Be Steadwell

My name is Be Steadwell.  I am a queer pop composer, filmmaker and storyteller from Washington DC.  I compose my music on stage using looping, vocal layering and beat boxing.  My original music features earnest lyricism, and affirming queer content.  My goal as a musician is to make other black girlies, introverts and weirdos feel seen and loved.

I earned a BA in Black Studies from Oberlin College and an MFA in film from Howard University in 2014.  My thesis film Vow of Silence screened in film festivals around the world, including Black Star, HBO's OutFest, The Schomburg Center and Inside Out Toronto.

 In 2019, I had the opportunity to compose the music for The Alvin Ailey Dance Company's production of "the gone".  In 2019 and 2020- wrote and directed A Letter to My Ex, the musical.  A Letter to My Ex imagines a queer black woman's experience in the aftermath of a breakup.  In 2021 I released my latest album- Succulent. 

In 2023, I joined the cast of Parable of the Sower the Opera by Toshi Reagon and Dr Bernice Johnson Reagon.

The majority of my professional experience is in creating film, media, composing and performing original music.  As my work focuses on love from a Black, queer perspective-many of my work experiences align with LGBTQIA+ community work.  In the past two years-my most notable opportunities include performing with Toshi Reagon's Parable of the Sower Opera, wiring music for Alvin Ailey Dance Company, and producing a Black Queer Musical.  

In pursuit of my MFA, I also had the opportunity to teach film.  Teaching film and media arts is another passion of mine.     

In 2014-I completed an MFA in film from Howard University.  In 2009-I completed a BA in Black Studies from Oberlin College.