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Breaking Boundaries Through Spoken Word and Theatre with jodY

With another intense year coming to an end we wrap up our 2021 Flow Feature series with the magnificent writer and performance poet, jodY. With his comedic energy coupled with his free-spirited personality, we have enjoyed seeing this creative evolve over the last year both on and off the stage. With aims to break both personal and professional boundaries through his work we explore where jodY plans to take his art next. What has 2021 been like for you as a creative? 2021 has been an active year for jodY, but he never thought that he would be headlining multiple shows doing what he loved due to the pandemic. From open stages, to headlining events, to performing on the Bafta winning Sky Arts programme, Life & Rhymes, this year has been one of opportunity, growth, and development despite the global challenge we have all had to face. He began performing snippets of his play that blends spoken word with seamless acting and subtle comedy. His previews have received grand responses from all the audiences that have had the pleasure of getting to watch one of his biggest projects in the making come to life. The play is about specific memories relating to my childhood. I touch on themes such as masculinity, abuse, alcohol, and general mental health issues that aren’t spoken about as much as they should be. jodY – Poet & Creative What can you tell us about the play that you’re producing? I don’t want to rush it. I don’t believe in half-assed performances if you’re going to pay money to see me. I always think about people that sculpt ice. You can either rush it and get your 15 minutes of fame, or you can take your time delicately crafting away and people will remember you for years to come. jodY – Poet & Creative In order to make sure that what he reveals to the world through his play is worth it, jodY is working at his own pace; a trait that all creators should embrace where possible. He has been working on the project, entitled Divulge; Evolve, for over four years as he peeled back the layers of how he came to be the man he is today. Divulge; Evolve has revealed a lot about jodY’s capabilities to himself as he exposes the darkest experiences of his life in an artistic way. The semi-colon is used to support the semi-colon project that focuses on mental health. The semi-colon tattoo is used a message of solidarity against suicide, addiction, and other mental health issues. jodY – Poet & Creative Where do you want to take your craft in the upcoming future? Taking poetry to the theatre stage isn’t the only thing that jodY wants to achieve in the near future. He has grown to love the thrilling and competitive nature of slam poetry which he believes would fit his unique performance style. After making his mark within the UK poetry scene and being ready to take to the theatre stage, we have no doubt that slam poetry will bring out even more slick and comedic wordplay that we love so much. I believe I’m a great performer, and I’m a big believer in giving yourself positive words of affirmation. jodY – Poet & Creative If you’re a fan of slam poetry, then you definitely know that the US has some brilliant events featuring some of the best wordsmiths on the scene. jodY aims to go international to explore what the poetry community has to offer outside of London. He would love the opportunity to perform at The Poetry Cafe in LA and experience the Public Theatre in New York City which will allow him to connect new creatives, and develop his talents across the board. We look forward to seeing where jodY’s journey takes him in the New Year. Photographer: @souldiaries Creative director: @tannikataylor Writer: @tannikataylor Videographer: @themetaphorest

The Creative Evolution Of Leyenda Speaks

As Black History Month draws to a close, we introduce the brilliant Leyenda Speaks to end it with the bang it needs. The 25-year-old spoken word poet and creative from South London launched his latest EP, Metamorphosis this year, and already has his eyes set on new heights. Since accepting that art and creative expression was going to be a major part of his life, Ley has become “obsessed” with documenting the journey along the way and we’ve had the pleasure of being along for the ride. Metamorphosis – ‘A change of the form or nature of a thing or person into a completely different one’. Where did it all start for you? Ley Speaks’ area of South London had a big influence on his work as he used his personal experiences and how they have shaped his mentality as a foundation for the work that he creates. Like most writers, he found his love for his craft studying English in school, but wanted to explore how he could combine words with other forms of creative arts. Music has always been a passion of his, and when asked about how he felt about fusing spoken word with music he said: I’ve always loved music, combining my poetry with music felt like a natural process to me. Ley Speaks How did your first EP ‘Spring Baby’ come to life? Released in 2020, the themes of Spring Baby are centred around new beginnings and nature. The EP encapsulates his journey up until a certain point whilst highlighting the rebirth he was experiencing in both his personal and creative life. Spring Baby descended when mother nature gave birth. Metamorphosis – Lion Cub He doesn’t hold back on confronting his emotions head on as he shares his truth on the world around him with effortless flows that you can’t help but relate to. The entire body of work is its own little world that anyone would want to take a mini escape to. Ley has mastered how to weave his interests and intellect together with ease, whilst drawing upon his ups and downs to bring you spoken word poetry in his own unique form. Working on Spring Baby allowed me to express different aspects of what I’m about. My lyricism, quirkiness, and creativity. Ley Speaks Stream Spring Baby here Tell us more about your latest project ‘Metamorphosis’? Ley openly expressed that he followed his intuition when creating this project, and once it was finished, he instantly started to think what was next. He likes to think that Metamorphosis takes you through an experience of accepting ones self and acknowledging the process of growth as an individual. Each track features raw and honest wordplay, and storytelling, yet doesn’t compromise on the beautiful sounds that come together to create something truly exceptional. Being ahead of what the body understands is one of the reasons I launched Metamorphosis when the pandemic had settled. Ley Speaks He named one of his tracks on the EP Lion Cub because there is a line from his track Equinox that features on his Spring Baby EP – ‘Birth of a dandy lion, raw determination’, which highlights how Ley meticulously ensures that his work is a true representation of his evolution over time. What would you say your favourite tracks are from your projects? Asking any artist what their favourite tracks are from their projects is always a difficult one for them to answer, and it’s no different for Ley Speaks. Having produced two brilliant projects in less than two years in addition to singles that are just as great as the collections, we got him to break them down for us: If I HAD to choose I would say that March 20th, Vincent Van Gogh, and Why Does Bad Come Fast But Leaves Slow are probably my favourites from Spring Baby. They each tell their own individual stories. It’s really hard to choose a favourite from Metamorphosis. I love Lion Cub for so many reasons. One being the Lion King references but also the references linked to my Spring Baby Ep. My second single Hearticulate is definitely one of my favourites, not only because of its lyrics, but it allowed me to explore my creativity when releasing its official video. Ley Speaks What is next for the great Ley Speaks? It shouldn’t come as a surprise that there is more on the way from our poetic genius Ley Speaks. He is currently working on another detailed project which has more soul undertones in terms of genre. I love musical poetry so I’m really excited to work with soulful-ish instrumentals, guitarists, and pianists etc. Before that I’d like to try a few other things including facilitating workshops and releasing more visuals. Ley Speaks We know first hand that Leyenda has so much more to come regarding musical spoken word, but until then you can stream both Spring Baby and Metamorphosis on Spotify, Apple Music, iTunes, and various other streaming platforms.