Up next in 10
Aja Monet is a poet who is making waves in the poetry world with her debut album 'When The Poems Do What They Do', which is out now. Her eloquent words are a testament to the unyielding power of the spoken word, and how it can move hearts and minds. Aja Monet's poetry is infused with a sense of resistance, love, and an unwavering desire for joy. In this blog post, we will explore Aja Monet's debut album and how it resonates with the themes of Black resistance, and the quest for love and joy.
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Aja Monet's Debut Album 'When The Poems Do What They Do' | SWAY’S UNIVERSE
https://youtu.be/9gYTxOKsbBI
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0:00
come on man she's a community activist
0:02
or organizer they said she's a
0:05
surrealist Blues poet but I know she's
0:07
not just one thing
0:09
they say she moves between different
0:11
mediums but when she steps into your
0:13
proximity she definitely leaves the
0:16
impact
0:17
I'm proud to have her on this show today
0:19
man poets right now is indicative of the
0:21
times are much needed so necessary they
0:24
always have been I commend those who um
0:27
decide to take that journey through
0:30
poetry and stick with it and sustain it
0:32
sometimes it's a rewardless job you know
0:35
you put a lot of energy into your
0:37
thought process you're not just thinking
0:40
um you're not just grabbing words off
0:41
the surface you actually got to go in
0:43
deep you almost have to Lose Yourself to
0:45
receive the energy to receive the words
0:47
that make up these poems that are more
0:50
than just poems they're extremely
0:52
powerful and um this particular person I
0:55
want to commend her she's paid her dues
0:57
she's a new Rican Grand Slam champion
1:01
she's a a a grand slam Champion ladies
1:06
and gentlemen give it a big round I
1:07
think she was the youngest out of the
1:09
the Eureka Soul Cafe
1:11
all right back in
1:14
0708 the reason why I know because I
1:17
used to go to the Eureka Soul Cafe I've
1:21
seen her before and then in Ghana my
1:23
brother Vic Mensa was like you gotta
1:25
hook up with Aja Monet you gotta have
1:27
her on the show and when we came back
1:29
from Ghana uh he made a note to call me
1:32
to make sure we made this happen he he
1:34
didn't have to but the fact that he did
1:36
I knew it was important uh to him and
1:39
it's important to our culture and our
1:40
community she's worked on this project
1:42
with many people good friends of mine
1:44
are also included salute to Christian
1:45
Scott giving him a big round of applies
1:49
um my man weedy bramer who I was just
1:52
with this weekend at the
1:54
blue note jazz festival with Robert
1:56
Glasper nice and Wheatie grew up playing
1:59
drums playing percussion under my sister
2:01
who's a master dancer
2:04
a culturalist
2:06
it's been spirituality
2:08
truly
2:10
well people around me are
2:13
okay you know but um those pockets of my
2:17
life I don't often
2:18
um speak on yeah uh especially or
2:21
depends on the mediums I'm on you know
2:23
when I decide to talk about that sort of
2:25
thing I thought it was necessary today I
2:27
want to welcome you to the show give her
2:29
a big round of applause man keep keep
2:31
the Applause going towards
2:37
the poems do what they do please welcome
2:40
Maja Monet here
2:43
[Applause]
2:47
we do not get to hear enough poetry on
2:50
the radio what are your thoughts sharing
2:52
yours black joy that piece we played was
2:54
black Joy thank you so much for playing
2:56
it I think you know I'm excited I feel
2:58
really honored and grateful to be here
2:59
there's so many poets who paved the way
3:01
who came before us and so you know I
3:04
came in today repping um moms yeah Mr
3:07
schemer who's one of the greatest
3:08
hip-hop poets to ever live and
3:12
um I think that I stand on the shoulders
3:14
of greats and so I'm here in homage to
3:16
that so I feel really honored yeah who
3:18
are some of those greats I'd love to say
3:20
their names yeah okay well we have moms
3:24
um we have to shout out you know June
3:26
Jordan Jane Cortez say cusandiada Amiri
3:30
Baraka the last poets Sonia Sanchez I
3:34
mean the list keeps going uh and tazaki
3:36
Shanghai there's so many people who
3:38
paved the way for us
3:39
um and I just continue to be in awe like
3:43
the culture the mainstream culture not
3:45
know but those who know no and it's
3:48
always been the undercurrent of every
3:50
movement every cultural shift has always
3:52
been there's people in the in the
3:54
corners in the shadows of this country
