Shyan Selah’s Hip-Hop Activism
by Ramon Shiloh
Shyan Selah’s love for people is changing lives by the thousands. “When I say I love people, I mean that in all aspects. The good, the bad and all that comes with basic human nature and instinct,” Shyan explains. “I think what makes me unique is that I am sincere with that love of people globally, so it allows me to communicate where no individual is left out. I try to bring that out in my music, my outreach and my philosophy to art.”
As President and CEO of the entertainment company Brave New World (BNW), Shyan has built a successful, multi-faceted enterprise in the last decade that not only operates as a record label, but also offers its artists management, consulting, media and marketing services, as well as music and film production. The company even runs a publishing division.
“Brave New World represents two words – be brave. We want to exemplify the need to reach your potential at any phase of your life,” explains Shyan, who believes that when you become content, you stop challenging yourself, which allows mediocrity to set in. “As a songwriter, teacher or any kind of artist, if you give yourself an opportunity and stay at your bravest level of self, you can make miracles happen every moment of your life.”
This is why Shyan’s heart was aching when he turned on the news February 8 to learn that 19-year-old Chris Brown, a Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, dancer, video director and actor, was being accused of assaulting his girlfriend, Rihanna, another hip-hop singer. If found guilty, his clean-cut image will be tarnished forever, sending his record deal and pending endorsements with companies such as Wrigley Chewing Gum down the drain.
“There was no reason for him to do this. If Chris Brown had spent a weekend with me, this wouldn’t have happened,” Shyan claims. “He holds the power of outreach for those who have nothing. His Grammy performance should have been skipped because he chose to rock an alternative school for expelled or suspended youth versus skipping it because he got thrown in jail.”
“If you have an artistic gift, there’s a spirit behind that, behind those songs and behind the fans that love you,” he continues. “There’s a responsibility that comes with being an entertainer. That responsibility comes with being a progressive, evolving individual in your own spiritual walk.”
Tackling Youth Violence
Shyan is using his ability to communicate through hip-hop to inspire teens who are affected by violence, whether it is parental negligence, drugs, gangs or physical abuse. Shyan explains that teens need intervention or they are likely to give up on themselves.
“The violence factor is what I wanted to tackle head-on because today there are a lot of angry, frustrated kids mirroring an angry, frustrated society. There’s not a lot of knowledge being shared with teens to get an understanding of their role in America. Kids today are so on edge, all it takes for them to snap is a glare, a word or an emotional spark that could lead them drawing a gun,” Shyan says sadly.
Shyan’s activism and entrepreneurial approach to prevent teen violence and encourage youth to think about their individual accountabilities has garnered high praise from political figures, such as Governor Christine Gregoire, as well as local youth organizations, including the Southwest Boys & Girls Club in King County.
In September 2008, BNW decided to partner with the club in White Center after a string of gang-related incidents impacted club members. BNW has pledged to provide meaningful workshops that utilize music, entertainment and pop culture as an educational format. Executive Director Emily Slagle says the partnership between the two organizations was a “no-brainer.”
“I heard about Shyan and his goals for the Seattle community using hip-hop to engage youth in making positive life choices,” Slagle says. “We discussed how we could partner in teaching kids alternatives to being involved in gang activity, which directly affects the teens and youth of our community.”
Later that month, BNW hosted a Stay in sChOOL event at the University of Puget Sound’s first home football game to influence the use of positive and motivational edutainment in youth curriculum. At the first of 70 high school and 20 college visits, Shyan was joined on the field by Governor Christine Gregoire, her daughter Michelle and Melissa Topacio Long, Washington state’s Democratic Party youth outreach director who all praised BNW’s efforts. Shyan opened the game with the National Anthem and performed his new hit single “Hollywood Blvd” during the half-time show.
“I raise the question every day: Why are people not stepping up to help these kids discuss the real issues in life? The root issues of frustration are why I believe I was meant to do the work I do today,” Shyan explains. “When you see a child finally understanding their role as a budding, responsible contributor in society, it’s a powerful moment to behold.”
From Seattle to Young Black Hollywood
Born in a small town in Madisonville, Kentucky, Shyan’s family moved to Seattle in 1980s, which he believes played an important role in his artistic development. “Seattle is almost cultish. It’s a great city to develop a musical niche. The influential properties exist all around – it’s grey, it’s rainy, everything’s indoors, the people are moody, opinionated, but somehow still liberal. Seattle is a really cool place to formulate who you are. Seattle made an imprint on me. When I moved to Los Angeles to sign my first deal, there was so much Seattle in me. It came through constructively in negotiating and business.”
