MALIQ & D'Essentials was conceived on May 15, 2002, with 8 personnel under a genre they call Organic Music. The name MALIQ itself is an acronym for Music And Live Instrument Quality, as the brainchild of brothers Angga & Widi Puradiredja (the group’s vocalist and drummer, respectively, as well as producer, composer, and arranger for the group). The completion of the band became a full circle with the presence of Indah & Dimi (vocals), Ifa (keys), Jawa (bass), Satrio (guitars), and Amar (horns). Later, the group underwent another change in its core personnel. After Dimi’s departure around 2006, Satrio, the group’s guitarist, decided to leave and was quickly replaced by Arya Aditya Ramadhya, more widely known as “Lale”. Then in 2010, Ifa, the group’s keyboardist, decided to leave and was replaced by Ilman Ibrahim Isa, more widely known as "Ilman". The group began performing soul and soul-inspired music at various lounges and cafes in Jakarta. The first two years they went through were a solidification process for the group, as well as a way to introduce soul and/or soulful-inspired music to the Indonesian public, as it is yet to be widely known at the time of the group’s establishment.