Alumna Spotlight: Wyann Vaughn 12'
I currently work as an edutainer, an educator and entertainer. I academically counsel at Pasadena City College’s Ujima Program, or the Black student scholarship Pathway at the institution. I also teach counseling coursework at the college. Within entertainment, I tour with my mother’s Grammy award-winning sister soul group from the 70s, The Emotions, most famously known for its work with Earth, Wind & Fire (Boogie Wonderland) and its hit song “Best of My Love.” In addition, I work extensively within hip hop alongside legends like Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg and Kendrick Lamar. On July 13, 2018, I released my second book of poetry, Write Out, and on December 13, 2019, I released my first body of music, the #WyannEP. Bridging the worlds of entertainment and education, I used program building techniques from macro social work practices to help create the 1500 Sound Academy with band-to-the-stars 1500 or Nothin’ (Jay Z, Beyoncé, Justin Timberlake, Usher, etc.) I designed and currently implement curriculum to aid creatives in finding their authentic sound as well as practice self-care. I also host a podcast, Raise It Up, Wy!, that blends my therapeutic knowledge in with the edutainment. On this platform, I use hip hop to spread positivity and serve as a space for honest communication between aspiring minds and those well established in their fields (e.g. Music moguls advising new creatives, students opening to educators, etc).
It may sound funny, but a rap song I wrote entitled Thickness earned me my position at Pasadena City College's Ujima Program. I was invited to guest speak for an annual event, the African American High School Conference, where I shared a story through a song about positive self-identification. The response was so resounding that my good friend--now boss--asked who would join the program if I were their counselor/professor: The crowd of 250 students roared and the rest has been history. Not only has my entertainment life impacted my academic profession, but the converse is also true as well. I co-hosted a show on an Apple Music's Beats1 radio entitled The Pharmacy with Dr. Dre. Dr. Dre dubbed me "The Voice of Reason" because of my educational and therapeutic background. In another instance, CEO of 1500 or Nothin' Larrance Dopson sought me out to help build 1500 Sound Academy, a holistic approach to cultivating creativity, after learning about my extensive thesis research exploring rap music's role in Black adolescent identity formation. Education and entertainment have fused together throughout my professional career.
What is fulfilling about my career as an edutainer is using my talents to help warm hearts and souls around the world. Music has a longer reach than education, in my opinion, and furthering one's knowledge only enriches the experience of music. Edutainment also continues my family's legacy. My mother earned a Grammy in 1977 and my father earned his degree from UCLA in 1976; I always knew I wanted both of these items in my life. Earning my Master of Social Work (MSW) degree from Long Beach State (GO BEACH!!) and releasing music honors my family. What I find challenging about being an edutainer is constantly having to explain myself to two different schools of thought: The corporate world of education and the free-form, flowing universe of creativity. Edutaining is constantly seeking balance in the brain between the discipline of the left side and the artistry of the right. The equilibrium shifts almost daily, but the challenge is worth the fulfillment.
As I alluded to earlier, the main challenge I experience as an edutainer comes in the form of explaining the blend of education and entertainment to either side of the mixture. A great example deals with differing perceptions of time. With education being a corporate styled business, very little wiggle room is allotted for flexibility in punctuality. If someone is not in a classroom when the bell tolls, they are marked "tardy" without reservation and any reason for a lack of desired behavior gets labeled as an "excuse." I call the way corporate America looks at time "tick-tating" or "tick-tation": Dictating clocks ruling our realities devoid of the human experience. In entertainment, time is treated as a guideline, not a deadline. Very rarely have 15 minutes ever ruined a studio session or stopped an award show from airing successfully. From folks behind cameras to the talent in front of them, creatives know that "9 am" means roughly "9:15 am." I have more often been greeted by smiling faces in the music industry glad that I made it somewhere safely rather than punctually. My employer and I had an honest discussion about time during a week that demanded much from me on both ends of my edutainment spectrum. Prior to this week; I had asked to adjust my hours but, considering the college needed me as was expressed, my time remained unaltered. At the end of this hellish week, my boss sat me down to address my chronic tardiness. I attempted to recall the adjustments I requested beforehand; however, in the end, the results stated that my behavior presented as unprofessional. Sleep deprived, feeling exhausted and unheard; I offered my two weeks notice of resignation. I felt embarrassed that I could not live up to the standards of the college. I felt undervalued and misunderstood, considering I fought to explain sleeping in my car at the college to get less than three hours of sleep having finished shows and interviews between four and six am. If someone were better fit for the job because they could promise punctuality, then I felt I was being unfair by inhabiting a role I clearly could not fulfill. My boss looked shocked at my resolution; she knows I am not a quitter. In that moment, though, she looked at me--like really looked at me. She saw the wear and tear of Wyann the person, not the counselor. She affirmed my value to the program and commended the work I had done after hearing all I did outside of the office and classroom. My boss spoke to me as the friend she has always been and reminded me that my entertainer spirit is what brings something different and special to the program. We agreed that just like in the world of entertainment, several minutes late is the new "on time" for my schedule. The office agreed that the accommodation felt fair and I have since been "on time." Truly, though, I leave when my work is finished and not when the clock "tick-tates." My podcast was birthed from conversation with students well over an hour after I was to be done for the day, all because I find it important for students to know they are heard. Quality over quantity was the takeaway from this resolved challenge.
I would advise current Beach students to remain focused, keeping their heads held high and their feet forever forward. Graduation started the moment they got their acceptance letters: Every move made after committing to The Beach should reflect that. For recent Beach alumni, I would like to first say CONGRATULATIONS!!! I would then advise new alumni to take a moment to pat themselves on their backs, recognizing they just graduated from one of the most esteemed institutions for higher education in the country. I would like students and alumni both to sit in their accomplishments: One group for being accepted to our university and the other for completing a chapter of their stories with us. I would want them to write about their successes in a journal and explore how deserving they are of the accolades they are either in pursuit of or have recently earned. I want to warn students and alumni alike about running from one sense of accomplishment quickly to another: That type of behavior can happen when we mistake our identities with our achievements and it carries less than healthy implications for the long run. What does it look like to practice self-care and actually experience the moment? Journaling, resting, going for a walk just to observe and enjoy nature, feeling peace in the present and not regret for the past or anxiety for the future. I have observed a trend in academia where high achievers know tons of information, but have rarely explored themselves. One of the first songs I wrote after completing my graduate program began by asking: "Why when I find the time for me to find some time for me, I find time for someone else?" Not often in our studies do we learn about ourselves strictly for the purpose of self-discovery. I could build an after-school program for at-risk youth but could not easily find my voice with my master's degree. So, again, finding pockets of time where we can slow down and truly sit with our self-worth among life's whirring sounds and blurry lights may be one of our most valuable lessons.
