Shades of Brown was founded in 1986 by a group of African American students for the exploration of the roots of African American tradition through song. A multicultural, multi-ethnic, coed performing group, Shades performs both a capella as well as with a live band in various languages such as French, Spanish, and Zulu, to name just a few, in order to explore the diversity that exists within peoples of the African Diaspora--both on the continent and across the Americas. We perform by request at various cultural events both on and off campus at local schools, churches, and temples, as well as at alumni functions. Major projects include biannual concerts, for Parent's Weekend in the fall and the Nia Weekend Black History Month Concert which takes place in the spring.Accomplishments include winning Battle of the Bands to perform at Campus Dance 1999 and 2001, and performing at the 2000 Commencement Pops Concert which featured the Temptations. Shades released its very first CD at the 2001 Nia Weekend Concert. Also, we recorded our second album, which was released in the Spring of 2003.