3:56
who have really brought art and theater
3:58
and um poetry to the masses in their own
4:03
way you know by the influences and the
4:05
inspiration and the teaching and the
4:07
mentorship I mean so many greats were a
4:10
part of helping make movements happen in
4:12
our country you sound like you're one of
4:14
those greats I'm curious to as a poet
4:17
how do you recognize when that cultural
4:19
shift is taking place how do you sense
4:22
it and and are inspired by it and when's
4:25
the last time you felt that way
4:27
well I think every generation has its
4:30
moment you know has its its real
4:32
presence if we're aware and we're
4:34
present to it you just have to always
4:36
recognize that history is made in the
4:38
now so you got to live up to the now
4:40
always you know you gotta rise to the
4:42
occasion and I think studying learning
4:46
the form so you could break it is is
4:48
always the best tradition the best
4:50
practice but I think when you think
4:52
about cultural movements and shifts
4:55
you probably sometimes don't even
4:57
realize it I mean you've been a part of
4:59
huge cultural shifts and moments and
5:01
you're just living you know what I mean
5:02
and so so long as you show up to the
5:05
culture with your authentic you know
5:07
most vulnerable loving self
5:10
um you will you will see over time you
5:13
will be able to look back and say wow
5:15
like that dot led to this dot that led
5:17
to this Dot and that's why this person
5:19
was able to do this I mean you know you
5:21
think about it in time time always lets
5:24
you know time Aja Monet is here I want
5:27
to take a quick call I'm gonna do
5:28
something different uh we got Anthony
5:29
from Yonkers on the line and she got a
5:32
new project when the poems do what they
5:34
do it's out now so so go ahead and
5:35
stream it go ahead and
5:37
good morning everybody good morning
5:41
good morning Asha good morning
5:45
my question for you is when it comes to
5:47
your writing process do you consider
5:49
yourself more of a Storyteller or Worse
5:51
mirror and along with that who are some
5:54
of your favorite storytellers and
5:56
worstness in hip-hop
5:58
oh that's a good one
6:00
I think I'm a bit of both a lot of times
6:03
I see myself as um
6:06
maybe more like a documentarian or a
6:09
scribe of the time
6:11
so there's moments where language if
6:14
you're working with poetry you're
6:15
dealing with the the power and the magic
6:17
and the Rhythm and tone and vibration of
6:20
language so it it is word smithery I
6:23
guess I'm gonna make that up but um if I
6:26
think of some of my favorite
6:27
storytellers uh you know
6:30
Tupac Nas yeah
6:32
um I mean you know Kendrick Lamar yeah
6:36
um
6:37
Big Pine you know
6:40
um Laura Hill
6:42
there's just there's too many to go you
6:45
know Mobb Deep I mean I think there's
6:47
just so many other ways that that poetry
6:49
has played a role in hip-hop that helps
6:52
it helps us tell our stories and so
6:54
those are the ones that come to mind
6:56
right now hey thanks for your call man
6:58
you're a super citizen brother that's
7:00
why in the morning let's go to uh where
7:01
you at what's what country are you in
7:03
Emmanuel hey Emmanuel hey yo what's up
7:07
peace love and joy to y'all uh I'm from
7:10
Canada I'm from Canada and Winnipeg okay
7:12
he's in Winnipeg all right my brother
7:14
say hello to Audra I just wanted her to
7:15
know that she's getting callers from all
7:17
over the world that's really what it was
7:19
because
7:20
I just said to me hey you just played
7:23
the song on the radio does that mean
7:24
everybody in the city can hear it
7:40
you kept saying diaspora and diaspora
7:44
diaspora so I wanted to ask and again
7:46
the vibe it was giving me was
7:51
AKA afrobeat background type so I
7:55
wanted to know are you really tapped
7:57
into
7:58
afrobeat at all or it was just a
8:01
coincidence that sounded like that in my
8:03
in my head because I'm Nigerian well
8:06
well of course that's you know African
8:08
people no matter where we are we're
8:10
tapped into to some cultural current
8:12
that connects us so I think that is in
8:14
it's in there it's in the it's in the
8:16
blood it's in the ethos it's in the
8:18
voice it's in the soul the spirit and
8:20
it's gonna it's gonna come up it's gonna
8:21
show up in the work
8:23
um but yeah I am tapped in I've been
8:25
doing a lot of work in the continent at
8:26
that point particularly It Was Written
8:28
long before I had ever first stepped
8:29
foot on you know African soil but I
8:33
think about the diaspora always being
