Masi Asare

Masi Asare is a songwriter, singer, voice teacher, and writer in New York City.

Her songs have been heard at venues across NYC from Playwrights Horizons to the Julia Miles Theatre. Masi is an alum of musical theatre workshops at ASCAP, BMI, and New Dramatists, and was a Dramatists Guild Musical Theatre Fellow. As a composer/lyricist she has studied with Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, Stephen Schwartz, and musical theatre legend Stephen Sondheim. Her secret agent musical Sympathy Jones (book by Brooke Pierce) premiered at the New York Musical Theatre Festival and has had more than 20 productions in the US and internationally. Sympathy has a well-received studio cast album and is published by Playscripts. Masi is currently working on two original musicals—writing book, music, and lyrics for a piece about her west African grandmother; and lyrics for a musical for high school performers (book by Brooke Pierce, music by Joy Son).

Masi was a founding producer for the 8Minute Musicals Project, a music consultant for the RIPFEST Collaborative Film Project’s movie musicals initiative, and associate artistic director for Raw Impressions Music Theatre. She was a founding member of the Brooklyn-based collective Anonymous Ensemble, where she wrote music and lyrics for several shows including the rock theatre project The Best. As a grantwriter and development professional, she has raised funds for the Lark Play Development Center and held senior positions at Columbia University School of the Arts and Columbia Business School.

She received a bachelor’s degree magna cum laude from Harvard University and a master’s degree from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, where she is currently a candidate for the PhD in Performance Studies. Her academic research focuses on voice, race, affect, and embodiment. Masi is a member of ASCAP, the International Association for the Study of Popular Music, and the Dramatists Guild.