The Johnny Mercer Foundation Young Songwriters Intensive
2026 Songwriters
Melina Bersekas
Melina Bertsekas is an independent musical theatre pop artist whose music blends witty, character-driven storytelling with cinematic instrumentation, creating a sonic universe that feels like a full-scale Broadway production. For the past six years, she has been releasing music entirely on her own terms under the artist name Melina KB, amassing over 2.4 million monthly listeners across DSPs and cultivating a dedicated community of 430k+ fans online. Her viral feminist anthem, “I’ve Had Enough” (70 million+ streams), sparked an online movement for survivors, with over 190,000 fan-created videos across social media. Alongside coming-of-age showtunes like ‘Never Acting at All’ and ‘Force of Nature,’ Melina’s songs are celebrated for their unapologetic emotionality, quirky flair, and empowering messages.
Whether headlining venues herself or opening for hitmakers Brooke Alexx and MegaGoneFree across North America, Melina produces theatrical shows featuring choreography, hand-painted set pieces, costume quick-changes, and thoughtful audience engagement. Community is central to her work – she loves hosting fan meet-ups with coffee and crafts, created a fully fan-funded musical short film titled Gotcha!, and has raised over $2,300 for Tennessee-based nonprofits uplifting women.
Melina’s creativity extends beyond her own releases. She has penned songs with rising artists like Allegra Jordyn and Molly Grace, and for Disney+’s ‘Hamster & Gretel‘ alongside Dan Povenmire. She brings meaningful industry experience from working for Warner Records, °1824 x Universal Music Group, as well as internships with Starstruck Entertainment, Twelve6 Entertainment, and Song Suffragettes. A graduate of Belmont University’s Honors, Songwriting, and Music Business programs, Melina splits her time between Nashville, TN, and her hometown of Boston, MA. Check out her website: www.melinakb.com.
Clara Bonnell
Clara Yates Bonnell is a Canadian-American composer from Mt. Pleasant, MI. A third year undergraduate in the University of Michigan Composition department, she has written works for fiddle, choir, theatrical soundtracks, audio dramas, musical theatre, and folk songs. She takes a lot of her songwriting inspiration from the Newfoundland jigs, reels, and lullabies she grew up listening to. When she’s not writing, fiddling, singing, or playing guitar, Clara’s probably playing tennis or convincing her friends to go on a frozen yoghurt run. She’s incredibly grateful to her family, friends, mentors, and classmates for always showing her such overwhelming support.
Gwendellyn Doerfler
Gwendellyn Doerfler is a singer-songwriter residing in Nashville, TN. Winning numerous competitions in her home state of Michigan at local, state, and national levels, Gwendellyn’s songwriting sets her apart. Her craft has won her the National Alliance for Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge two years in a row, the title “Honors Composer” at the Michigan Music Educator Conference, and the accolade “One to Watch” from the Nashville Songwriting Association International. She has spent the last five years performing and honing her skill as an instrumentalist (A guitar and piano player) and vocalist. Whether it’s with a band, as a solo act, or featured in a larger work, Gwendellyn sees every performance as an opportunity for growth, and works accordingly.
Hannah Echevarria
Hannah is a Puerto Rican theatrical performer and songwriter originally from New York. She grew up analyzing and admiring musical movies, TV shows, and instruments. Hannah is now living in Stroudsburg, PA, where she has truly unlocked her love for musical theater and has been in many amateur and pre-professional productions. Hannah is passionate about the relationship between music and storytelling, and enjoys finding ways to convey emotion through her songs. She specializes in harmony arrangement and loves to experiment with different melodic/harmonic choices to elevate her music and vocal performances. She hopes to release music in the near future and continue pursuing her dreams as an actress and composer. Hannah is extremely honored to be a part of this year’s JMF intensive, and is so excited to connect with other artists!
