At 14 years old, her father was murdered by gangsters. Rather than revenge, Jazz Tan turned to entrepreneurship, founding a company to help at-risk youth in the community where her father was killed
“When my dad was around, my mum and I were always worried about who was going to be outside our front door,” says Jazz Tan, her voice wavering slightly over the phone from Kuala Lumpur. She always knew her father was involved in gang activity, and late at night she’d often “hear arguments and people coming to look for him.”
But the night he was murdered by gangsters in their home still rocked her to her core. When he died, I realised I was going to have to grow up very, very fast, she says.
“My mum used to stay at home and care for me, but suddenly losing my dad meant we also lost our only source of income,” says Tan. “I was working in coffee stores, washing plates—whatever I could do to just keep us alive.”
I wanted to keep kids off the streets. I wanted to put them into healthy activities. I figured that events are the best way to do it
At just 14-years-old, struggling for money and in a single-parent home in the Malaysian island of Penang, the odds weren’t in Tan’s favour. But Tan’s mother pushed her to study harder and create a better life for herself. “My mum told me that if I didn't get a scholarship, [we wouldn't have enough money] for me to go to college.”
Tan chose to study computer science, looking ahead to a future in the aviation industry. But as she was starting her studies, a conversation with a friend changed everything, sparking the idea of a platform to help at-risk kids who were drifting into a life of gangs and violent crime.
My friend wanted to organise a concert at her school to raise funds for her community, but her principal rejected the project. So instead she asked me to help her organise the concert with her and work with other students to raise money. That’s how my entire business got started, says Tan.
See also: Is Tech Still Forgetting About Women?
