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Red Shaydez
Red Shaydez, whose name comes from a combo of red sunglasses and her nickname Shay, melds conscious rap, trap, and gangsta rap to shape innovative lyrical narratives about self-awareness, being self-made, triumphs, and struggles.
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This multi-faceted Boston-native powerhouse is a hip-hop artist, professional video producer, lyricist, filmmaker, public speaker, and youth mentor. Red’s undeniable talent and electric personality have been widely praised by both local and national media such as MTV, Fox 25 News, Hot 96.9, Boston Magazine, WBUR, Dig Boston, The Boston Globe, Thisis50, and the Boston Herald. Shaydez has been headlining shows and performing at festivals like A3C, Hubweek, BAMS Fest, various Porchfests, and area universities in Boston for over a decade. After being co-signed by the legendary MC Lyte, Red has released multiple EP’s, two studio albums, and was nominated for “Best Female Rapper of the Year” at the 2015 NYC Underground Music Awards and for “Unsigned Artist of the Year” at the 2019 Boston Music Awards. Listen to Red’s 2016 Debut album Magnetic Aura, featuring standouts such as “Little Sabrina” and “Relapse,” her sophomore return Feel the Aura, with masterpieces like “Steppin Out,” “Come Here Lil’ Baby,” and “They Call Me Shaydez,” and fan favorite “Self Care ‘18” from 2019 EP Chillin in the Shade. Impressively, all of Shaydez’s work is entirely self-made, self-funded, and self-servicing. Everything from street team to video direction, from album art to beat selection is hand-picked and Shaydez approved.
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In Her Community
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Red Shaydez’s primary focus is to touch the lives of her listeners and her community. As a self-made artist without big-label backing, she believes it is crucial that she pulls the curtain back on her journey to success for up and coming artists trying to accomplish something similar. To achieve this goal, Red has partnered with various Boston arts and culture institutions to give talks on the music industry. Some of these include Brain Arts Org and the Boston Center for the Arts.
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This personal mission lends itself to Red’s role as the Artist Development Director at The Hip Hop Transformation. The Hip Hop Transformation is an award-winning youth program offered by the Cambridge Community Center in partnership with The Bridge Sound and Stage, the Mayor’s Summer Youth Employment Program, and the Cambridge Safety Net Collaborative. THHT teaches teens the history of hip hop culture, the role hip hop culture plays in their lives and society, and equips students with the resource and support to produce, write, record, perform, and distribute their own authentic hip hop music.
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On Friday, September 4th, Red helped the students at THHT bring a summer showcase to virtual audiences. Digital Error:A Virtual Experience can be viewed here.
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In her continued efforts to contribute to the community, Red lended her words to The Boston Globe to discuss The Movement for Black Lives. Read the article here.
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3 Years of Fenway Porchfest
Red’s work with the Fenway Alliance started in 2018 when she performed in front of Tapestry as a part of first-ever Fenway Porchfest, a now-annual free music festival celebrating local artists and the Fenway community produced by The Fenway Alliance, the Fenway CDC, and the Fenway Civic Association. In 2019, Red returned to Fenway Porchfest to perform in front of the Harlo. Red’s place in the program’s lineup is crucial to the mission of the Fenway Porchfest team to feature both rappers and spoken word artists. When we made the decision to produce a Porchfest music video, which can be viewed here, in lieu of an in-person festival due to the pandemic, Red was an integral part of the project. “Red was one of the first artists we reached out to,” recalls Fenway Alliance Assistant Director Genevieve Day. “When I was describing the project, I learned that Red also had a professional career working in video production. In addition to performing in the “(Love That) Muddy River” video, Red jumped in to produce the video. Red is amazing – a multi-talented and dynamic performer, writer, and poet – as well as accomplished video producer. It was an absolute pleasure to collaborate with Red on this project and we look forward to working with her in the future.”
Keep Up With Red!
Red is making the most of the pandemic with a strong online presence. In addition to listening to her music, you can read an album review here, shop her store here, visit her website, and follow her on Instagram.
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Read the rest of the Fenway Alliance September Newsletter through the link below.