Shyan also credits his parents with cultivating his artistic confidence. “Whether they were actually aware that they were an influence on me or not, they were definitely at the heart of it all. My father was a huge album collector of all genres of music and I would fall into the art work of those album covers and get lost in them. My mother was a naturally gifted person and to hear her sing early in the morning was incredible. She would just adlib around the house and I would be forced to pick that up.”
His older brother was also instrumental in his artistic growth, introducing him to the early forms of hip-hop in the mid-1980s. “When I was growing up, it was groups like Jodeci, Shai and Boyz II Men that could croon their way to the top of the charts, so I was trying to develop a singing background with rap, which seemed to be tricky, but I managed to exercise those two art forms in time.”
Shyan says he discovered his creative voice when he was ten years old, but never really got comfortable with singing until he reached his teen years. Competing in talent shows is where he defines his true beginning. “It shocked everybody who knew me that I gave up ball for good. But, I believed I had this artistic edge that needed to be expressed from the affinity for people, spirituality and community,” he explains.
Shyan’s creative path led him to friends who were already immersed in the Hollywood scene. “The mid-‘90s was an era known as ‘Young Black Hollywood’, where the Wayans Brothers, Moesha and a lot of Black actors were doing well. I was highly involved in that scene. My friends were very astute in various art forms when I got to Los Angeles. Next thing I knew, I was modeling, on TV, acting and performing.”
But, Shyan says his fairytale suddenly came crashing down the moment reality smacked him in the face. “The driving force that brought me back to Seattle was hardship. While on tour, I made the blessed mistake of impregnating an old college girlfriend. I had this career that was leaping to great heights, but I had to make a moral decision for myself, so I chose to come back home to Seattle. Always looking for a challenge, I thought I could bring a little bit of Hollywood back home. That’s where the real work began in trying to be a parent and build a Brave New World.”
Creating a Brave New World
Shyan says he had a magical moment one day when he was researching charitable contributions on the internet. After reading about the Jimi Hendrix Foundation, he shot off an email explaining BNW’s community outreach programs through music. In less than a month, he found himself sitting as a board member for the foundation.
During this time, the board was charged with rebranding Hendrix to the world in order to introduce the man behind the rock and roll legend. Shyan helped negotiate deals with companies such as Friend or Foe and Barneys New York, which agreed to sell a T-shirt line that presented a bolder image of Hendrix into the marketplace. Shyan is also the driving force behind The Foundation, a series of Hendrix tribute records that is currently in production, which features original music performed by today’s top artists.
In late 2008, Shyan stepped down from the board to focus on his other community outreach efforts, but he says he will continue his work with the Hendrix name by partnering with Liquid Hendrix and Authentic Hendrix, where he has pledged to foster community outreach through music/art workshops and other meaningful social programs.
At the same time, Shyan dropped his debut album, Brave New World, which delivers an edgy sound that infuses funk, rock and R&B inspired by the likes of Hendrix, Prince, Led Zepplin, Tupac and Marvin Gaye. He spent the last month performing at world-renowned and grassroot venues throughout the U.S. and abroad on his Be Brave Tour.
On his first single, “Hollywood Blvd”, Shyan sings about the glitz and glamour of Hollywood that is tainted by drugs, money and the destructive price of fame. After the track was featured on the hit CBS show Numb3rs, Los Angeles clubs and radio DJs took notice. Since then, the single has become a favorite at the hottest L.A. venues, including RnB Live Hollywood at Cinespace, Area, Mood, Forbidden City, Les Deux and Club Monte Cristo.
On January 26, BNW expanded its entertainment operations and community projects to Los Angeles, where the company will continue to offer an independent record label, as well as promotions, productions and media divisions. Shyan explains it is a necessary move if he is to continue in his quest to accomplish BNW’s global objectives.
“Being in the entertainment Mecca of the world gives us an opportunity to do even greater work,” he explains. “From Jimi Hendrix to getting my single on CBS, I was just looking to do the right thing – contribute. I had the right approach and magical moments came out of this.”
For more information about Shyan Selah and Brave New World: 888/927-2838, x130, or www.myspace.com/shyanselah.
