Shyan Selah and Brave New World (BNW), have spent the past six years producing and touring Cafe Noir as an exclusive event series, consisting of 2 hours of original music, across the country at notable community centers, middle schools, high schools, colleges, universities, live music venues and select Starbucks locations. The project was first birthed at Seattle’s now official Starbucks Community Store on 23rd & Jackson in the Central District of Seattle.

Performing twice a week for three months for patrons that included neighborhood regulars, middle, high school, and college students, Shyan and the Brave New World team would often bring in education outreach representatives from the top colleges in the area including Seattle University, University of Washington, and Pacific Lutheran University, to speak during intermissions about the importance of higher and continued education.

The goal behind the Café Noir Project is to use music as a form of activism in creating community interaction with a special pro-education message for youth. While the music and entertainment industry is more known for its celebrities and superstars, this project reinforces to youth the importance of education by highlighting those skilled and educated professionals behind the scenes who are responsible for making such stars happen. As a result, Shyan and Brave New World have cultivated relationships with nationally known colleges/universities and have included organizations such as Grammy U andASCAP to join and support this unique tour experience.

The initial shows at what BNW considers to be its “home Starbucks location” were extremely successful. Within one month, Shyan was encouraged by corporate leaders to take the show on the road and travel to as many Starbucks locations as he could fit in with his normal touring schedule. In doing so this became the official start of the Café Noir Tour.