Today we’d like to introduce you to Shine Gawd Té.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I was born here in Texas on the north side of Houston. My government name is Taylor Joyce. I also go by Tay, T, T. Joyce, Joyce, DJ, & many others, but nowadays, I’m known as ‘Shine Gawd Té (Tay) due to my artistry. Music has always been a big part of my life growing up since I was in middle school. I participated in a band & even freestyles at the lunch table. Everyone always said that I had a gift, but I didn’t see it at the time.
Life wasn’t always the best growing up, but whatever we seemed to be going through, we made it work at that time. From getting bullied as a kid to overcoming household struggles with my family, tearing my ACL & MCL on the off day of my 6-weeks training for the Spurs D-League team, losing my little brother to suicide four days after that, & the list goes on. God has always been there when I needed Him. I can also say the same for music as well with it being so therapeutic.
When it came to rapping, I would play around with it in middle school. I would freestyle here & there but never wrote a line. Writing didn’t come into play until my senior year in high school (2010). Made a few videos on Facebook & received great feedback. It wasn’t until 2011 when I had a friend of mine named EJ who messaged me & said I should actually consider the music life because he saw the gift I had. EJ also asked if I would like to record at his parent’s house because he had everything I needed to record & make projects. I made my very first mixtape ‘The Intro’, where you can find on Datpiff.com, in his sister’s room closet.
Fast forward nine years now from 2010, I have created my own brand/label ‘Shine Gang’. We opened our own studio ‘Live Out Loud Studios’. I’ve had about 10+ mixtapes released. I dropped my first album titled ‘Loyalty’ (2018), which you can find on all major digital platforms. I have met different artist such as Trae The Truth, DJ Mr. Rogers, Donnie Houston, Tobe Nwigwe, Young Guru (Jay-Z’s DJ/engineer/brother/friend), DJ VIP (Nipsey Hussle’s DJ) J Stone, & many more. My first single ‘hoUSton’, which was to motivate the city after the devastations of Hurricane Harvey, was featured on Majic 102.1 & KTSU 90.9.
Has it been a smooth road?
It hasn’t been smooth, to say the least, but that’s the part I’ve been enjoying the most. In life I’ve heard, “what comes easy doesn’t last long”, & I couldn’t agree more. If you work hard & long for what you want, you tend to have a stronger foundation & it will last longer than you expect it. I’m going into my 10th year being underground now & the journey, thus far, has been one hell of a ride. I’ve struggled with writer’s block, the death of family members/friends, patience, timelines, my motivation, being inspired, my faith, people saying that I shouldn’t follow my dreams, etc. But what I realized was that I wouldn’t be who I am today without all of the struggles I’ve experienced. I fell out with family members, friends, I’ve been depressed, at one point, I wanted to give it all up, but God.
We’d love to hear more about your work.
Shine Gang is a brand, a label, & a lifestyle. I look at it with us, being African Americans, as a community, as a race, as a whole, we are ALL kings & queens in this world. We all have dreams & goals that we want to achieve. We all want to shine. So, why not put a “gang” together & have everyone uplift each other to reach their goal to shine? Why not be the light that somebody needs in this world? Why not be a positive coalition of like-minded individual creatives who want better for themselves & also strive to see the good in others. The Gang is made up of music artists, athletes, media creatives, trainers, tax advisors, retail services, businessmen & women, etc.
I am personally, a music artist. I rap, sing, co-produce, engineer, but mainly, I rap. A lot of people like to compare me to, & I hope I don’t get bashed behind this, but Jay-Z. In fact, he is one of my favorite rappers of all-time, so when someone says that, I’m humbled by it. I’m an underground indie artist, under my own brand/label. A southern native, with an east coast flow who looks to make my mark in the hip-hop world through & behind the music.
What I feel sets our brand apart from others is the fact that we have individuals who are multitalented & can get whatever done that needs to be done whenever. The fact that we care about our audience & want to assist them in any way possible & that’s what I can be most proud of.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
Most definitely. Houston is a big city, so if you have a creative gift that you would love to display & you’re willing to go hard for yourself, then why not do it with others with the same ambition & drive just as this team has?
Contact Info:
- Email: shinegangmusic@yahoo.com
- Instagram: shinegawdte
- Twitter: shinegawdte
Image Credit:
Jaquelon Wells
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