8:35
connected to home we're in that in
8:37
between so we dance in that in between
8:39
you know
8:40
hey hey you know what Not So Graceful
8:43
man for real that's what's up I mean
8:45
make sure you support our project though
8:47
this is our debut album okay when the
8:50
poems do what they do debut album
8:53
out of all these years this is our first
8:55
time putting out an album I know and I
8:57
brought you an actual record she brought
8:58
me vine on it man y'all look at this
9:01
beautiful it's amazing this looks like
9:03
one of those 1974 Isaac Hayes covers
9:07
yeah right and also very Regal hey
9:10
Manuel you're a citizen brother shout
9:11
out to Delphine what does this mean for
9:14
you it's it's poets don't get treated
9:17
the best in the music no we don't yeah
9:19
right in the entertainment business no
9:20
we don't
9:21
um but I gotta say that people who
9:23
recognize real recognize real you know
9:26
what I mean I'm just grateful okay I
9:29
want you to meet Tracy G and Mike Muse
9:30
and old schoon again well we kind of did
9:35
they walked in I was like girl you have
9:37
my gay
9:39
into the world of spoken word and some
9:42
poetry because Aja had performed at my
9:44
college Pace University many years ago
9:47
and killed it Standing Ovation all of
9:50
that her name was always bouncing up and
9:51
down the hallways of Pace University
9:53
when I was in college I was studying for
9:55
journalism and when I finally broke into
9:58
the industry through journalism and the
10:01
blogosphere came up I remember so many
10:04
journalists being very protective over
10:07
that title and not wanting journalism to
10:10
feel synonymous with blogging right for
10:13
you in your lane Aja how important is
10:17
how protective are you over the title
10:19
poet because sometimes I hear that used
10:23
for a wide variety of artists and I
10:26
wonder if technically they are poets or
10:28
if the technicalities don't really
10:30
matter yeah I mean I I hold the title
10:33
very highly
10:35
not everybody should be called a poet
10:38
yeah people call me a purist but I think
10:40
that it's really just about tradition
10:42
you know it's what tradition you stand
10:44
in and what Legacy you you believe you
10:46
walk in and I think that you know you
10:48
don't look at a doctor or a surgeon and
10:50
say well you know you kind of work in
10:53
the hospital so you're a surgeon you
10:56
know what I mean there's things that you
10:57
have to study learn you know commit
11:01
yourself to devote yourself to it's a
11:03
it's really a a devotion you know and so
11:06
I think through that time and that
11:08
devotion you eventually become a master
11:11
of that craft you know and so the hope
11:14
is that people understand that it's a
11:16
craft it actually requires work and
11:20
study and commitment you know what I
11:22
mean so I don't know that that's the
11:24
case for many art forms these days but I
11:26
think because titles are thrown around
11:28
and social media has made language and
11:31
literature particularly words sort of
11:34
this thing that everybody feels they can
11:35
throw around very easily we don't always
11:37
know what we're doing when we're using
11:39
language and when we're using words and
11:41
so somebody's just being like I woke up
11:43
today
11:43
smile
11:45
and it's like poem
11:48
but it's but you want to know
11:51
where's where's the poetic you know
11:54
technique I think that's where that's
11:56
where we start to actually understand
11:57
what poets do with language and do two
12:00
language okay and the oral tradition is
12:02
when what are the poetic techniques that
12:04
are being used and our education system
12:06
is really you know it's it's lacking in
12:09
that yeah yeah it's not teaching some of
12:10
those techniques so if you get familiar
12:12
with personification yes alliteration
12:15
metaphor probably the biggest one is
12:17
when you make a comparison between two
12:19
unlike things and make them like so if I
12:22
said you know her hair is running water
12:25
that's a metaphor I'm taking running
12:27
water and her hair and making them the
12:30
same they become now in your mind I've
12:32
done something magical I've just made
12:34
her hair water who says we couldn't do
12:36
that you know that's what that's the
12:37
power of language so we got a hyena up
12:40
in here
12:50
you ready what's up oh God
12:55
he's trying to instigate something over
12:57
here
12:58
I didn't know if that was our Cube all
13:01
right okay Mike Muse you got a question
13:03
yeah well speaking of that I'm wondering
