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Detroit artist Sean Forbes is deaf. But that hasn’t stopped him from creating music

Sean Forbes is a rapper from Detroit. He’s also deaf.

Forbes became deaf at the age of two, but growing up in a musical family, he started playing the drums when he was five.

While attending the Rochester Institute of Technology, Forbes was able to start sharing music with his deaf peers, singing songs in ASL and playing his guitar at full blast.

In 2006, Forbes co-founded D-PAN, the Deaf Professional Arts Network, a nonprofit working to create more inclusion and accessibility for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people through arts, media and live entertainment.

In 2010, Forbes released his debut E.P. “I’m Deaf,” and in 2012, he released his debut album, “Perfect Imperfection.”

His newest project, “Little Victories," will be released on Feb. 21, with a live show at Third Man Records in Detroit’s Midtown. It’s free to attend -- the show starts at 7 p.m.

Watch Alex Atwell’s Uniquely Detroit feature story on Sean Forbes in the video player above.

Uniquely Detroit is sponsored by BJ’s Wholesale Club.


About the Authors
Ken Haddad headshot

Ken Haddad has proudly been with WDIV/ClickOnDetroit since 2013. He also authors the Morning Report Newsletter and various other newsletters, and helps lead the WDIV Insider team. He's a big sports fan and is constantly sipping Lions Kool-Aid.

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