© 2/16/2009
by Ramon Shiloh
Shyan Selah’s love for people is changing lives by the thousands. “When I say I love people, I mean that in all aspects. The good, the bad and all that comes with basic human nature and instinct,” Shyan explains. “I think what makes me unique is that I am sincere with that love of people globally, so it allows me to communicate where no individual is left out. I try to bring that out in my music, my outreach and my philosophy to art.”
As President and CEO of the entertainment company Brave New World (BNW), Shyan has built a successful, multi-faceted enterprise in the last decade that not only operates as a record label, but also offers its artists management, consulting, media and marketing services, as well as music and film production. The company even runs a publishing division.
“Brave New World represents two words – be brave. We want to exemplify the need to reach your potential at any phase of your life,” explains Shyan, who believes that when you become content, you stop challenging yourself, which allows mediocrity to set in. “As a songwriter, teacher or any kind of artist, if you give yourself an opportunity and stay at your bravest level of self, you can make miracles happen every moment of your life.”
This is why Shyan’s heart was aching when he turned on the news February 8 to learn that 19-year-old Chris Brown, a Grammy-nominated singer, songwriter, dancer, video director and actor, was being accused of assaulting his girlfriend, Rihanna, another hip-hop singer. If found guilty, his clean-cut image will be tarnished forever, sending his record deal and pending endorsements with companies such as Wrigley Chewing Gum down the drain.
“There was no reason for him to do this. If Chris Brown had spent a weekend with me, this wouldn’t have happened,” Shyan claims. “He holds the power of outreach for those who have nothing. His Grammy performance should have been skipped because he chose to rock an alternative school for expelled or suspended youth versus skipping it because he got thrown in jail.”
“If you have an artistic gift, there’s a spirit behind that, behind those songs and behind the fans that love you,” he continues. “There’s a responsibility that comes with being an entertainer. That responsibility comes with being a progressive, evolving individual in your own spiritual walk.”
Tackling Youth Violence
Shyan is using his ability to communicate through hip-hop to inspire teens who are affected by violence, whether it is parental negligence, drugs, gangs or physical abuse. Shyan explains that teens need intervention or they are likely to give up on themselves.
“The violence factor is what I wanted to tackle head-on because today there are a lot of angry, frustrated kids mirroring an angry, frustrated society. There’s not a lot of knowledge being shared with teens to get an understanding of their role in America. Kids today are so on edge, all it takes for them to snap is a glare, a word or an emotional spark that could lead them drawing a gun,” Shyan says sadly.
Shyan’s activism and entrepreneurial approach to prevent teen violence and encourage youth to think about their individual accountabilities has garnered high praise from political figures, such as Governor Christine Gregoire, as well as local youth organizations, including the Southwest Boys & Girls Club in King County.
In September 2008, BNW decided to partner with the club in White Center after a string of gang-related incidents impacted club members. BNW has pledged to provide meaningful workshops that utilize music, entertainment and pop culture as an educational format. Executive Director Emily Slagle says the partnership between the two organizations was a “no-brainer.”
“I heard about Shyan and his goals for the Seattle community using hip-hop to engage youth in making positive life choices,” Slagle says. “We discussed how we could partner in teaching kids alternatives to being involved in gang activity, which directly affects the teens and youth of our community.”
Later that month, BNW hosted a Stay in sChOOL event at the University of Puget Sound’s first home football game to influence the use of positive and motivational edutainment in youth curriculum. At the first of 70 high school and 20 college visits, Shyan was joined on the field by Governor Christine Gregoire, her daughter Michelle and Melissa Topacio Long, Washington state’s Democratic Party youth outreach director who all praised BNW’s efforts. Shyan opened the game with the National Anthem and performed his new hit single “Hollywood Blvd” during the half-time show.
“I raise the question every day: Why are people not stepping up to help these kids discuss the real issues in life? The root issues of frustration are why I believe I was meant to do the work I do today,” Shyan explains. “When you see a child finally understanding their role as a budding, responsible contributor in society, it’s a powerful moment to behold.”
From Seattle to Young Black Hollywood
Born in a small town in Madisonville, Kentucky, Shyan’s family moved to Seattle in 1980s, which he believes played an important role in his artistic development. “Seattle is almost cultish. It’s a great city to develop a musical niche. The influential properties exist all around – it’s grey, it’s rainy, everything’s indoors, the people are moody, opinionated, but somehow still liberal. Seattle is a really cool place to formulate who you are. Seattle made an imprint on me. When I moved to Los Angeles to sign my first deal, there was so much Seattle in me. It came through constructively in negotiating and business.”
