Austin-based, rapper/producer Shanzyan (SHAN-zee-en) entered the scene late 2016 with his debut project – Mature – where against the displaced upbringing of a broken family becomes the very specific mental address between West Coast and Southern sound. The step-out album is a toss of the coin that reveals both sides – the audacious, head bobbing “Shut Up” and the sharply contrasted “About Me” where the manifesto echoes beneath cold freeway passages in a slow nightwalk across piano keys and gut-wrenching chime. Both songs are accompanied by visual releases.

Originally from the bay area, his parents’ split segmented his upbringing between Plano, Texas and Lancaster, California where his older brother raised him and became his main influencer and gatekeeper to the craft. With the house empty most hours of the day, his brother’s music filled the empty space, an environment of rap and R&B that would inadvertently raise him and set the artist into form.

Now, Shanzyan – whether in the booth or on the boards – is in position to deliver sound and message with unadulterated intention. His discography refuses the single-holding atmosphere, as his sounds embrace the sharp juxtapositions of human attitude and feeling not only through sonic diversity, but textural harmony as well.