Howard University student, Quaran Ahmad premiered the second season of 

 “Burn,” a docuseries following 10 young adults last weekend. Ahmad hosted a showing and pop-up shop Sept 15. in Georgetown to commemorate the new project.

The “Burn Experience” featured Black-owned vendors, an art gallery, a DJ, and an outdoor seating area for guests to watch a episodes of the project.

“Burn” is Ahmad’s way of sharing his gift with others while making community the center of his art. Staying true to his mission of capturing “authentic stories from people whose voices you haven’t heard before,” Ahmad curated the premiere around the theme of ‘togetherness,’ providing a platform for local artists to showcase their brands and talents. 

The architecture major from Chicago came up with the idea for the “Burn” documentary series during his two-hour commute to work.

The series, broken into several episodes that capture the uniqueness of different individuals, was Ahmad’s flirtation with finding a way to tell people’s stories. 

Trey Coaxum, one of the vendors of the evening, met Ahmad through Instagram.

“I really admire what he’s doing and what he’s done so far,” said Coaxum. “It’s just crazy to see how much support he’s getting.”
Local painter, Brian “the People’s Artist” Bailey created a live painting of the premiere.

Quaran Ahmad, the artist behind the “Vessel Project” and the “Burn” documentary series. | Photo Courtesy of Quaran Ahmad.

The inception of the “Burn” documentary was inspired by another project called “VESSEL,” where Ahmad interviewed people about their ‘personal vessel.’ 

“I just had a random idea that it would be a pretty cool rollout thing to ask people on campus what’s their vessel for something. Whether that be for love, for creativity, for freedom, or something like that,” Ahmad said. “Those three things— love, creativity, and freedom that [my] music project revolved around.”

The welcoming reception to the “Vessel Project” inspired Ahmad to expand the mini-series into a 10-part documentary series. Ahmad believes the Vessel Project “needed to exist” in order to reach the level of creativity he’s achieved today.

Season two of the “Burn” documentary aired Sept 17 on  YouTube. Episodes will be uploaded weekly throughout the fall.