#BEYOUROWN MEETS DEVI BROWN

Devi Brown is a successful radio personality, advocate for the women’s community, and loving wife, entrepreneur, philanthropist and published author. Devi’s story is one of hard work and ambitious self-discovery.

Since becoming one of the youngest female music directors in radio, Devi has continued to grow and dominate the entertainment industry from coast to coast, hosting shows in Los Angeles, New York City, and Houston, TX. A born communicator, Devi’s gifts have always been her fierce communication skills and knack for storytelling. She has been able to tap into her community to find and reveal the greater strengths in herself, while at the same time inspiring her audience to ignite their curiosities through music and conversation–an essential talent for someone who established their career by discovering and breaking out emerging artists.

After starting her career in Los Angeles, Devi took her talents to NYC, where she hosted MTV talk show Hip Hop POV. She also helped launch SiriusXM’s Sway in the Morning show, as co-host to hip-hop and cultural legend Sway Calloway. Before that, Devi was a host on the RadioOne station, 97.9 The Box, where her viral interview with Kanye West landed her on Good Morning America and The Today Show. From NYC, Devi relocated to Houston to be the music director at 93.7 The Beat, an iHeart Radio company, and Houston’s #1 station. She remained in Houston for 5 years once again solidifying herself as an integral member of the music community.

Of course, with major success comes responsibility and accountability. For a compassionate and righteous woman such as Devi, this can weigh heavily on the mind and body. After suffering a stress-induced hospitalisation, Devi followed her instinct for a higher purpose and enrolled in her first meditation retreat with Deepak Chopra. The 10-day intensive journey was life-changing. Devi continued her daily practice, which led her to get certified at Deepak’s School of Primordial Sound Meditation. Since that first step in discovering meditation, spirituality has been a dominant force in Devi’s life and career. With a passion for communication, it was only natural that Devi chose to share her take on meditation and spirituality with the world. She encouraged her friends and family to try meditation and even set up her own pop-up meditation classes open to anyone who wanted to rest their mind.

In 2017 Devi published Crystal Bliss (Simon & Schuster, October 2018) an essential guide to living and healing with crystals —a practice revered by ancient cultures for centuries. Crystal Bliss is slated to be released on October 18 by Simon and Schuster, followed by a multi-city book tour where Devi will discuss mindful living and the healing powers of crystals. Devi, a woman of colour who grew up in Los Angeles, has devoted her life to giving exposure to young, urban musicians. Her new endeavor seeks to do just that. In 2018, her foundation, The Devi Brown Project will roll out free programs to provide mindfulness education and empowerment workshops in underserved communities ensuring that all individuals are afforded the opportunity to discover their true potential.

Devi is truly 50% Deepak, 50% Tupac; she can be found residing in Los Angeles with her multi-talented husband, Duane Brown, and her two energetic canine beauties, Legend and Ali.

Hey Devi, can you take us through your day?

My day typically starts with me waking up around 7:15am. I have my vision board next to my bathroom sink so as I brush my teeth/wash my face I scan it for a few minutes. Then I feed my dogs and get them outside to backyard followed by 25 minutes of meditation for me, coffee and usually avocado toast for breakfast. Then I’m usually able to start my work day by 9am. Somewhere in the hours before noon I try to get some type of workout in depending on my schedule.

Now you have many strings to your bow, from being a Radio Personality & Multimedia Host and also the founder of Karma Bliss, how do you juggle it all?

I try to juggle it all by starting my day with meditation and some type of workout. That really centers me and helps me take my mind off of whatever the list of to-do’s the day entails. I like being busy normally. I feel most myself when I have a full day. The tough part for me has been learning how to prioritise when I am working from home on Karma Bliss. My entire adult life working in radio, I have been used to a very defined and strict schedule. Now that I also have an entrepreneurial hat on I sometimes struggle with knowing how to be consistently most efficient and find my flow when working alone.

How do you balance your personal life?

I don’t really think about it honestly. Too much pressure gets put on us when we obsess about how to “balance” when the truth is that the power comes in making peace with the fact that life does not happen in perfect balance. Every day looks different. Some days my personal and professional life exist in beautiful harmony and other days one end falls a little short. I just strive to do the best I can in each moment, whatever that looks like.

What has been the hardest challenge you have been faced with?

I would say the hardest challenge I’ve faced is also the best part of my life which is choosing growth in every moment and in each circumstance. Sometimes that can be really difficult and feels pretty frustrating but there is always a payoff. Challenges are a constant. We will never be devoid of them. No matter how far we get in life or how much work we do on ourselves.

Best piece of advice you have been given?

Play the hand you have been dealt with the best of your ability. We can’t always control our circumstances, but the universe will also provide you with the tools you need to make whatever you face work to your benefit if you let it.

Congratulations on releasing your very first book Crystal Bliss, can you talk us through it?

Thank you! Crystal Bliss is a modern guide to understanding the use of crystals and utilizing them in your daily life. I also include info on my own spiritual journey and give some insight into Chakras and meditation.

What was the inspiration behind it?

My inspiration behind it was really wanting to find a way to demystify some of the self-discovery/spiritual tools I had been using on my own journey so that more people could feel connected to them. I also wanted to open up and mainstream the demographic of people having conversations in this space. I’m a youngish professional African American women who spent years working in Hip Hop and media yet I love to meditate and utilise crystals and other tools in my life. By no means am I the only person with that type of background doing this/interested in this yet this kind of new age leaning space is almost completely devoid of Authors and speakers of people who can maybe speak to a broader demographic of people.

So your book was published by Simon & Schuster, how difficult was the process from start to finish of releasing your own book?

Thankfully the amazing people at Adams Media and Simon & Schuster have made the process of actually releasing the book into the world a wonderful experience. They are a very well oiled machine and were extremely supportive. The process of writing this book however as a first-time author was a huge learning curve and very mentally and creatively intensive. Finding my flow in writing and getting organised with outlines were invaluable parts of this equation for me. Being able to turn in the completed work on time was such an exciting moment!

Did you know what publisher you wanted to go for?

Adams media actually approached me with the opportunity after seeing some of my work in this space. They have a really great track record of producing impactful books on a plethora of interesting subjects, especially those in the space of personal growth and development.

Any advice for other young budding authors out there?

Get organised and get writing! Now there are so many ways to self-publish and to get your work into the hands of your intended audience. The hardest part about writing a book is the writing and the editing. Everything else will fall into place. We all have a story to tell and I truly feel like it is our duty it get a bit out of us and put it in the world.

Where can you see yourself heading for your future? Maybe another book?

I’d definitely love to continue book writing, I have a few ideas rolling around right now regarding meditation and also the effect music and songwriting can have on our souls. For the future, I definitely hope to continue to do what I have been doing in media and speaking and grow it out more and more!

Finally, what can we expect from you in 2018?

I’m in the process of developing a podcast with a couple friends that I am really excited about that will be a great blend of the two worlds I exist in professionally, music and self-discovery. I also have an exiting retail opportunity I will be announcing in January!

Image by Taylor Nicole Hotter

Twitter: @DeviBrown | Instagram @devibrown

Website: http://www.devibrown.com