uOttawa Alumni Group Creates Online Platform to Give Visibility to Local Artists

Given COVID-19 strengthening across our community and around the world, a group of talented artists including members of the uOttawa alumni community came together to form a team of individuals with a passion for local culture who were also directly impacted by the current pandemic.

In April 2020, they joined forces to create SAIRYŌ, a digital platform and creative label, led and founded by a former president of the Telfer Management Information Systems Association (MISA), Fazal Sadikali (BCom ‘01). The team also counts on recent graduate Juan Otero (BCom ‘19) as the Strategic business lead. 

SAIRYŌ’s mission is to create a unique and free online platform focused on redefining online experiences to help artists receive direct payment, while allowing donations to the World Health Organization (WHO) to help them fight against COVID-19.
 

Live Stream Local Talents

This online platform provides artists a new and innovative way to live stream their talents. SAIRYŌ allows artists to connect with their respective audiences from the most popular social media platforms by hosting events. Broadcast partners include Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, Twitch, and Zoom. “We are creative artists in music, dance and film who believe online experiences can be more engaging and fun,” states Emilie Westbrook, Creative lead and co-founder at SAIRYŌ.
 

Local Talents. Global Distribution.

“Our platform will be forever free for artists. We are backed by industry-known payment systems, which enable artist and charity donations from your audience. These artists exist in many forms, but can help people to connect and bring stress relief,” adds Fazal. With most entertainment moving towards digital formats, SAIRYŌ is redefining the way artists and their audiences engage in these unusual times.

Emilie also shared that the team had little time to accomplish their goal and launch the platform in the spring: “Our team is working 16-hour days with a globally distributed team from Canada, India, Pakistan, Lebanon, Colombia, Australia and the U.S. We still have a lot of work ahead of us, and we are excited to see how the platform will evolve after the launch.”
 

SAIRYŌ’s online platform is set to launch on June 19th, followed by a kick-off comedy event on June 20th starting at 8:00 p.m. EDT, featuring special guests: international Canadian comedy stars Tommy Chong & Tom Green. You can now join their growing community by pre-registering for an account either as an artist or a fan, and stay connected with them on Facebook, Instagram and on their website.