Check Out Beau Shaniuk’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Beau Shaniuk

Hi Beau, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Hello, beautiful humans! Where to start with this question… I’ve been in love with music for as long as I can remember! I’ve been playing piano for about 15 years, guitar for about 10, and I’ve been singing for nearly my whole life. A really huge part of my identity (and something that inspires most—if not all—of my artistry) is my queerness. I identify as a transmasculine person, and I’ve been out as my truest and most authentic self for almost 5 years now. While I’ve been a musician for much of my life, my existence as LadyBoy is much different from where I began. I used to be more of a singer-songwriter kind of vibe, and I LOVED all the sad girl type songs. As a kid, I always knew I wanted to do something special with music, and from the age of 15 through about 19, I auditioned for a variety of singing shows on a few different occasions–including The Voice, American Idol, and Rising Star. However, no matter how hard I tried and no matter how much work I seemed to put into it all, nothing ever seemed to “stick.” Still, I was incredibly grateful for my musicality and even got to experience some pretty life-altering things because of it — I actually served in the military for 6 years and was given the opportunity to sing in uniform at game 6 of the World Series when the Cleveland Guardians made it in 2016!

Flash forward to about five years ago when I met my incredible partner, Lauren, who changed my entire life for the very best (music and all). Lauren was the first person I came out to as trans*, and she was genuinely the most supportive, affirming, and fiercest partner and protector I could have ever hoped for. I’ve been subjected to quite a bit of transphobia over the last 5 years, especially from my biological family members—so much so that I ended up cutting about 95% of them out of my life. Honestly, coming out as trans* was a pivotal period of time because I was finally able to open my eyes to the years of mental and emotional abuse they’d put me through for a lot of my life. At the end of the day, I wasn’t really removing them from my life for their transphobia alone; it was mostly because they just weren’t very good people. Anyway, in the earlier years of our relationship, Lauren introduced me to the wonders of rap, hip-hop, and RnB music. I had definitely listened to some rap/RnB music prior to meeting her, but it was never really my “thing” (remember, I was a sad music girly!). But as I listened to more and more of this type of music (and primarily, women & AFAB rappers), I discovered a sense of growth and empowerment I’d never really experienced before. I lost touch with my musicality for a couple years after starting hormone therapy because my voice changed quite a bit (primarily deepening and vocal chord thickening). This was a really difficult period of time for me, as music had always been the one thing I’d continuously and unwaveringly felt passionate about. But once I felt fully ready to give it another try, I decided to completely uproot my former singer-songwriter self and try something new: I decided to try rapping. Ultimately, I wanted to perform the genre of music that I’d found so much healing and confidence in for the few years prior. In October 2023, I opened back up the old recording software my mother gifted me years prior, watched a plethora of YouTube tutorial videos and talked with some friends who I knew made music, and I began learning how to produce my own music. Since then, I’ve released 2 EPs, 2 singles, and1 collab song with two other queer artists & friends! This has truly been the most incredibly journey thus far, and I really can’t wait to see where LadyBoy takes me 🙂

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Oh gosh, it’s definitely not been a smooth road at all! But clearly it’s been one worth taking, because this is truly the happiest I’ve been in my whole life.

I mentioned before that my queer identity is what inspires most of my art. Many of the challenges I’ve faced have been somewhat related to my queerness, so I guess I should start there. This time of my life HIGH key feels like a fever dream, but I joined the military in 2015 (when I was a mere 17 years old) and while I was away, I came out as a lesbian via a letter I’d sent back home. I received a decent amount of backlash and religious shaming from quite a few of my family members at the time; however, it sort of became a very “hush hush” thing that we just didn’t talk about most of the time. Essentially, we all coexisted and I’d go to family gatherings just pretending nobody knew I was gay; I guess the mentality was that if we didn’t talk about it, it wouldn’t cause any “issues” (which is terrible in and of itself, but I digress).