13:05
what is your approach to your art of
13:07
poetry because I listened to that single
13:09
uh that we just played which I
13:11
absolutely loved it captured my
13:12
attention in a way I didn't expect it to
13:14
be captured normally for me sometimes
13:16
different poems and poetry can be
13:18
unapproachable right but I felt like
13:20
your poetry in that single was very
13:22
approachable you talked about
13:23
fraternities and sororities and
13:25
probating and then you went straight to
13:27
like religion and Holy Ghost and
13:29
spirituality and just all the things I
13:31
was connecting with and so how do you
13:33
approach it to make it
13:35
edit what is your approach to how you
13:38
create your poetry that's a very good
13:40
question great edit too yeah okay well I
13:43
think that when you're um when you
13:45
understand what what poetic techniques
13:46
are and what we're doing they're
13:48
actually all like musical references
13:50
right so I am a pentameter which is
13:53
about how many syllables are in a line
13:54
it's about it sounds it's like how many
13:57
beats am I putting into a line so that
13:59
it could fall on the ear a certain way
14:00
that's why people loved Biggie and they
14:03
love Shakespeare was because he was he
14:05
was speaking in a certain Rhythm so I
14:07
think that that falls in line with how I
14:10
consider what I do it's musical you know
14:13
I consider what I do I'm a word musician
14:15
you know and then on top of that it's a
14:18
list poem list poems are probably some
14:20
of the easier ways to catch people
14:22
um who are not necessarily used to some
14:25
of the the ways that people form
14:27
language you know or form poetry and I
14:30
want to say black black Joy particularly
14:31
is a poem that's really special to my
14:33
heart because I wrote that in my living
14:35
room with my brother
14:37
um Daniel Agnew who transitioned about
14:41
two months ago and I just want to shout
14:44
out
14:45
um all of my community in Florida and
14:47
South Florida we lost the Giant and um
14:49
yeah and and I'm and I know that I could
14:52
not do the work I'm doing also without
14:54
my community and the people who helped
14:56
Inspire some of those work so I was
14:58
going back and forth with him like what
14:59
do you think about this he was coming
15:01
back with me like yeah yeah but you
15:02
can't forget this part you know because
15:04
it was like what brings us joy you know
15:06
and I look to my community like what are
15:08
the things that bring us joy and that
15:10
was the moment where I got to actually
15:12
have real time you know feedback from
15:14
somebody I love who helped Inspire that
15:17
poem well in my response let that be
15:18
affirmation because it made me smile
15:20
when I was listening I had my head down
15:22
and those sounds like
15:25
oh yeah
15:26
yeah there you go thank you Monet is
15:28
here her new debut album when the poems
15:30
do what they do we're gonna play a
15:33
one of my well the first one we played
15:36
was black joy that was a piece I picked
15:38
out and I just thought it was
15:39
appropriate and where I wanted to start
15:40
the interview but there's another one
15:42
called what makes you feel loved we're
15:43
going to play that in a second but I
15:45
want to let my niece who was also the
15:48
producer and the host of tea time out of
15:50
La who's here with us today give it up
15:53
for old shoes she
15:55
[Applause]
15:58
said
16:00
oh you got a question here I do have a
16:03
question so um to my understanding you
16:05
are afro-latina and as someone who is
16:10
very like involved are you just as your
16:13
album and as your poem you seem very
16:15
involved in your culture and where you
16:17
come from which I think is very
16:19
important I'm 15 and a lot of people my
16:21
age just don't really do that anymore
16:23
they don't find the necessity of doing
16:25
that and I think it's really important
16:27
that we have poets like you that keep
16:29
that tradition going along and my
16:32
question for you is being an afro-latina
16:34
but
16:35
how do you most
16:37
how do you like manage having do you
16:41
connect more with one side than the
16:42
other like do you have to feel like
16:44
you're more
16:45
like African-American than you are a
16:47
Latina or do you think that you can have
16:49
an even like distribute of both that's a
16:53
great question
16:54
well I don't actually
16:57
um
16:57
and I never identified as afro-latina I
17:00
just identify as an African black woman
17:03
you know that's just the way it's it's
