Shooting a music video for AV, Kurupt and Snoop is just one of many success stories that Alshan and Jaquan Barnett have to share. The two brothers from East Orange, New Jersey also run their own record label and management company Beautiful Noize Entertainment, where they produce, mix, master, manage and shoot videos. Alshan known as DJ NahSla, is the producer and Jaquan is the artist, modeling themselves after Gang Starr, except Jaquan produces as well. Jaquan used to go by J-Bar, a nickname he picked up playing basketball in High School in New Jersey, but has since changed his artist name to Artis. Alshan is a Navy Serviceman who has been deployed to Dubai. With both their talents and determination combined, they have been able to create much success not only with their own music, but for other artists signed on the Beautiful Noize label as well.
J-Bar had been pursuing music all through college at Susquehanna University, a small, predominately white private school in Pennsylvania. There he was in a music group called B.A.S.I.C. (Black And Succeeding In College) and they produced a few songs as well an album “Back 2 Basics” that had gained popularity on campus, however once he graduated he decided to go solo and take the name Artis.
A few years back Alshan was invited to an Open House Tour of The Los Angeles Recording School and went just to check it out. But when he saw the facility, the equipment, and instructors, he knew it was something he had to pursue. He also met with admissions representative Rizen Eclarin, who pointed out all the benefits of receiving an audio engineering education. Having previously purchased Pro Tools and other audio equipment, Alshan knew the difficulty in navigating the software alone so decided to move to LA to enroll in the recording program.
Jaquan decided to join his brother Alshan so they both could have the knowledge and skills to further themselves in the music industry, so they enrolled in the accelerated program and went straight to work. Having access to the studios was the biggest advantage, so they always made sure they had their time booked. Waking up at 5am just to book a studio for the day became the norm, and they were at school 40+ hours a week. They made sure they stayed on top of their grades and took advantage of all the opportunities presented to them, one of them meeting Mos Def on the way to class and taking time to attend MC Lyte’s speaking engagement at LAFS after theory class. “James Barber was our biggest mentor,” Jaquan explained. “He pulled us aside and said ‘Make sure you go the extra mile and have more than just music on your resume. Work on your skills and don’t just be a rapper or a producer; bring more to the table.”
With their Beautiful Noize Entertainment company, they have produced albums for artists such as A.D and Ming, shot and produced dozens of music videos, including the viral hit “Find My Muffin”, a parody of Drake’s “Find Your Love”. They continue to work and expand their own musical library. Artis is currently working on his second mixtape, Raising The Bar 2, a lyrical freestyle series titled “Beautiful Weeks” and AlShan is currently working on the Executive Production of Ming, A.D. and his own mixtape as well as a joint venture mixtape with Artis. They also have been working with LAFS and LARS alum, including Rudy G of RG Recordings, Matthew Bennett and Bernard Lipscomb. Humanitarian efforts are in the works as well and so much more.
Check out their music online at beautifulnoizeent.com.
This is an April 2013 publication and for more info please visit www.brain.lafilm.edu