Danny Feldman
DANNY FELDMAN is a composer, lyricist and playwright based in NYC. His songs have been featured on Broadway.com, Seth Rudetsky’s Stars in the House, Breaking Sound, and at Lincoln Center. Feldman’s musicals have been developed at New Works Festivals by The Phoenix Theatre Company, NY Theatre Barn, and Little Red Light Theatre. His TYA adaptation of The Boy Who Cried Wolf debuted its world premiere run at Arizona Broadway Theatre in 2025, prior to a state tour of schools and libraries. Danny was a Semi-Finalist for Signature Theatre’s LaunchPad Residency, is a finalist for Out of the Box Theatrics’ Born at the Box, and co-runs Devise and Conquer, in partnership with Battery Park City.
www.dannyjfeldman.com @dannyfeldd
Ameerah Jackson
Hi! My name is Ameerah Jackson, and I’m from Houston, Texas. Music is genuinely my life, and writing has always been my way of living. Telling stories and sharing messages that just simply spoken, would go unnoticed is my passion. I’ve been writing since I was a little girl and have always had a love for music. This intensive means the world to me, and I can’t wait to focus on my craft surrounded by other artists!
Amy Nicole Mandelbaum
Amy Nicole (she/her) is a singer-songwriter and performer from White Plains, NY. She earned her BFA in Musical Theatre at Western Connecticut State University, where she also recorded her debut singles, “On the Vine” and “Bloom” in 2023! She has been writing songs since she was around 7 years old, which she would then sing to anyone who would listen, including her family and 2nd-grade class at show and tell. Her music is rooted in her love of storytelling, catharsis, and connection. Her latest releases include indie pop bop “Saturn & Jupiter” and its accompanying music video, followed by indie folk ballad “Edge of My Mind.” She has performed her music live at venues in NYC, including pinkFROG cafe and The Green Room 42. Connecting with people through music is one of her favorite things in the world, and she is honored and thrilled to get to experience it at the Johnny Mercer Foundation Young Songwriters Intensive this June!
amy-nicole.com @amyy.nicole
Benjamin Nicholas
Benjamin Nicholas is an NYC-based vocalist, pianist, composer/arranger, and educator currently pursuing a masters degree in Classical Composition at the Manhattan School of Music. Originally from Kingsburg, CA, he graduated with his bachelor’s from Cal State Long Beach in 2023, where he completed a double major in Jazz Voice and Classical Composition with a minor in Anthropology. At CSULB, Benjamin served as a section leader in the school’s top vocal jazz, choral, and pop a cappella ensembles. During this time, he arranged many pieces for CSULB’s vocal ensembles, as well as those at the Frost School of Music and Long Beach City College.
As a musician fluent in classical, jazz, and singer-songwriter traditions, Nicholas’ compositions draw from a wide variety of inspirations. In his compositional practice, Nicholas aims to interweave these contrasting influences further and further as he develops his proficiency across many different styles of music.
Nicholas’ writing has been performed at venues across the United States, including multiple Jazz Education Network Conferences, and in August 2025, he released his debut record, a singer-songwriter project titled “Lightbeams & Boulders”. In his career, he hopes to work simultaneously as an active writer, performer, and educator.
Gideon Temple
Gideon Temple (Music & Lyrics), is a composer, writer, music director/pianist, and award-winning filmmaker. His original musical, Star Machine, received its premiere production at Playhouse Square in April 2026 in partnership with Baldwin Wallace Music Theatre. Star Machine also received an industry presentation at New World Stages on April 14, directed by Daniel Goldstein. Stay tuned for the live-album from the production coming out on all streaming platforms soon! His first musical comedy, You’re the Worst!, debuted at Pittsburgh Musical Theater in May 2021. Gideon recently finished an 18-month stint working on the creative team at Goodspeed Musicals. Goodspeed credits include White Christmas (AMD), A Chorus Line, All Shook Up (AMD), The Great Emu War, Ragtime (AMD), About Time, Maggie, Ask for the Moon, South Pacific. He received his bachelor’s degree in music theater music direction from Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Performing Arts.
Hank Temple
Hank Temple is a composer, writer, and director. His original musical, Star Machine, premiered this spring at Cleveland’s Playhouse Square in partnership with Baldwin Wallace Music Theatre. Star Machine also received an industry presentation at New World Stages on April 14, directed by Daniel Goldstein. Hank will graduate from Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Performing Arts this spring. In the summer of 2024, Hank worked under many titles at Theatre Aspen, including Assistant Director, Cabaret Writer, Mandolin Player, and Occasional Swing. Hank also served as the assistant to Richard Maltby Jr. on the new musical “About Time,” for both the 2025 production at Goodspeed Musicals and 2026 Off-Broadway premiere.
hanktemple.com @hank.temple @starmachinethemusical @templebros