17:05
it's the way I see myself is the way
17:07
I've lived I do have Cuban you know a
17:10
Puerto Rican Heritage
17:12
um but I also have Jamaican and there's
17:14
African you know there's all types of
17:16
stuff in there and it's very New York so
17:19
my experience but my experience was
17:21
always as a black woman growing up so
17:23
that's what it was a conscious decision
17:25
for me at a very young age to make sure
17:27
I identified as that and I think that I
17:30
never felt like I feel like the grouping
17:32
and the identity brackets sometimes try
17:34
to make us pit us against each other
17:38
um and it it further you know just I
17:41
think emphasizes pain trauma and the the
17:44
history of slavery but who got dropped
17:48
off first is is is not really a
17:50
discussion we should be arguing it
17:52
should just be
17:53
um what is our you know what what is
17:57
where do we want to be where do we want
17:59
to go who how do we see ourselves and I
18:01
see myself as an African woman who looks
18:04
forward to the liberation of people at
18:06
all African people across the globe you
18:08
know that's that's what we're working
18:10
towards you know beautiful question
18:12
that's my niece right there by the way
18:14
did I mention that y'all
18:16
okay great answer
18:18
um we're gonna go into this next song
18:20
and I'd love to have you do something
18:21
live with everyone here is that possible
18:24
I just had LL freestyle for me in that
18:26
seat it's up to you
18:30
no pressure okay uh what makes you feel
18:33
loved oh good question
18:36
[Music]
18:38
man there's so many things that make me
18:40
feel loved I think
18:42
presents being able to be present
18:46
um deep gratitude
18:49
um appreciation
18:51
yeah like there's there's many moments
18:54
that I I often look back on and then I
18:57
think about well what what made me feel
18:59
loved was just somebody seeing me yeah
19:01
somebody really seeing me like my heart
19:04
you know
19:06
um and cherishing and protecting and
19:08
holding it with in right in the right
19:10
hands you know with the right sort of
19:12
love and tenderness I love that man Anja
19:16
Monet this is what makes you feel loved
19:18
off of the when the poems do what they
19:20
do projects gotta love it man when the
19:23
poems do what they do this is featured
19:25
on Audra Monet's album but that's not
19:27
your voice
19:29
Ali Lani Holly is a Elder
19:33
um incredible incredible musician visual
19:35
artists performance artist and it was
19:38
important to me to have
19:40
um him on the record and that was a
19:42
conversation that we had had back and
19:45
forth we were writing back and forth to
19:46
each other
19:48
um and that was an excerpt of that
19:49
conversation which which is one of my
19:52
favorite things I've ever been a part of
19:54
wow that's amazing yeah that's amazing
19:58
um happy to have you here you know when
20:01
I when I mentioned you winning the um
20:03
the Grand Slam competition at Eureka
20:06
Soul Cafe I could I could see you
20:08
almost humbly put your head down and
20:11
blush which led me to believe you're
20:13
similar to me like we hear these
20:15
accolades things you asked me about my
20:18
career outside in a lab you see I
20:20
couldn't even give you nothing I
20:21
immediately became humbled and and
20:24
blushed you know but there have been
20:27
some remarkable temples in my career and
20:29
then you told me you should be grateful
20:31
for them and recognize them which I do
20:33
and I want to be grateful for some of
20:34
yours because we don't hear about the
20:37
poet's victories right we do not hear
20:39
about your victories we hear about the
20:42
struggle all the time or you are telling
20:45
us about life what do you consider what
20:48
are some of the tempo moments that you
20:50
found yourself in the room like I can't
20:51
believe this just happened oh
20:57
[Laughter]
21:03
I am existing in that moment
21:06
um you know one of my my Godfathers and
21:11
and Elder poets is um abioduno awoli of
21:14
the last poets the night the day that I
21:17
met him I was competing in a youth
21:19
poetry competition
21:20
[Music]
21:21
um that ultimately changed my life and
21:23
brought me into a community of poets
21:25
across New York City that I discovered
21:28
and and found home
21:30
um with but meeting him the the the
21:34
trajectory the political education that
21:37
I got being mentored by him was a huge
21:40
huge moment for me pinched me kind of
21:42
moment
21:44
um seeing Maya Angelou Reed at the
21:46
Schaumburg oh man you know Lucille