Shyan also credits his parents with cultivating his artistic confidence. “Whether they were actually aware that they were an influence on me or not, they were definitely at the heart of it all. My father was a huge album collector of all genres of music and I would fall into the art work of those album covers and get lost in them. My mother was a naturally gifted person and to hear her sing early in the morning was incredible. She would just adlib around the house and I would be forced to pick that up.”
His older brother was also instrumental in his artistic growth, introducing him to the early forms of hip-hop in the mid-1980s. “When I was growing up, it was groups like Jodeci, Shai and Boyz II Men that could croon their way to the top of the charts, so I was trying to develop a singing background with rap, which seemed to be tricky, but I managed to exercise those two art forms in time.”
Shyan says he discovered his creative voice when he was ten years old, but never really got comfortable with singing until he reached his teen years. Competing in talent shows is where he defines his true beginning. “It shocked everybody who knew me that I gave up ball for good. But, I believed I had this artistic edge that needed to be expressed from the affinity for people, spirituality and community,” he explains.
Shyan’s creative path led him to friends who were already immersed in the Hollywood scene. “The mid-‘90s was an era known as ‘Young Black Hollywood’, where the Wayans Brothers, Moesha and a lot of Black actors were doing well. I was highly involved in that scene. My friends were very astute in various art forms when I got to Los Angeles. Next thing I knew, I was modeling, on TV, acting and performing.”
But, Shyan says his fairytale suddenly came crashing down the moment reality smacked him in the face. “The driving force that brought me back to Seattle was hardship. While on tour, I made the blessed mistake of impregnating an old college girlfriend. I had this career that was leaping to great heights, but I had to make a moral decision for myself, so I chose to come back home to Seattle. Always looking for a challenge, I thought I could bring a little bit of Hollywood back home. That’s where the real work began in trying to be a parent and build a Brave New World.”
Creating a Brave New World
Shyan says he had a magical moment one day when he was researching charitable contributions on the internet. After reading about the Jimi Hendrix Foundation, he shot off an email explaining BNW’s community outreach programs through music. In less than a month, he found himself sitting as a board member for the foundation.
During this time, the board was charged with rebranding Hendrix to the world in order to introduce the man behind the rock and roll legend. Shyan helped negotiate deals with companies such as Friend or Foe and Barneys New York, which agreed to sell a T-shirt line that presented a bolder image of Hendrix into the marketplace. Shyan is also the driving force behind The Foundation, a series of Hendrix tribute records that is currently in production, which features original music performed by today’s top artists.
In late 2008, Shyan stepped down from the board to focus on his other community outreach efforts, but he says he will continue his work with the Hendrix name by partnering with Liquid Hendrix and Authentic Hendrix, where he has pledged to foster community outreach through music/art workshops and other meaningful social programs.
At the same time, Shyan dropped his debut album, Brave New World, which delivers an edgy sound that infuses funk, rock and R&B inspired by the likes of Hendrix, Prince, Led Zepplin, Tupac and Marvin Gaye. He spent the last month performing at world-renowned and grassroot venues throughout the U.S. and abroad on his Be Brave Tour.
On his first single, “Hollywood Blvd”, Shyan sings about the glitz and glamour of Hollywood that is tainted by drugs, money and the destructive price of fame. After the track was featured on the hit CBS show Numb3rs, Los Angeles clubs and radio DJs took notice. Since then, the single has become a favorite at the hottest L.A. venues, including RnB Live Hollywood at Cinespace, Area, Mood, Forbidden City, Les Deux and Club Monte Cristo.
On January 26, BNW expanded its entertainment operations and community projects to Los Angeles, where the company will continue to offer an independent record label, as well as promotions, productions and media divisions. Shyan explains it is a necessary move if he is to continue in his quest to accomplish BNW’s global objectives.
“Being in the entertainment Mecca of the world gives us an opportunity to do even greater work,” he explains. “From Jimi Hendrix to getting my single on CBS, I was just looking to do the right thing – contribute. I had the right approach and magical moments came out of this.”
For more information about Shyan Selah and Brave New World: 888/927-2838, x130, or www.myspace.com/shyanselah.
© 2/16/2009
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