- ARTIST • COMPOSER • WORLDBUILDER
Music. Story. Imagination.
What happens when the world tells you that your voice doesn’t matter, but you speak up anyway? That’s the question at the heart of everything I create. Whether it’s heavy-metal musicals, mixed-media comics, or story-driven learning experiences, my work explores what happens when systems silence people and what becomes possible when we choose to speak, create, and become ourselves anyway. To me, music has always been more than entertainment. It’s the spark that awakens courage. In a world that tells us to stay quiet, my work invites audiences to shatter the silence.
- CREATIVE PROCESS
Stories Worth Playing
I don’t separate music from stories. Songs become characters. Characters become comics. Comics become worlds. Every medium reveals another part of the same question: What becomes possible when we refuse to stay silent?
- SELECTED WORKS
Original Works
In a world where music is outlawed and silence controls the masses, a young runaway joins the underground resistance to master the Sacred Song— and discovers that becoming a hero means leveling up, one riff at a time.
A pair of siblings discover that a magical guitar method book is the key to defeating a wicked god of metal music. In the process, they must brave magical worlds, defeat evil henchmen, and learn to work together to save their ravaged homeland and free their people.
When a wicked god of metal music threatens the world, two young siblings hatch an impossible plan: challenge him to a six-string showdown. Their greatest weapon isn't talent. It’s courage.
A high-energy, kid-friendly program that introduces five legendary Black guitarists who shaped the sound of modern rock and metal music, from Sister Rosetta Tharpe to Tom Morello.
Hear the Music
Every hero. Every villain. Every adventure has its own original soundtrack. Press play and step into the world of Rock Dojo.
- Bringing Stories to Life.
LIVE PERFORMANCE.
Stories come alive when they’re shared. Whether performing for a classroom, a library audience, or a theater full of families, my goal is always the same: to create unforgettable experiences through story, imagination, and live performance.
- RECOGNITION
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
Recognition has never been the goal, but I’m honored that organizations across the arts and education communities have chosen to support and celebrate my work.
AWARDS
2018
U.S. Small Business Administration Rising Star of Oregon
2021
Berklee College of Music Steve Vai Scholarship
2023
Top 5 Best New Musical Theatre — Elijah & the Sacred Song
Grants
2023
Artist-in-Residence Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center & Portland Parks & Recreation
2024
Fertile Ground Festival GROW Grant — Six-String Showdown
2025
Reimagine Oregon Economic Opportunity Investment Fund —Prosper Portland
Press
2026
Willamette Week — "Brian and Sophie Parham Rock the Dojo"
- ABOUT ROCK DOJO
Inspired by Legends..
Most people assume my biggest influences are heavy metal bands. The truth is, they came much later.
I grew up in a small coal mining town in Pennsylvania. As a kid, my heroes were the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and The Ultimate Warrior.
When I was twelve, my brother was killed by a drunk driver. Suddenly, that world changed.
I escaped into the melancholy beauty of Final Fantasy VII, where a group of unlikely heroes fought to save a dying planet.
A few years later, I discovered Pink Floyd’s The Wall, whose music showed me that songs could build entire worlds to explore grief, isolation, and hope.
After college, I read Jack Kerouac, and I knew I wanted to create worlds of my own.
- LET'S CONNECT
Interested in Collaborating?
Great projects begin with a conversation. If you have an idea, opportunity, or collaboration in mind, let’s connect.
