What this life looks like
You compress the world into language. Poets use words with maximum precision and intensity — writing in forms that range from classical metre to free verse to spoken word performance — to articulate emotions, observations, and ideas that resist ordinary expression. Africa's poetic traditions are ancient and rich, and contemporary African poets are finding large audiences across performance poetry, publishing, social media, and music.
What she actually does
You write, revise, and develop a body of poetry across years of practice, perform your work at literary events and spoken word venues, submit to poetry journals and competitions, develop collections for publication, collaborate with musicians and other artists, engage in residencies and educational programmes, and build a platform through social media and performance.
Where you can work
| Sector | Places in Africa |
|---|---|
| Literary Publishing | Cassava Republic, African University Press, Carcanet Press (publishes African poets internationally) |
| Performance Venues | Spoken word events, literary festivals, Ake Arts Festival, Writivism, The Other Foundation |
| Education | Poets in residence at schools and universities — combining writing with education outreach |
| Music & Media | Collaboration with Afrobeats and Afropop musicians — spoken word increasingly integrated with music production |
Why it matters in Africa
African poetry and spoken word is experiencing a renaissance. Performance poetry — in Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, Ghana, and across the diaspora — reaches massive audiences through social media. Poets like Warsan Shire, Lebo Mashile, and Omawumi Ogbe are globally recognised. African poetry collections are winning international prizes. And the spoken word tradition's connection to African oral culture gives African poets a rich indigenous tradition to draw from.
Your pathway in
- Read poetry obsessively: African poetry (Okot p'Bitek, Christopher Okigbo, Warsan Shire), and global poetry (Pablo Neruda, Sharon Olds, Lucille Clifton)
- Write a poem every day — daily practice builds the ear for language that great poetry requires
- Perform at open mics and spoken word events — performing your work publicly develops both your writing and your confidence
- Submit to poetry journals, competitions, and open calls: the Brunel International African Poetry Prize, the Sillerman First Book Prize for African poets
- Build an audience on Instagram and TikTok — many African poets have built significant followings through social media poetry
Skills you will need
- Craft of language (imagery, rhythm, form)
- Revision and editing
- Performance skills
- Submissions and publication processes
- Social media building
- Reading widely
A woman in this field
Warsan Shire
Somalia/UK
Warsan is a Somali-British poet whose work — including the poetry collection 'Teaching My Mother How to Give Birth' and her extraordinary contribution to Beyoncé's visual album 'Lemonade' — has brought African poetry to a global audience of hundreds of millions. The first Young Poet Laureate of London, she writes with devastating emotional precision about displacement, womanhood, family, and belonging. Her career demonstrates that African poetic voices, when fully realised, can shape global culture.
Take your first step
- Write a poem today — do not worry if it is imperfect. Start with an image that matters to you and follow the language wherever it leads
- Read the Brunel International African Poetry Prize shortlists — they represent some of the finest young African poets writing today
- Attend an open mic or spoken word event in your city — performing your own words in front of an audience, even once, changes your relationship with your writing forever
- Follow African poets on Instagram — Warsan Shire, Lebo Mashile, Saul Williams — and study how they use the platform to reach large audiences
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