21:49
Clifton
21:50
um
21:51
sitting in Quincy troops you know off a
21:54
house reading with some of the best
21:56
Poets of our time I mean there's so many
21:58
so many so many moments I actually
22:00
remember when I first met you which I
22:02
was about to tell you he was like wait
22:03
till we on air
22:09
I was a teenager it was right after I
22:11
won I was right after I won that youth
22:13
poetry competition and it was in outside
22:16
of Irving Plaza yes and there was an
22:18
event I think like actually low-key he
22:21
should not be named the rush it was one
22:23
of them Rush events the I don't know if
22:25
you were the Russian philanthropic oh
22:26
yes I used to host America
22:30
and I and I read poetry for one of those
22:33
and I'll never forget that moment
22:35
because every moment as a child growing
22:37
up like when you go through some of the
22:39
things we go through anything that just
22:41
gives you an ounce of affirmation in
22:43
what you're doing is a moment to be
22:45
proud and grateful because it keeps you
22:46
going it gives you the ammunition to see
22:48
the next thing and believe that what
22:50
you're doing is worth it doing so I just
22:52
remember being on stage with you and
22:53
being like I'm with sway like I'm doing
22:56
poetry you know what I mean like I'm I
22:58
introduced you yeah yeah and then I
23:01
think I like ran after you had after and
23:03
I was like you know I'm a poet I'd love
23:05
to you know share a poem with you it was
23:07
just like
23:08
you know it's those moments that you
23:09
just try to capture
23:11
um being as present as you can and with
23:13
deep gratitude and just praying that you
23:15
get another moment to keep keep you
23:17
going you know
23:19
man I'm about to tear up let me
23:21
come give me a hug been sensitive right
23:24
here I remember this this is why yeah
23:26
and then really crazy and I did that for
23:29
seven years straight and it was one of
23:32
my favorite events to do in the first
23:34
few years he never remembered my name
23:36
but I didn't do it for that I did it for
23:38
this yeah I did it I was one of them
23:40
kids wow
23:54
what a perfect way to end this
23:56
conversation with a poem yeah
24:00
you got me you want to go acapella yeah
24:03
okay yeah definitely let's turn the
24:05
mother's mics down for me towards please
24:07
okay hopefully I remember this
24:11
um this poem is
24:14
um called give my regards to Brooklyn
24:19
on the humble I'll be having these
24:21
dreams where I'm people watching with
24:23
Basquiat sitting on a curb on Bedford
24:25
Ave sipping biraguas talking about never
24:27
thought I'd live to see the day
24:29
could a sworn I saw Otis Blackwell
24:30
walking out the Cornerstone Atlantic Ave
24:32
smoking a Lucy whistling a new tune for
24:34
Elvis to cover and it was Gully right
24:36
cause I caught biggie on a stoop and bed
24:38
stopped selling dope to a hipster with
24:40
ready to die tatted across the pail of
24:42
his arms hadn't seen a hoopty in a while
24:44
when Old Dirty Bastard pulled up off me
24:46
a ride to the pink houses and suddenly a
24:49
handsome mocha man sitting on a nearby
24:50
fire escape calls my name I could tell
24:53
it was Jackie by the Dodgers stitched
24:55
across his chest he told me I miss home
24:57
and then it all fades to Black when I
24:59
woke the blue moon was sprawling out of
25:01
its Hiding Place limbs hanging over the
25:04
shoulders of night after lovers had
25:05
abandoned their bodies laughing in the
25:07
corners of each other I was a Fulton
25:09
Lamppost staring at the sky's cheekbone
25:11
shy of stalled us through the blinds of
25:13
j-train tracks this is how it feels to
25:15
dream of being Moonlight in East New
25:17
York a concrete plant collecting
25:18
Whispers of Bodega Blues darling Sunrise
25:21
tickles drum beat hips swaying through
25:23
the air of Sassoon and I envy the
25:25
morning swag boomboxes hold our windows
25:28
open in July we Face our fears on the
25:30
Cyclone call romance a stroll along the
25:33
boardwalk in Coney Island head not to
25:35
pay respect on B boys playing Scully in
25:37
the street we used to buy our kicks from
25:38
City Line and roll the blunt for our
25:40
fallen soldiers and Spark a generation
25:42
in love with spray cans and naked
25:44
tenement buildings graffiti the spirits
25:46
of hustles with bubble letters Mr Softy
25:49
Summers meant stealing abuela Santo
25:51
offerings for Tweety Bird on a popsicle
25:52
stick playing hopscotch on the broken
25:54
sidewalk eavesdropping on front stoop
25:56
