Phyo Zeya Thaw

Born on March 26, 1981, in Yangon, Myanmar, with little freedom of speech, expression, or press, Phyo Zeya Thaw grew up in a highly oppressive regime. In his formative years, however, he lived through major revolutions like the “8888” revolution, which could have helped plant the seeds of democracy that would dictate his views in adulthood. After graduating from Yadanabon University with a degree in English in 2003, Phyo Zeya Thaw set to work continuing to expand his already popular hip-hop group.

After his group’s release of Acid, Myanmar’s first hip-hop album, he gained much popularity. Despite experts predicting a spectacular failure resulting from the release of the album, Thaw’s angry style and poetic lyrics managed to resonate with the public. Specifically, his focus on everyday struggles and subtle criticisms of the Myanmar government allowed the public access to a much-needed outlet for political discontent. Thaw also used his platform to promote various social initiatives. He would frequently partner with celebrities, poets, comedians, and others to raise money or lead similar projects for social welfare.

Eventually, Thaw started to take a more direct stance against the government’s oppressive tactics, becoming a key founding father of the Generation Wave movement. The movement was started after the Saffron Revolution and made use of graffiti, posters, stickers, and films to spread pro-democracy and anti-government materials. Thaw was responsible for much of the movement's success and popularity amongst the younger population of Myanmar. However, not long after the start of the movement, he was arrested in 2008. 

After serving three of the five years of his sentence, Thaw was released in 2011. Promptly, he aligned with other popular pro-democracy figures like Aung San Suu Kyi and became a member of the National League for Democracy. In 2012, he was successfully elected to office in the Myanmar House of Representatives and served until 2016. Unfortunately, however, in 2021, after the military coup in Myanmar, Thaw was once again arrested. After facing intense torture, he was executed with other prisoners on July 23, 2022, in an internationally condemned violation of human rights.