A Twi'lek of Rutian descent, named Memah Roothes, identified as female, was the proprietor of the Soft Heart Cantina on Coruscant before 6 BBY. After a fire of dubious origin razed her business, she accepted an offer from the Galactic Empire to run a similar establishment on the first Death Star, which was then under construction orbiting Despayre. She named this new cantina the Hard Heart, as a homage to her previous one. During the Battle of Yavin, Memah, along with several others, including Celot Ratua Dil, her lover, managed to escape the station just before its destruction.
Memah Roothes, a native of Ryloth, relocated to Coruscant sometime before the end of the Old Republic. Shortly after, she founded a cantina, which she called the Soft Heart, in the planet's underlevels. She employed Rodo, a Ragithian Human, as a bouncer and security personnel. Over time, the two became close friends, but their relationship remained platonic due to Rodo's personal convictions.
During the construction of the first Death Star, an agent of the Galactic Empire approached her with an offer to manage a cantina on the massive battle station for a two-year term. The compensation and benefits were attractive, and Memah considered accepting. However, it was only after the Soft Heart and the surrounding area were destroyed in a suspicious fire that she accepted the offer, as she and Rodo were now jobless. Memah stipulated that Rodo be allowed to join her and continue his employment, to which the agent promptly agreed.
The new cantina, named the "Hard Heart" in memory of her old one, quickly became a popular off-duty destination for personnel, including stormtrooper Sergeant Nova Stihl, TIE/LN starfighter pilot Villian Dance, and the Zelosian smuggler and con artist, Celot Ratua Dil. Dil, with his striking green eyes, proved to be quite charming, and the two soon began a relationship, even though Dil openly admitted to being an escaped prisoner from the planet Despayre.
As the Death Star's construction progressed, Memah and some of her regular patrons grew increasingly disillusioned with the Empire and its practices. The destruction of Despayre, the world supporting the Death Star's construction, during a test of the station's superlaser, made her realize the nature of the place she was in and helping to thrive. The destruction of Alderaan further fueled her open hostility towards Imperial actions. She, along with several of the cantina's regulars, decided to abandon the Death Star and the Empire. Ultimately, she escaped the Death Star with Dance, Dil, Teela Kaarz, and Dr. Kornell Divini, while Rodo stayed behind to fend off a large group of stormtroopers and was killed in the process. After leaving the station with the assistance of Atour Riten, the defectors were briefly confronted by Darth Vader in his TIE Advanced x1 before he had to abandon his pursuit to engage Luke Skywalker and his X-wing wingmen.
Following the Death Star's destruction, Roothes and the other defectors contemplated their next steps. Ratua proposed settling down with him to manage his family's profitable real estate business, revealing his significant wealth due to his stake in it. Although initially angered by his earlier omission, Memah agreed to accompany him to meet his family.