puts people at ease, I have a well rounded view of life that comes off as (hopefully) genuine and sincere. I never knew that about myself until I got hired to be a radio host in my hometown of Omaha, Ne thanks to the first boss I had in my professional career, Dana Buckingham. Whatever he heard in my voice, he convinced me that this was something I could really succeed at. My hard work in college also paid off. I earned a bachelor’s degree in music education where I studied classical guitar at the University of Omaha at Nebraska. I actually didn’t get started with guitar until I was a teenager, thanks to inspirations like Neil Young and Tracy Chapman. Writings songs became a way to discover myself at the age of 16. My guitar professor in college, Hadley Heavin, gave me a chance as a newcomer into classical music, and I ran with it while getting my education degree, and I’m so grateful that I got to fall in love with the Spanish romantics, like Tarrega, Fernando Sor and Joaquin Rodrigo. One really fun part of the challenge of studying classical music was performing piece by JS Bach. His music is so busy, and the most difficult to master in my opinion and it was during a classical guitar lesson where I forgot to play a C note after an accidental in the music, and my professor hounded me for it, wondering why I missed that in the music. He told me that sometimes I tend to not always listen to what people are saying in a conversation, but more often I’m listening to how they say it, I’m always trying to figure out who and why people are the way we are. I was embarrassed at first, but he could really understand and see the person that I was by how I studied music. It was such a cool and profound moment for me that I’m sure he wasn’t aware of. I also learned life isn’t about perfection…I’m type A and don’t want to do anything unless it’s going to be perfect, so music and radio keep me so humble.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my best friend or family were visiting the area, I would take them all over. I’m super energetic and love getting the most out of new adventures. I would take them to Scottsdale, for a tour of Frank Lloyd Wright’s Talliesin West and then a stay at somewhere like the Phoenician to enjoy a boujie evening of outdoor pools, hot tubs, history and the gorgeous mountain views. Then I would make them attempt Camelback Mountain with me. I love hiking and it’s definitely what I do most often for physical activity and nature appreciation and making it to the top of Camelback your very first time is incredible. The next day I’d surpise them with a visit to the Salt River to see the wild horses. My first time there I couldn’t believe what I saw, and the horses running wild all around you is unlike anything else. Just past the Salt River, on the beeline is the visit is Pine-Strawberry. It’s so different than Phoenix because it is such a small town up in the mountains and the drive there is unbeatable. When you drive in from Payson, I highly recommend stopping at a business called Back to Basics. They make the best smoothie you’ve ever had and have natural remedies that cured my allergies almost for good! I love small businesses like that. Then I would take them to a cabin rental in Pine, treat them to lunch at THAT Brewery for some fried beans in wasabi dip and local brews if that’s your thing. For dinner I would take them to Old County Inn. They have crafted pizza’s that are amazing like the East Coast Clam, the Poncho and the Lefty. One of their previous owners created a drink called the Pickle Tickle. It’s basically a dirty martini with pickle juice, and pickles are my favorite food. I’d drive them up to the Mogollon Rim for some of the most amazing mountain views in Arizona. If time allowed, I’d also take them to Tucson, where I spotted my first Road Runner. Mt Lemmon is amazing and taking the ski lift to the tippy top is scary but relaxing, since I’m not a snow skier by any means, I just like the thrill of the ski lifts and hikes. Before we left back for Pheonix I’d take them to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson. It’s the perfect way to get introduced to the wildlife in the desert with great tour guides. I’d head back to Phoenix, treat them to dinner at Los Dos Molinos in Uptown Phoenix where I live and treat them to some of the best Mexican food, margaritas and then a late dip in the pool afterwards. Being near a pool in Arizona is essential to me.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
I dedicate this shoutout to my parents, John and Mary Dundis. I believe my soul chose to come into this life as their child, to learn the lessons I’ve needed to learn so I could evolve, love, grow and make this world a better place.

Website: https://melissagreenevoices.com/

Instagram: melissagreenevoices

Twitter: @melissa_dundis

Facebook: Melissa Greene

Image Credits
Carina Photographics for all professional photos