Malka’s Soundtrack
Meet Malka Chu, one of our newest Notables, and check out her curated playlist!
|| By: Shelly Paz ||

I’ve had the great pleasure of singing with Malka for the past few months, but when Noteworthy asked me to write her intro blog, I realized that I didn’t know much about her. I already knew she was talented, but I learned/confirmed during our recent phone interview that she’s friendly, charming, and just pretty darn cool.

Malka (25) moved to Philly from the Lower East Side of Manhattan in October 2022 for her *spoilers* fiancé. She described her new city as artistically driven with nice neighborhoods. She explained there’s “always a lot going on,” but it’s not as overwhelming as in the big apple.

Because singing was “always a core part” of her, Malka’s a cappella journey started in highschool when a friend told her to audition. In her words, “a cappella quickly became my entire personality.” (Same, girl.) In college at Binghamton, she joined the Jewish a cappella group, Kaskeset.

After being in Philly for a year or two, Malka Googled “adult a cappella” and found Noteworthy. She auditioned and joined our ranks in early 2024. She enjoys group singing because it’s a good way to meet people and keeps singers accountable. She also just loves a good harmony. (Also same, girl.)

Besides our mutual love of unaccompanied vocal harmonies, I learned that Malka and I share another defining character trait: an obsession with our cat(s). Malka’s fur baby, Cinnamon Toast Crunch or “Swirl,” is a little over a year old and is extremely photogenic.

See for yourself:

Malka is newly engaged and clearly excited to start the next chapter of her life with her fiancé.

Given her obvious passion for music, I asked her to curate her own soundtrack:

What’s one of your go-to karaoke songs?
Without a moment’s hestitation, Malka responded that her go-to karaoke song is “Fergalicious” because it’s fun to rap and “sing.” We couldn’t remember if there was any actual singing in the song, but does it really matter? It’s a jam.

What song gets you through a long day at work?
This one was a little harder to answer because it changes all the time. The whole “Brat” album has been getting her through the summer. “365” in particular is fun, empowering, and lifts her spirits no matter how her day is going.

What’s your dream a cappella song, maybe one that you haven’t heard before?
While it may have been done before, Malka would love to find and sing a great arrangement of “Paradise” by Coldplay. (Maybe WE should arrange it…)

What song reminds of your fiancé?
Malka thought about this one for a little bit and picked “My Type” by Saint Motel. How cute is that?

Finally… What is Cinnamon Toast Crunch a.k.a. Swirl’s theme song?
This one is also from “Brat”: the infectious earwom “Girl So Confusing,” except she changes the name to “Swirl So Confusing,” which might be the most precious thing I’ve ever heard.