Shanti Das was a student at Atlanta’s Benjamin Elijah Mays High School when she met Anita Baker and Luther Vandross backstage at a concert. The rest, she tells Monica, is history.

Das, who got her start interning at major record labels like Sony Music and Capital Records, worked her way up to become executive vice president at Universal Motown and has worked with some of the biggest names in the industry, like Outkast, Prince and TLC.

She has a few more titles under her belt, including writer, speaker, and philanthropist. Das launched Silence the Shame, a nonprofit with the mission of normalizing the discussion of mental health within communities of color, as well as a podcast by the same name. Hear who she will be interviewing as she prepares to launch season two and what she does to keep her own mental health in check.

Das dishes about everyone from music mogul L.A. Reid to Atlanta’s own Usher, who she was with when he performed at the Super Bowl earlier this year. Hear how the 5′1″ powerhouse made her mark in hip-hop and her struggle to earn equal pay in a male-dominated industry.

Stream “The Monica Pearson Show” at ajc.com.

Browse recent interviews with Atlanta celebrities:

» Pinky Cole, owner of the Slutty Vegan

» Business executive Chris Womack of Southern Co. of S of S

» Comedian Ms. Pat

» Crime author Karin Slaughter, author of the Will Trent novels

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Georgia fans walk near the Tate Student Center on the University of Georgia campus where police detained Lily Stewart, a 20-year-old student whose booking photos went viral when she was arrested twice in March.  (Jason Getz / AJC)

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Much of Georgia was under a Level 3 of 5 risk for severe weather on March 31, 2025. The far northern portion of the state was under a Level 2 and 1 risk.

Credit: Channel 2 Action News