Our People
Founders
Ciaran Thapar is a youth worker and writer based in South London. He has experience developing and delivering charity programmes to young people in secondary schools, PRUs, youth centres and prisons. He has spoken in both Houses of Parliament about youth violence, social media and music culture.
Ciaran holds an MSc in Political Theory from London School of Economics, and applies his interest in social justice to writing about British multiculturalism, underground music and social issues affecting young people in London. His first book, Cut Short: Youth, Violence and Loss in the City is forthcoming from Penguin Viking UK.
Mehryar Golestani, aka Reveal, is a MC and hiphop educator. He won the national freestyle battle championships (FKO Raw) in 2000, at the age of 16, and later signed to BMG / Arista as part of Poisonous Poets — alongside Lowkey, Doc Brown, Therapist, Tony D and Stylah.
Born in Tehran, Iran, and raised in West London, Reveal is considered a pioneer of the international Iranian rap scene.
He has toured the world with the likes of Busta Rhymes, De La Soul, Immortal Technique, and the godfather of Persian hiphop, Hichkas.
Reveal lectures ethnomusicology at SOAS, University of London, where he is completing his PhD about technology and the mediation of popular culture, hiphop and UK drill music.
Team
Benjy Nug is our Content Artist
He creates art for our video content and educational resources. His work aims to create an exciting parallel universe with an authentic and versatile audiovisual language. Crossing through different disciplines and materials, Benjy has developed a unique body of work inspired by the intersections of cultural, individual and collective identity.
Follow Benjy on Instagram to see a selection of his stylised digital and fine art: @benjy_nug
Franklyn Addo is our Safeguarding Consultant.
Having always lived in Hackney, Franklyn’s unwavering commitment to preventing violence and improving outcomes for young people more generally has led him to work on the frontlines of youth violence. It was initially his own experiences of the crime that arises from social exclusion and inequality that led him to study Sociology at the LSE, before completing an MA in Cultural Studies. Outside of youth work, Franklyn also engages in social commentary via music and multimedia, for example writing for platforms like The Guardian and producing this BBC Radio 4 piece about crime induced trauma.
Yasmin Macé is our Communications Consultant.
Yasmin’s background is in communications to promote children’s rights. Her previous roles include building and managing channels and content for War Child UK, Children in Conflict and Girls Not Brides: The Global Partnership to End Child Marriage.
She currently produces content and stories for an international children’s charity.
Ambassadors
RoadWorks ambassadors receive mentorship in their academic pursuits, creative endeavours and professional careers. They support us in the development and delivery of our programmes and content.
Our vision is to empower and connect a large network of ambassadors who can help us to refine the RoadWorks course content, grow the reach of our impact and become leaders in their communities.
Jhemar Jonas, 17, is a student from Brixton, South London, who advocates for issues faced by young people in his community. He has spoken in Parliament about youth services, violence and social media as part of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Knife Crime, and he is on the Mayor’s Fund for London Youth Board.
Jhemar has appeared on a range of news outlets such as BBC Stories, ITV News, and Channel 4 News to talk about the affect of youth violence.
Jhemar has been recording and performing music for over three years. He sings, raps and produces under the name Rippa.
Demetri Addison, 19, is from Elephant & Castle, South London. He is an undergraduate student at Goldsmiths, University of London, where he is completing a BA in Criminology. He has experience mentoring boys at-risk of exclusion from school, and he has spoken in Parliament as part of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Knife Crime.
Demetri’s advocacy has been featured in a range of publications such as The Observer, Tortoise, and i-D. In 2019, he appeared on Sky News after hand-delivering a letter to Number 10 Downing Street demanding a response to youth violence.
Ore Shoderu, 21, is an actor from Hounslow, West London. He is a member of HighRise Theatre collective, with whom he has performed in stage productions such as ‘Little Miss Lady’, which explores the history of grime music through the eyes of a female MC, and as lead in ‘The #UKDrill Project’. He is enrolled on ‘Open Door’, which helps young aspiring actors to gain access to the UK’s leading drama schools.
Ore is one third of The Other Side podcast.
Henry Onilude , 23, is a creative from South-East London who is passionate about music and creating opportunities for young people to develop themselves and flourish. He works as a teaching assistant for children with special educational needs in state primary schools across the capital city. He has been a co-facilitator, mentor and youth advisor for Sound Connections for over two years.
Henry regularly writes about the UK urban music scene for Link Up TV. He is seeking opportunities to build his network in the music industry.
Joshua Adeyemi, 19 is from Camberwell, South London. He is an undergraduate at the University of Cambridge where he studies Human, Social and Political Sciences. Josh is interested in positive social change and innovate ways of achieving it.
Josh mentors several young men informally and gives talks about his educational journey, which radically changed at 16, after winning a scholarship to attend Eton College from an inner-city state school.
Josh sits on the advisory board for Power The Fight, a charity which aims to tackle youth violence through community empowerment. He is also a trustee for the Oppidan Foundation, a charity which aims to curb exclusion rates in schools by providing at-risk students with mentors.
Ismail Ismail, 17, is a student from South-East London. He produces drill and rap music as Ishmatic Beats, and aspires to study music production and sound engineering at university.
Ismail’s instrumentals have been recognised by UK drill producer legends Carns Hill and MK The Plug, and his development is being supported by Finesse Foreva and Defenders Entertainment.
Hayden Magezi, 17, is a student from Elephant & Castle, South London.
Friends + Collaborators
Roadworks is supported by many people across the music industry and third sector. Thank you to: