Conversations with a Commissioner: Tina Marie Tyler’s Mission for Peace and Music in Seattle
Tina Marie Tyler, (left) and Too Short (right) pose at the “It’s Time for Hip Hop” concert on August 20, 2021. (Photo: Hip Hop Institute 4 Peace)
By Andrew Barrett
This marks the first installment of Converge Music’s six-week series spotlighting the Seattle Music Commission’s newly appointed commissioners making waves in the Emerald City’s music scene.
Few people in the music industry can say they have worked on as many human rights campaigns as Tina Marie Tyler. Even fewer can say they have a presidentially recognized award.
Tyler, born and raised in Seattle, is one of the city’s new commissioners elected to the Seattle Music Commission—a council of 20 trailblazers working together to actualize Seattle’s potential as a haven for musicians and community.
A key belief for Tyler growing up was the power of music for good. “Music to me is like the glue for humanity. It's the one thing that kind of ties us all together,” she said.
Tyler’s childhood in Seattle helped shape her drive to advocate for peace. Growing up with Christian parents and attending Catholic schools, she noted how important the idea of giving back was in her home.
“I guess it’s an attitude of service, and being in service to others, that is one of the highest things we can do, and one of the highest forms of love,” she said.
Her work in service started early. Growing up, she was involved with the Black Student Union, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and the Seattle Urban League.
After graduating from the University of Washington with a degree in communications, Tyler held various positions at the intersection of journalism and entertainment. She held roles at major corporations like ABC, Fox 11 LA, Fox Sports, and Art & Living Magazine, covering a variety of topics ranging from weather reports to celebrity interviews.
“I was interested in how we can take our creative ideas and make a positive impact in the lives of other people. That was one of my driving forces for even wanting to do television,” she said.
From left to right: Dr. Stephon Alexander, Dr. Angelina Ruffin, Tina Marie Tyler, Jon Tilli, and Chuck D pose with their Presidential Lifetime Achievement Awards at the “Rap 4 Peace: A Hip Hop Gun Violence Awareness Conference & Gala” on Sunday, June 2, 2024. (Photo courtesy of Tina Marie Tyler)
Her journey with humanitarian work began after receiving a call from the Roots & Shoots Foundation, a global youth movement founded by the late Dr. Jane Goodall. Working with the foundation's annual Peace Day event on Santa Monica Boulevard inspired Tyler to step into the world of humanitarianism.
“That is where I became acquainted with other humanitarians and really understood what this music as diplomacy work is all about and how to use music as a way to build bridges,” she said.
After working with her church and local community, Tyler decided to move to larger projects. She became a member of the Universal Hip Hop Museum’s advisory board in 2018 before moving into a role as an executive producer for their events. From there, she noticed the United Nation’s lack of hip hop cultural representation at World Peace Day events, inspiring her to launch her non-profit organization Hip Hop Institute 4 Peace in 2021.
Working to combat violence and racism worldwide, the organization’s #KickRacism campaign, built as an anti-racism pledge in theme with this past summer’s World Cup, received over 250,000 signatures and generated over a billion media impressions, Tyler said. Hip Hop Institute 4 Peace has partnered with the United Nations Permanent Forum on People of African Descent, Amnesty International Canada and several other peace-driven foundations over its existence.
Most recently, the Institute partnered with Hip Hop Works Madagascar, Yas, and Good Loud Media on October 10th, 2026, World Mental Health Awareness Day. Announced with a launch concert for nearly 4,000 youth attendees, the organization launched 16 Mesures, a suicide prevention and mental health hotline in Madagascar.
The 16 Mesures launch concert, held on World Peace Day, October 10th, 2026 draws a crowd in Antananarivo, Madagascar. (Photo: Hip Hop Institute 4 Peace)
Tyler’s work has earned her numerous awards and recognition, including the Presidential Lifetime Volunteer Service Award under President Joe Biden in 2024. Her draw to work on the Seattle Music Commission came from bolstering both the presence of music in Seattle and the impact it creates socioeconomically.
“The Seattle music scene, it's not just music. This is how Black people and people of color really are able to generate independent wealth, to preserve our history, to employ our youth,” she said.
Tyler said she hopes to reinvest in cultural hubs, like Seattle’s Central District and Columbia City, while ensuring that the money invested in these projects properly reaches all those who keep Western Washington alive with music.
“How do we make sure that that money gets down to vendors, and gets down to the whole ecosystem, not just the people that are planning it?” she said. “It has to be able to uplift the entire community, or it's for naught.”
Through bimonthly meetings and monthly sub-committee sessions, the Seattle Music Commission works on different facets of the city’s music scene, whether it’s helping musicians earn more for their work or connecting community to the power of music.
Learn more about the Seattle Music Commission here.
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