An Evening with Benjamin Zephaniah

What a great start to the month. On 10th July, I went to see one of the UK's poetry greats, Benjamin Zephaniah, who read from new work and older favourites at this exclusive show held at the Southbank Centre. This event was part of the London Literature Festival 2009, which is on until 16 July.

For me, this event was such a rare and great treat from start to finish. Benjamin Zephaniah's humour and poetry performance style was such an inspiration. I felt wonderfully stirred by his lyrical rhythms and vibes so much so that I am keen to get on with writing more of my own poems.

There is something about good quality performance poetry that is difficult to put into words. Even before Benjamin had uttered one word on his arrival onto the stage, the emotions took hold of me in anticipation of what great art was to be bestowed upon us. And me being a poet - and there must have been many of us in the audience - just enhanced the whole mind, body and spirit experience.

I sat in tune to a delightful and insightful one-man show delivered by this Rastafarian dub poet without music for almost 90 minutes - no easy task. Benjamin expressed himself by telling a few humorous true stories and intertwining those sometimes political and yet wholesome issues in such an accessible and non-offensive way. I am not sure whether I enjoyed the stories more than the poems - all I know is this was an excellent combination and delivered in such an honest manner. I think he swore once! A truly great artist and great event and for me a particularly liberating evening.

www.benjaminzephaniah.com

www.southbankcentre.co.uk

Photo: Benjamin Zephaniah at Newham bookshop in Barking. Photograph: Katherine Rose/Observer

Michael Jackson - a life in music

A call for reflections for Words of Colour!

Words of Colour Productions are seeking reflections about Michael Jackson's music/lyrics/performances/cultural impact both personally and in terms of popular culture to post on their website: http://www.wordsofcolour.com/

These need not be major pieces and can be a paragraph, a sentence or more. Please put your full name, first name or nickname. Whether you loved him, respected him or are ambivalent about his physical transformation or anything else about his personal life, share it.

Email your thoughts, recollections and feelings to: info@wordsofcolour.com or to: joy@thecreativecollective.com If you have any pictures from childhood or adulthood wearing MJ merchandise, please email them too.

Deadline: 8th July at 12 midday (if not before).

Publication date: The website http://www.wordsofcolour.com/ will be live by Monday 13th July and you will all be informed.

Slot: There will be a special in the Forum Slot.

Response: Please let Joy know ASAP if you would like to contribute.

King of Pop 1958-2009

When I heard the unbelievable news last night that Michael Jackson had died, I was watching 'This Week' on BBC1 and at the end of the programme the presenter solemnly made an announcement. I stared at the TV in disbelief and shivers ran down my spine as I was so shocked at the news.

I then watched the coverage on BBC2 with my son and the realisation slowly sank in. Michael Jackson had died of a heart attack at the age of 50 and all I could think about was how sad it was that he died so young, so suddenly and possibly on his own.

It is such a shame too that his forthcoming performances in London won't be going ahead. Michael Jackson was an amazingly talented musical genius and entertained millions throughout his musical career, with his groundbreaking and unique performances of great lyrics and dance routines that had never been done before. He not only opened the doors to Black music appearing on TV, he left the doors wide open for other Black artists to follow a similar career path.

Michael was much loved and adored by his fans and he will be hugely missed. The world of music will never be the same again.

May he rest in peace.

Shangwe Hair & Skin Anthology

WANTED: poems and personal essays for a new book. The Editor is seeking contributions from Black & Mixed-Race women of African & African-Caribbean descent on the themes of hair and/or skin.

Required format: Personal Essay pieces length: 500-1,500 words written in the first person.

Poems: Maximum of 4 poems with a limit of 40 lines each.

For the full guidelines email: shangwewriters@yahoo.co.uk or telephone: 07846 542321.

Closing date for submissions: 30th August.

Poor.Old.Tired.Horse.

An exhibition on art and poetry.
17 June - 23 August 2009
Institute of Contemporary Arts, London.

Poor. Old. Tired. Horse. takes an imaginative and expansive look at text-based art practices, using the concrete poetry of the 60s as its starting point. The exhibition goes on to look at other practices from this era, and concludes with work from younger artists currently exploring the literary and graphic potential of language.

Concrete poetry has ancient roots, and can be understood as poetry in which the physical appearance of the poem has as much impact as its traditional poetic structure. It is mainly associated with the 1950s and 60s, and the exhibition starts with the work of the artist and writer Ian Hamilton Finlay, a key figure of concrete poetry in 1960s Britain. Poor. Old. Tired. Horse. takes its title from a periodical that Finlay ran from 1962 to 1968 which featured his own graphic and literary experiments alongside those of other artists and poets.

For more details visit:

www.ica.org.uk/pooroldtiredhorse

Wasafiri: New Writing Prize

25 Years of Wasafari: The Magazine of International Contemporary Writing

30 June is the deadline for the Wasafiri New Writing Prize

The competition is open to anyone who has not published a complete book. Wasafiri are looking for creative submissions in one of three categories:

Poetry

Fiction

Life Writing

The prize will be judged by Mimi Khalvati (Poetry), Margaret Busby (Fiction), Blake Morrison (Life Writing) and Susheila Nasta (Chair). Simply incorporate the theme of '25' somewhere in your piece. £5 fee. Prizes £300 will be awarded to the winner of each category and work will be published in Wasafari. Word limit: 3000 words.

Shortlisted authors will be notified on 30th September and be invited to the prize-giving event at the South Bank Centre on 31st October. A list of shortlisted authors will be put on the website on 1st October.

For more details for to: www.wasafiri.org/pages/25anniversary.htm

Black Cultural Archives: A Celebration

On 19th May, I was invited by a friend, Annette Sylvester, to a celebration of The Black Cultural Archives’ projects ‘Documenting the Archives and Oral Histories of the Black Women’s Movement.’ The event was held at the Karibu Education Centre, Brixton. Annette is a volunteer on the project.

The event was very well attended and I was glad I arrived a bit early so as to grab a seat. I was well pleased to see that the programme included Stella Dadzie, co-author of The Heart of the Race, and wished I had brought my copy along for her to sign. Stella’s presentation was on The Black Women’s Movement – why it should be remembered and preserved. It reminded me of all the great work that my sister colleagues and I have been involved with over the years, in particular Nehanda Black Women’s Organisation, based in North London, where I was a Trustee and a Community Development Adviser for eight years from 1995 - 2003.

While we were listening to the projects’ feedback, nibbles (pizza, vegetable rolls, apple juice) were being served. Later a Caribbean buffet was arranged so my friend and I grabbed a table and got stuck in. We enjoyed a plate of rice ‘n’ peas, fish, plantain, a chick pea dish, and salad, followed by a plate of fresh fruit – mango, pineapple, strawberries, grapes and melon. Bottles of wine and water were provided to accompany our meal.

I left well satisfied and full, not only with food but with a richness of how important and inspiring the work of the Black Cultural Archives is. The event was a great success and I did lots of networking and exchanging of business cards. I am feeling enthusiastic so will be putting myself forward as a volunteer writer very soon.

To find out more about the Black Cultural Archives visit:
http://www.bcaheritage.org.uk/

To find out more about Nehanda Black Women’s Organisation visit:
http://www.nehanda.org.uk/

Photos from top to bottom:

Me, Stella Dadzie, Paul Reid, Director, Black Cultural Archives and Annette Sylvester (far left) and project volunteers.