Born and raised in Cairo Egypt, Nadya Shanab always expressed her love for music in many ways. However, only recently has it become a mainstream focus of her life. She has interrupted her studies of Sociology and Mathematics at the American University in Cairo (AUC) to pursue her dream of becoming a singer/songwriter. She is currently studying at the Paul McCartney's school; Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) for a BA (Hons) degree in Performing Arts Music.

From 2005 to 2006, she was part of an acoustic band "LIKE JELLY", which after playing at several events, gained popularity especially amongst AUC and CISV communities. They played covers of the likes of; Alanis Morissette, Dispatch and Jack Johnson as well as their own original pieces. She has had three of her original songs (Boy, Just So Tired and Ain't Nothing but Tears) aired on "Nile FM" one of Cairo's main radio stations over the last two years. In the summer of 2007, Nile FM asked to host Nadya Shanab for an evening of live music and a bit of a chat; she performed In a Fit of Remorse, Ain't Nothing but Tears and Ticking Bomb live on an acoustic guitar for Cairo and The Middle East.

Nadya has also performed several songs alongside a local Egyptian band; "Blues on the Rocks" covering the likes of Tracy Chapman, B.B King and Bonnie Raitt. More recently, she had her first "solo" Sakkia performance in Cairo, where she played for a Wisdom Hall of 300 people. She treated the attendees to a collection of covers and her own work with an Arabic twist. She was also hosted by the Egyptian Satellite Channel program "Sayedaty" where she played four songs on live TV which aired all over The Middle East, Europe and the USA. Her track "Ticking Bomb" has been featured on a film "Cryptic Reflections" by Robert Beshara, which is to be screened at the New York International and Independent Film and Video Festival in March 2008.

She is currently working on her project "Property of Nadya Shanab" and original material as well as integrating more Arabic elements into her music.