Tag Archives: philadelphia

National Poetry Month: Ursula Rucker

28 Monday Apr 2008

Posted by in Feeding The Music Jones

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by vivrant thang on national poetry month

As National Poetry Month comes to a close, I wanted to celebrate one of my favorite poets, Philly native Ursula Rucker. I was up in Philly a couple of weeks ago and just happened upon the Germantown Poetry Festival. I read about it before I got to town but didn’t think I would be able to make it over there during my short visit. While we were riding aimlessly down the never-ending Germantown Avenue, we ran right into Vernon Park. I thought I would have missed her, but I was right on time.

I don’t remember when I was first discovered Ursula and there’s still so many of her pieces that I’m unfamiliar with. She’s often compared to Nikki Giovanni and Sonya Sanchez, which is probably why I took notice. Not to mention the fact that she’s a cusser just like moi.

She first performed publicly at the Philly institution, Zanzibar Blue (RIP). She’s appeared on three Roots albums, Do You Want More?!?!, Illadelph Halflife, and the classic, Things Fall Apart.  She’s also worked with one of my favorite UK soul artists,  4Hero. I love the blending of poetry with hip-hop and soul music. It’s just natural. Can it get any better?

Since I’m more of a prose-loving chick, a poet gots to bring the fire to hold my attention. From the time Ursula opens her mouth, everything about her delivery grabs your attention. She’s talking about real shit, which is the kind of poetry I feel. I wholeheartedly respect literary poets. I just think I od’d in grad school. Wasn’t until I moved to the DC area and started checking out open mikes that I really got into spoken word and gained a deeper appreciation for the art form.

If you’ve never heard Ursula spit, please check out these videos. The raw emotion this woman brings to her pieces is captivating. If you like what you hear, be sure to check out any of her three albums, Supa Sista, Silver or Lead, and Ma’ at Mama.

I have videos from the poetry festival, but some technical difficulties prevent me from posting them. Difficulties that caused me to burst into tears. Sometimes I hate being a woman. Seriously. I considered scrapping this post but I still wanted to celebrate these ill poetic lyricists before the month ended. I will find occasion to post them soon.

What A Woman Must Do, Def Poetry Jam Season 5

Love/Lift Ev’ry Voice And Sing f/ Orrin Evans Trio and Jaguar Wright (for Dr. Martin Luther King)

In addition to Maya Angelou, Nikki, Sonya, and Ntozake Shange, here are some other black female poets I love. Share yours in the comments.

Jahipster [official site | myspace]
Love the Poet [official site | myspace]
Tara Betts [offical site | myspace]
Olu Butterfly [myspace] – performs with Fertile Ground
Lady Wisdom [myspace]
Naima J [myspace]
Punany Poets (Jessica Holter) [official site | myspace]

Blog Checka

06 Sunday Apr 2008

Posted by in Weekly Round Up

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by vivrant thang on blog posts you should be reading

In the spirit of spreading the linky love, here’s a roundup of posts I enjoyed over the past week. As I’ve mentioned, I read a lot of blogs and often fall WAY behind. I hope you find some new blogs here to stalk so you can share in my misery! I plan to do this regularly.

Chris Rock on Black Progress in US

And if Soul Bounce is not one of your daily reads, you need to get into it. Now. Maxwell has.

I’ll repeat that again.

Maxwell has. Yes, THAT Maxwell.

Take Time

29 Monday Oct 2007

Posted by in Feeding The Music Jones

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ledisi.jpg

Sometime the days get so long
Though sometime it seems, everything is wrong
Endless hours, you’re working so hard
In your fancy suit, exchanging business cards
So much pressure, need to run and hide
Get tired of the days, passing you by, ooh,
You wanna find a place to escape
It’s your life you gotta do whatever it takes

Nothing but the truth.

This past weekend, I did escape. I didn’t go as far as I would have liked. Ideally, if I had my way, I would have been laying on a beach in the Caribbean. Instead, I made a quick hotel reservation, jumped in my car and headed to the City of Brotherly Love. I’ll talk more about how much I love Philly in later posts I’m sure. It has such a rich soul music scene, with much better venues than we have here in the DC area. I’ve been up there quite a few times this year for different concerts and cultural events. Like Atlanta and Chicago, it’s just one of the cities where something about being there just feels good.

What was unusual about this trip for me is that I didn’t have any firm plans in mind. When I travel, I ordinarily have a specific reason for going or at least an itinerary planned, although it may be a loose one. This time I didn’t exactly know what I was going to do and that was alright. I did know that my primary goal was just to relax and think in a new space. DC was closing in on me. I needed some fresh air.

It was an enlightening weekend in many ways. I ate some great food (shout out to Ms. Tootsie’s Soul Food Cafe and Lounge and Sonny’s Steaks); had enlightening conversation about male/female relations with 31-year-old Philly native, Darnell; strolled around Olde City; listened to an anti-war speeches at a rally; attended a Young Friends Society fundraiser at the African American Museum of Philadelphia, hosted by the highly edu-taining, Just Greg, and was introduced to the experience that is the Urban Shamans.

I unexpectedly met a couple of people that gave me food for thought. I talked with people that are passionate and inspired about whatever it is that they do. One person in particular was Mr. Richard Watson, an accomplished artist and activist in his early 60s, who hipped me to the ArtJaz Gallery. It’s on my list for the next time I escape to Philly.

I can’t say I’ve returned totally refreshed, but I certainly did get that breath of fresh air I needed. Just taking off alone to a relatively unfamiliar city is not for everyone, but it worked for me.

One treat that awaited me upon my return was seeing Van Hunt in concert at the Black Cat. I hope to share that experience (and videos) with you in the next post.

Take time to get away
Free your mind
And fly away