There is a new hip hop artiste in town. Shazzwan, 28, is the fourth youth to have received training under The Yayasan Raja Muda Selangor’s (YRMS) Talent For The World Programme, aimed at helping youth with great potential in a particular field to pursue their dreams under the guidance of a mentor.
Shazzwan, whose real name is Muhammad Syazwan Shawaluddin, had a troubled teenage life. He had been in jail and spent some time in a juvenile detention centre.
“I want to convey a message that no matter how hard you fall, one day you will stand again,” he said, adding “as human beings, we should look at things positively and change for the better”.
He will release his self-produced debut album Titipan Banduan Muda on Aug 27.
Shazzwan received training by Yogi B, former member of the now-defunct local hip-hop group Poetic Ammo, for 10 years. During this time, learned about music performance and production.
He hopes to inspire his listeners through his songs, which tell about his past experiences and how he managed to overcome his troubles.
“I hopes youths today will learn from my mistakes and not follow the path that I had taken,” said the artiste who hailed from Subang Jaya.
Yogi B said that Shazzwan has a real story to tell and that makes him a “real deal by hip-hop standard".
YRMS was launched in 2003 by Sultan of Selangor Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah to help unemployed youths in Malaysia.
“Although they may not excel in academic field, they may have some other talents worth tapping into,” YRMS chairman Raja Tan Sri Datuk Seri Arshad Uda said.
“YRMS identifies them, helps them nurture their talents by having people to mentor them and develop their potential,” he continued.
Shazzwan was first discovered at 17, when he attended the foundation’s Self-Discovery For Young Adults workshop at his school in Subang Jaya, where Yogi B was giving a talk.
He showed deep interest in becoming a rap artiste and was told to pass his SPM (he scored 4 As) in order to be accepted into the programme with Yogi B as his mentor.