gossip Hair Braiding fingers dancing
25:58
between strands of air Brothers get
26:01
caught and gangs get caught in street
26:03
corners get caught thrown against the
26:05
hood of cop cars seen one too many
26:06
handcuffs on the wrist of black and
26:08
brown skin we docked slave ships on our
26:10
Shores daily no Rikers Island like a
26:13
country home I'm convinced my father
26:16
conceived me in Kings County
26:17
arraignments while daydreaming of
26:19
freedom I own my life
26:21
I own my life to the woman who stopped
26:24
my mother on the b-56 on her way to the
26:26
abortion clinic and told her
26:29
you have a poet
26:30
coming
26:34
[Applause]
26:39
wow
26:48
you gotta come back
26:51
you got to come back that was thank you
26:53
for sharing that I'm glad you remembered
26:56
it too
26:57
so much I can ask you about that poem
26:59
but we're gonna leave it like there for
27:00
for people to use their own imagination
27:02
how can people see you what's next uh
27:07
well that's good to say uh to ask I'm
27:09
gonna I'm on tour it's called the why my
27:11
love tour
27:12
um you can find all the dates on my
27:14
website asymone.com I'm on Instagram on
27:18
Twitter it's all the socials
27:20
um but yeah listen to the record please
27:22
listen to the record and I hope you know
27:24
live is one thing I know everybody
27:27
um we might not remember a time during
27:30
this Panorama we just experienced when
27:32
we did not know if we would ever be able
27:33
to experience live music and people in
27:36
person again so let us not take each
27:38
other for granted you know what I mean
27:40
so being able to do a show in person
27:42
with people is probably the best and
27:44
greatest gift in my life and I hope to
27:47
continue to be able to do that so if you
27:49
can come out to a show and just show
27:51
love that's probably one of the best
27:53
ways to engage and experience my work I
27:56
love it
28:05
yes it's an absolute pleasure to have
28:08
you thank you and and uh have you in our
28:11
presence thank you thank you for gifting
28:13
us thank you all today thank you so much
28:15
absolutely continue uh know that you
28:17
have family here you have tribe here you
28:20
know you now you have another platform
28:22
you can add to your list of resources
28:24
okay yeah anytime uh we'll exchange
28:26
salute to Big Mensa too yeah shout out
28:28
Victor for pushing that and thank you
28:30
for telling me the story I remember you
28:33
which is crazy in this pictures out
28:36
there yeah somewhere somewhere
28:38
Monet Victor mention that he didn't know
28:41
huh no he didn't even know he didn't
28:42
know I love that you got a basketball
28:43
shirt on too
28:45
yeah
28:47
I was in the first yeah yeah I won my
28:50
boss y'all today
28:52
um
28:55
another let me say this so shout out to
28:57
you
29:01
sorry Azure um you are absolutely
29:04
incredible thank you for today thank you
29:06
I appreciate you yeah man um you have
29:09
one of the most legendary voices by the
29:10
way big facts let it be known well you
29:14
do like Mike Muse I'm sitting here and
29:16
I'm listening to your voice it sent me
29:18
straight I was like straight to your
29:19
Instagram I saw your dates that are
29:22
coming uh I am an absolute appreciator
29:26
of your work thank you thank you sound
29:29
like collaboration happening yeah let's
29:30
do it
29:31
let's do it
29:33
oh she's never said that oh yeah we
29:38
got that on wax did you hear that
29:41
she's incredible she's the truth yeah
29:44
absolutely Heather I appreciate that
29:45
Audrey thank you for coming by thank you
29:47
thank you tell me your crew
29:48
[Applause]
29:55
she was one of my students when I was
29:57
teaching in in schools here in New York
29:59
City and now she's literally my friend
30:01
my assistant my just Confidant she's out
30:04
here she's a writer she's a writer yeah
30:07
from the BX yeah she is a poet yes and
30:11
Alex Rivera and my other good friend
30:13
from the BX I got my little BX friends
30:15
with me you know the BX LeBron She Gotta
30:19
look at Alex shoes what do y'all think
30:23
great great shoes do they look real
30:25
though they look right those are dope
30:27
shoes okay
30:29
I've never seen Kool-Aid color Nikes
30:31
that's it that was a fly yeah okay all
30:34
right Alex all right uh Asha thank you
30:36
for coming through okay thank you to
30:38
your team who has been lovely incredible
30:40
thank you appreciate it we appreciate
30:42
you thank you for my vinyl we coming
30:44
back sway in the morning
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