Baker Artist Portfolios

CHEYANNE ZADIA GIVENS (b.1991, Baltimore, MD) is an interdisciplinary creator, musician and director from West Baltimore, Maryland. Her works include visual and performance art, poetry, composing, filmmaking, conceptual design, and curatorial practice. The basis of her work speaks to perspective, memorials of black culture, social relativity, spirituality, and the merging of sub-cultures.

Her middle name, Zadia, doubles as her stage moniker. Her performances range from large festivals, museums, and sidewalks to singing the National Anthem at the Baltimore Orioles Opening Game. Following the release of her debut album ‘Vacants’ her work has received widespread support as she has been featured in various publications including BmoreArt, CityPaper, The Afro, True Laurels, The New York Times, Baltimore Banner and ID Magazine. Zadia was named Best New Artist by Baltimore Magazine (2020) and was awarded Johns Hopkins University’s Saul Zaentz Fellowship in 2022.

She is also the director of The Alpha Female Festival, Baltimore’s first all female ran festival which serves as a celebration of women artists, creators, and professionals; as well as co-founder of Black Women Hike 5k.

Influenced by contradicting forces of growing up in the church while being raised adjacent to street life in West Baltimore her art presents unique perspectives of identity, duality, death, and commonalities of the human experience.

Church introduced her to cultural performance where she learned to sing, dance, act, playwright, and most importantly be of service. Growing up in West Baltimore introduced her to a world where she had no choice but to develop an intuitive spirit of innovation. It was through these instincts that she developed her will to create.

Her creative career started with photography and design. In 2008 she founded the clothing brand Wvrdrobe which led her to produce fashion focused experiences all across Baltimore. Over time Wvrdrobe developed a reputation for it’s one-of-a-kind events. Eventually the practice of design morphed into producing experiences full time where she would connect emerging and established creators developing organic communities through collaborative exhibits. These experiences catered to underserved artists with little to no higher education in art but recognizably innate talent. This practice as a connector allowed Cheyanne to explore the depths of her internal diversity as a common ground to attract and merge uncommon minds into one space. Her events still serve as the archival foundation for many artist relationships, duos, and collaborations we know and love today.

Cheyanne Zadia is committed to using her voice, her work, and curatorial artisty as a means to cultivate culture shifting experiences and reconcile grief with creation.