Photo by Brittany Guerin | The Signal
Indie artist India Shawn can frequently be seen making her way from Langdale Hall to Aderhold Learning Center in sweats and a ponytail. Subsequently, she can be seen at local venues singing after class. Shawn is an accomplished songwriter, a singer, a student and above all else, a real girl following her dreams.
Shawn began singing in church choirs as a teenager. She always knew a career in music could be a reality but had no clue where to begin until Big Lo heard her singing in a parking lot. He later became her manager, took her to the studio and her dream became reality.
During Shawn’s first semester at Georgia State, she began to write more songs; her studio time increased and her music career picked up.
“I was up all night in the studio with different producers and trying to get my homework done,” Shawn said. “I was just sacrificing too much on both sides. So I was like I have to choose and the music chose for me because I got a recording deal with Universal Music Group.”
Once Shawn got her record deal, she moved to Los Angeles and dropped out.
In that time she worked with other artists, writing song after song. She came to realize writing is a service where artists want specific qualities from her songs.
“That was hard for me because I found myself compromising and making music that I wouldn’t even listen to myself,” Shawn said. “But because it had placement potential, I was doing it.”
Now she is comfortable releasing music that is up to her standards. Shawn released her first album “Origin” in 2012 and it was a sound that defined her as an artist.
The nature of “Origin” requires listeners to let their guards down and sink into the sound. Tracks like “Sinking In” allow mellow introspection while “No Saint” soulfully shares her direct, innermost thoughts.
“It was super personal for me,” Shawn said. “It was me coming out of the writing situation and putting out music of my own. I was tired of just writing for other people.”
Journalism major Aliyah Moore and political science major Kassa Khouzami find Shawn’s music refreshing.
Moore found Shawn’s music on the internet a year ago. She says Shawn’s clear tone is what made her a fan.
“This sounds weird, but her voice is really clean; it’s so unique,” Moore said.
Khouzami discovered Shawn with a friend when they went to one of her performances at Aloft Hotel this February.
“Her music has such a pure vibe, I could almost see her glow through her lyrics,” Khouzami said. “She’s honest in her songs. It’s relatable and her performance was moving.”
After releasing her sound defining album, Shawn was at a party when Solange approached her to praise her song “All I Have.”
“I just fangirled out,” Shawn said. “It was really crazy because I wrote that song. Sometimes it’s really easy for me to downplay my achievements. Like, ‘Oh I don’t deserve that credit because I only co-wrote that,’ but I wrote that song and that song was real for me and she found it without a manager or a publicist reaching out to her.”
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Returning to school
Shawn was inspired by her fellow artists who were doing music and juggling school and work, so she returned to school determined to persevere.
“I don’t know what year I am anymore,” Shawn joked. “I have dropped out a few times. I come back and knock out a few hours here and there. I’ve got about 30 more hours to go.”
Now motivated to wake up earlier to fit in homework, Shawn makes the most of her time in the studio with her producer. She also found the best strategy for her daily tasks.
“I write stuff down a lot more often than I used to,” Shawn said. “I have Google Calendar and white boards. I’m writing things down and crossing them off as I complete them. It’s the only way.”
This semester, Shawn performed at the Aloft Hotel every Tuesday in February as a part of a new music series. On Tuesdays she would leave school at 5:30 p.m to go home to change, then go straight to the hotel to rehearse. Even though it was hectic, she managed.
“Just watching more people come out each week and respond to music they’ve never heard made it all worth while,” Shawn said.
New album
Shawn is set to release her new joint album with songwriter James Fauntleroy in March. The album, “Outer Limits,” takes a more funky direction than her first album.
“I really just took my hands off of it and gave someone else the creative reigns,” Shawn said. “It’s because I trust him so much as a songwriter. He’s one of the most brilliant songwriters I know and he knows me on a personal level so he gave me what I wanted.“
Although Shawn is doing what she dreamed of, she is back in school as a personal goal.
“I don’t know how much I need it [school] now,” Shawn said. “But I actually enjoy what I’m learning now. The past year or so has been dedicated to planning, so I had the time to go to school and do the music.”
Shawn’s dream beyond music is to use her degree to open what she calls a human potential center to help inner city residents who don’t have resources available to them. She hopes to use music as a platform to help her community, but she says she is prepared to put school on pause again when it comes to furthering her dreams.
“If I get a call to open for Kanye West tomorrow, I might have to say ‘peace out’ to GSU,” Shawn said. “You just have to sacrifice for what you love. As soon as this album drops and summer hits, I’m just praying that I can go on tour.”
