It’s difficult to say when a career for a writer and poet begins. The relationship with words often forms much earlier on than your twenties. By 1998, the year in which he starred in Slam, Saul Williams had already made a name for himself on the poetry circuit. Williams had won various poetry competitions across America such as the 1996 National Poetry Slam in Portland, Oregon.
Alongside his starring side-by-side The Wire actor Sonja Sohn in Slam, Williams is also well known for his lead role in the Broadway theatre production of Holler If Ya Hear Me, a musical portrayal of hip-hop icon Tupac Shakur.
Last year, Saul Williams took social commentary to another dimension with his vivid storytelling on his album MartyrLoserKing. “When I first started conceiving this album, I imagined a virtual Banksy, someone who was doing the confrontational work that you encounter like you’d encounter his work on a wall,” Williams described, in an interview with SBTV.
“Hip-hop is still cool at a party. But to me, hip-hop has never been strictly a party; it is also there to elevate consciousness,” Williams once said. Through using music and poetry, Williams harnesses and inspires critical thought and sociopolitical awareness. It makes sense that the wordsmith would perform at AFROPUNK FEST London, his work embodies many of the principles that the festival has been known to uphold.
Music isn’t a single purpose entity, it can also provide respite and an escape from daily rituals. As Williams says, it can help inspire consciousness and awareness of the world. After a day of community building as part of the RockCorps and AFROPUNK, our volunteers will feel that much more inspired and moved by the energy and spirit of the artists, such as Saul Williams on the festival lineup.
