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Shayan started to pen songs very unexpectedly after losing both his parents at a young age. He found consolation in playing the piano without any formal training.

“It seemed as though my fingers knew their way around the right notes and chords,” says the 29-year-old singer.

He went on to study at the Alchemea College of Audio Engineering at London and got a degree in Audio Engineering. He also pursued an M.A. in Music Business Management from the University of Westminister.

In the meantime, Shayan had already written over 150 songs and 11 of them were recorded for his debut album, “Shayan Italia”.

“Reflections”, from that album was rated next to international artists like Foo Fighters, Mark Ronson, Amy Winehouse and Kanye West.

But how hard was it to make a mark in the music industry? “While I was doing my sound engineering degree I needed money to record demos, and the bank had already loaned me money for college fees.

“I decided to auction a portion of my life’s earnings in music on e-Bay. I raised $18,000 in seven days,” he exclaims. “That is how I recorded the album and made a music video,” he adds.

Since then, there has been no turning back.

Shayan was the first person to auction a portion of his life’s earnings in music on e-Bay and was the first unsigned act to appear on BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Disc’s.

Interestingly, Shayan is the second Zoroastrian to be interviewed on BBC Radio 2 after Freddie Mercury.

Bagging awards like Honorary Award in Great American Songwriting Contest, Editors Choice award in an international poetry competition, Shayan says he lives by a simple saying, “If someone says something cannot be done, it is just their way of saying they cannot do it.”