While coming out as a lesbian was definitely affirming at the time, and while it truly felt like who I was, I still felt there was something… missing. I know some trans* people describe feeling like strangers in their own bodies prior to coming out, as if their souls were born into the wrong vessels. This is never really how I felt (though of course, every person’s experience is unique, valid, and their own!), and I never felt so severely disconnected from my body that it felt “obvious” I wasn’t a girl. Looking back on my childhood, however, I always had an affinity for the more masculine side of things—I think I just never realized how different it made me from others. I came out as trans* in August 2019, just about a week or two before my 22nd birthday. While my familial experience post-coming out as a lesbian was not necessarily very “good” or affirming, this experience was MUCH different—much more intense. I was met with immediate pushback from all the biological family members that no longer have a place in my life: I was sent articles about why I would regret this decision, text messages about how God makes no mistakes and that I’m a confused and “pathetic” little girl, emails about how I’d been brainwashed and was delusional thanks to my “liberal education”… the list goes on. I could genuinely write a book about all the terrible things they’ve said to my partner and I, as well as the ways they tried to manipulate me into believing that I was an aberration of a human. Something that really upset me that I hadn’t realized at the time, however, was their insinuation that I’d lose the one talent and passion I’d had for all my life: my ability to sing.

I started hormone therapy (Testosterone, or “T”) in November 2019 and began to notice some of the associated changes pretty quickly. Within three months, my voice had already begun deepening quite a bit; the doctor’s describe it as going through a second puberty, so just imagine me as a 13-year-old boy and you’ll probably get the picture! Essentially, within 6-8 months of starting HRT, I began to lose touch with a lot of my love for music—not out of choice, but because it hurt too much to realize how quickly I was losing control of my voice. It got to a point where I hardly even listened to music anymore, and all the dreams I’d had for doing something big with my music had pretty quickly disappeared. Of course, I eventually decided to give it another try (and I’m SO glad I did), but these are some of the struggles I’ve faced along the way.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’ve been writing and producing my own music since October 2023 under the stage name, LadyBoy. (Get it… cause I’m not a lady, nor am I a boy??? Hehehe). I primarily identify as a pop-rap and RnB artist, though I believe that we as human beings are incredibly dynamic and ever-changing. As a result, I don’t really hold myself to any one genre because I never want to feel like I have to make the same type of music forever; I mean, who wants to stay the same forever and ever?? I think something that sets me apart from others is the way I like to experiment with my music while also creating tracks that ~could~ be considered more commercial. My music can be quite cinematic and has been described by others as an “experience,” which is often what I’m going for. When you listen to my music, I don’t want you to simply listen, but rather, feel as though you’re immersed in whatever vibe the track captures. One of the biggest themes I convey in my music is queer desirability and the beauty of being trans*. For me, transness is all about existing in the space in-between what society expects of us. I find a lot of inspiration in artists like Ashnikko and Qveen Herby, who connect with their listeners through quite cinematic and encapsulating themes of self-love, desirability, personal growth, and inner power. My music represents my experience of rising out of the toxicity and loneliness I used to know, and these two artists (as well as a plethora of other women/AFAB rappers) are who really inspired me to step out of my singer-songwriter comfort zone and into a space of hard-hitting empowerment. Ultimately, LadyBoy serves as a reminder that we are ALL who we say we are, and that who we say we are is always more than enough. My music conveys the fact that queer people experience love, success, and joy just as much as anyone else, and I think I’m most proud of getting to connect with- and represent other queer people and the joy and happiness we all experience simply for being who we are. I really enjoy getting to do this while also connecting with others who may not be queer, but who are still here for the ride! At the end of the day, they can try to take away our rights, but they can never really take away our power, and that’s exactly the message I aim to convey.

Can you share something surprising about yourself?
Hmmm… I think something that most people may not realize about me is that I actually really struggle with anxiety and overthinking. My music is quite centered around confidence and personal power, which is a really big part of my identity and thus, my brand. It’s all very genuine, and if I’m being honest, I’m a HUGE ham and really do have a lot of the confidence I represent in my music. However, because of how self-assured (and maybe a bit cocky?) I come across in my music, people may not realize that I really struggle with overthinking at times. It’s been a work in progress for quite a few years now, and I think a lot of my struggles with this stem from the fact that I still haven’t quite undone all the years of not believing in myself and not feeling good enough prior to coming out as trans*. This is honestly a huge reason I’ve really been diving into my music though, and it’s through my music that I’ve found a lot of growth, healing, and confidence. And honestly, that’s exactly how I hope to connect with others through my songs!

Contact Info:

• Website: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3EyEQIrSwLWmL5WikGao8Q?
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ladyboymusicofficial/
• Other: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/ladyboy/1732090669