About me

If you’re reading this, then HI!!! It’s so nice to meet you… sort of I guess? It’s kind of one sided at the moment but I’m going to assume you’re cool. Thank you for taking an interest in wanting to know more about me.

My name is Ayannah Brown. I was raised in West Hartford, Connecticut. Growing up I was always involved in some sort of creative outlet, whether it was singing, playing an instrument, writing constantly or trying to take pictures and videos with any camera I could get my hands on.

My grandfather was one person who schooled me in music, jazz, art, travel, the beauty of food, and more. But most importantly it was his photography that spoke to me. He always had a camera around, and we had boxes and boxes filled with his prints of all of us that were mesmerizing. I remember the way he would take his camera anywhere absolutley shamelessly - on vacations, random outings, etc. But it didn’t matter because he could take any moment and bring it to life in a wonderlike way.

It was the way he photographed my grandmother so candidly and romantically…that I knew photography was a new language to be translated. That alone switched the way my eyes saw the world. I knew that it was something that I wanted to try my hand at. So for years I begged for a camera, a REAL camera. Not the Toys R US Jonas Brothers Camera, not a disposable camera, not my mom’s broken camcorder… I wanted a real working digital camera. At the age of 12, I finally got one.

It was a red Coolpix Nikon digital camera. I took it everywhere for two years, capturing random things that a 12 year old does. But when I was 14, I went to a Lady Gaga ARTPOP concert that my grandfather bought me tickets for. They were GA, I was barricade…and I brought my Nikon Camera with me. The pictures I took of Gaga are still mesmerizing to me to this day. The photos came out like something I had seen in a Rolling Stone magazine I would sit and read at Borders (or atleast to me they did lol).

Now as someone who loved to sing, played multiple instruments and wrote all the time (songs, poems, random stories)… I knew I had to figure out a way to combine all of those passions into a job somehow. So of course a million dreams came up - Popstar, Vogue Editor, Rolling Stone writer, Creative Director… Become Carrie Bradshaw?

It wasn’t until I got to high school and college that I got to see and understand that the everchanging landscape of journalism requires you to have various skills, interests and talents in order to be in the industry, because we no longer tell stories in just one way anymore. Which, thank god is perfect for someone like me.

I graduated high school with two degrees, attending both Conard High School in West Hartford, CT and The Greater Hartford Academy of the Arts in Hartford, CT. My focus was on Creative writing and Digital Media Arts where I learned to write in various formats like editorial, poetry, script writing and more, while also learning to master elements in film, website design and more.

I attended The University of Connecticut with a major in Journalism and a concentration in Digital Media and Design. Where I learned how to not only write for the ever changing landscape of journalism (both online and print) but also honed my skills in the media space involving film, graphic design and more.

I am currently a Visuals Journalist for NPR’s sub division station in Connecticut - known as Connecticut Public. Connecticut Public is also apart of the longstanding outlet known as PBS.

I started my career at Connecticut Public a month before graduating from UConn and during my time here I have worked on Emmy-award winning and nominated TV Shows and docuentaries (including one that I directed and produced), been an active team member of the social media team, produced content for daily and breaking news, talk shows, as well as written and photographed my own photo stories.

  • Photography and Videography are my two greatest loves at the moment. The way we intake stories now are visuals first. I feel as though I can envoke more emotion or change from a photo or video.

  • I hope to one day be able to produce stories or creative projects that are within the arts. While I will always see the importance of everyday and breaking news, I will feel more fulfilled contributing to stories that makes other's feel emotions outside of their everyday. I want to amplify the voices that are hidden amongst us, that seem to hold a genuine authenticity to them.

  • At this moment in time I am working on highlighting more music stories across Connecticut/New England, as we have a lot of hidden talents floating around, especially from artists of color that are not getting their recognition.