ASL Artist and Grandchild of Deaf Adults (GODA) Brandon Kazen-Maddox reveals the joys and challenges of growing up Black and Queer in a white, Deaf world—and how they found their voice through music and sign language. Brandon Kazen-Maddox is a Grandchild of Deaf Adults (GODA) and third-generation native signer of American Sign Language (ASL) who identifies as a Nonbinary, Black Indigenous Person of Color and a member of the LGBTQAI+ community.

From 2010 to 2017, Brandon worked as a professional circus acrobat in San Francisco, CA and honed their circus training and dance technique through various collaborations in theatre, film and opera. In May 2019, Brandon graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with an MFA in Dance and New Technology. Brandon currently works as a professional artist, choreographer, director, editor, acrobat and ASL Artist.

In the summer of 2020, Brandon co-founded Up Until Now Collective, an interdisciplinary arts and media company centering stories of radical empathy and inclusion. Brandon collaborates with and provides opportunities for Deaf artists who share a passion for bringing artistic works of ASL Dance Theater to the stage, screen and beyond. Brandon also highlights and empowers BIPOC and LGBTQAI+ artists, building multicultural bridges of collaboration and community for artists of all backgrounds and abilities. Up Until Now Collective projects include SOUL(SIGNS) : An ASL Playlist, SOUL(SIGNS): OPERA, Global Citizen's 2022 Pride Video Campaign, and the Time Square Midnight Moment ("Georgia").

Throughout the summer of 2021, Brandon served as the lead liaison for providing ASL services at The Shed, Little Island, Lincoln Center and the Park Avenue Armory, where they brought Deaf Directors of Artistic Sign Language into the inner workings of arts organizations and integrated both the Deaf perspective and Deaf performers onstage, on camera and behind the scenes. Brandon continues to lend their artistry to the empowerment of the Deaf, Disability and Arts community on a local, national and international scale. Brandon's work as an ASL Artist, interpreter and social activist has been featured in The New York Times and Dance Magazine, on CNN , ABC World News, PBS Newshour's "Brief But Spectacular," and ABC/Disney's "Storytellers Spotlight" series. Brandon has appeared as a co-star in "The Good Fight" (CBS) and “High Maintenance” (HBO).

Brandon was also a featured story-teller for the 100th episode of "Stories From The Stage" (PBS). They are also a recipient of the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) Grant and an awardee of the 2022 cycle of the Creative Capital Award for the ASL Dance Theatre reimagining of Joseph Moncure March’s graphic poem, The Wild Party. Brandon is also a recipient of the Mertz-Gilmore Foundation grant, from 2023-2025. Brandon was also named one of Gucci's 2022 Chime-for-Change: Visions for a Feminist Future and was a featured speaker for "A Day of Unreasonable Conversation" at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles. Brandon is a 2024 Artist-in-Residence for PBS/WNET/ALL ARTS and their half-hour special SOUL(SIGNS): Making Music Visible premiered on April 15 and is currently available to stream on-line. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx