Welcome to MrAfrica Poetry Lounge. Here you can indulge in poetry that is written by amateur and famous black poets from around the world. Established in 2001, we have had the pleasure of showcasing thousands of poets. Nearly 23 years later, our mission still is the same, as we continue to uplift another generation of poets and poetry lovers.
Site Update...
Good afternoon.... Can't believe that in a few weeks summer will officially be upon us on June 21st... Make a brother want to get out the grill and host a few friends. With that, there is more poetry for all to intake. Delighted to be showcasing seven famous poets of the present and past. Brother Ted Joans brought joy to all and was a lover of jazz. Through his poetry one can feel the passion he had for that music genre. TJ black poems; Natural, The Hat, Untitled, Jazz Anatomy, Miss-Meat-Me, Bang Baby Bang, Le Fou de Bamba, The Black Jazz Smile, Empty Inside Outside, and So Fortunately Unfortunately. There is also the talented writer Jacqueline Woodson. Known for her National Book Award-Winning memoir Brown Girl Dreaming, the sister went on to author over 21 novels, 12 picture books, one memoir, and a plethora of poetry. Sit back and do enjoy JW black poetry; soon, after, hope, daywork, bible times, the blanket, the leavers, each winter, two journeys, the candy lady, what god knows, the almost friends, brown girl dreaming, the woodsons of ohio, and it'll be scary sometimes. No longer with us, Ntozake Shange still warms the hearts of those who enjoy poetry. I want all to take the time to read over more of her work. One of a kind, and to this day those within the black arts community miss such a kindred soul. NS black poems; tango, live oak, box & pole, lady in blue, the old men, lady in blue II, lady in brown, 18 march 1984, an actual poem, in the blueness, 7 tequilas gone, take the A train, hands & holding, dream of pairing, never mind sister, latin night is monday, rise up fallen fighters, we need a god who bleeds now, once there were quadroon balls, and just as the del vikings stole my heart.
To my surprise the late great Toni Morrison also had a thing for poetry. I'm honored to share the five poems she published; one has to wonder if there is more out there. TM black poetry: Eve Remembering, I Am Not Seaworthy, It Comes Unadorned, Someone Leans Near, and The Perfect Ease of Grain. More than ever, we need to start acknowledging those who paved the way for this new crop of talented writers. Alice Walker is one we should give her flowers now. More of this poet's work has been added. I hope she inspires one to pick up a pen, and release upon a poetic canvas. AW poems: RICH, IN US, TOLD, EVEN SO, VASILISA, Our Martyr, YOU CAME, SOMETIMES, ENCOUNTERING, I WILL NOT DENY, YOU'D BE SURPRISED, Before I Leave The Stage, The World We Want Is Us, LOVE IS THAT GIANT BAG, The Tree Of Life Has Fallen, and WATCHING YOU HOLD YOUR HATRED.
Have a new poet I would like to put before your eyes, and he goes by the name E. Ethelbert Miller. Baseball lovers will enjoy the following poems, as Americans favorite pastime has been part of his life since childhood. EEM black poetry; Baldwin, Beloved, Wild Pitch, The Trade, Rain Delay, The Walkoff, Barry Bonds, The Playoffs, The Pitch Out, Port-Au-Prince, The Knuckleball, The Pitch Count, Old Timer's Day, Looking for Omar, The Boys of Summer, If God Invented Baseball, Juan, Willie and The Boys, Malcolm X, February 1965, The Things in Black Men's Closets, and The Ear is an Organ Made for Love... Before I wrap this up, we have Arna Bontemps. One of the originals, and years later another generation gets to bathe within Bontemps literature. AB black poems; Hope, Dirge, Blight, Holiday, Spring Music, A Tree Design, The Shattering, Here Is the Sea, and Length of Moon...
As we get ready for Juneteenth, cookouts, good music, and great times with family that only summer can bring.let it fuel your creativity. Take in the great poets and allow them to inspire your summertime pen. Happy reading and writing. Have a nice day. Mr. Africa - June 2, 2023
Our Spring updates include more poems from three very talented and beautiful soul sisters. First up there is Amanda Gorman. So young yet this young lady has already accomplished a lot. So delighted to share more of her work. AG black poems; LUCENT, WE WRITE, RESOLUTE, BACK TO THE PAST, and EVERY DAY WE ARE LEARNING. Next, there is the one and only Jill Scott. One of the first singers to highlight Neo Soul on the national scene. Not only known for her vocals but Miss Scott also happens to be a poet. JS black poetry; Caution, Pocket-Size #1, Kings at Clubs?, Revolutionary Man, and Untitled #2 (for MTV Black History Month 2001). Grammy award-winning and multiplatinum singer Alicia Keys still is going strong after all these years in the music industry. Many don't realize Keys, just like so many musicians are poets at heart. More of AK black poetry; angel, 4 letter word, such a strong word, no room for religion, and when gone is the glory. There is also an update in the 'Famous Writers' section. There has been an addition to Robert Hayden's collection. Little known fact, Mr. Hayden was the first Black faculty member in Michigan's English department. Also, he served as Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1976 to 1978, a role today known as US Poet Laureate. RH black poems; Letter, Ice Storm, Double Feature, Traveling through Fog, and Night, Death, Mississippi.
Some good news, We have added a new area where you can find out more about your favorite poet. This section includes a short bio of the poet as well as contact information. It's divided, so there is a male and female section. After all these years, so many of you requested more info on a given poet, I just had to add this to our ever-growing poetry site. 22 years later, and we are losing count. -Smile-
Attention!! Attention!! - If you are a past poet that has been featured on the site previously, feel free to send a short bio and contact information to: Staff@Ctadams.com.
If you are an aspiring poet, we would also like to hear from you as well. Please submit 5 poems, a bio, and contact information to: NewPoet@Ctadams.com.
Note: One may want to read over the current poets' bios, to get familiar with what we are asking from you.
As always, it's my pleasure to continue to share old and new discoveries of our Black culture with you all. Happy Spring! Mr. Africa - April 6, 2023
Glad to be able to share more of the great Angela Jackson's work. This writer has seen it all and continues to enrich the poetic community. Bestowed with the honor of being the fifth Illinois Poet Laureate, Ms Jackson has published a novel, and is heavy into the playwriting. AG poetry; Bills, Love Plots, Vacant Lot, A Hot Mess, Club DeLisa, A Girl's Folly, Knock, knock., God don't like ugly., Emancipation Proclamation, Going Straight on the Right, Goodness to Its Own Reward, The House on Wentworth Avenue, Beauty is in the eye of the beholder., Is this the breeding ground for bitterness?, and What She Said as She Was Grinding Her Up. Hailing from the UK, but a native of Guyana, Poet Grace Nichols has inspired those of Caribbean descent. An avid reader of history, among other genres, Grace's poetry routinely touches base on the life of an islander, and kinship the within the communities. Take some time to peek inside her world. GN poems; Black, Omen, Grease, Waterpot, Book-heart, Skin-Teeth, A Fat Poem, Other Ships, Sleeping Out, Up My Spine, Those Women, Sun Is Laughing, Winter Thoughts, My Black Triangle, Give Yourself a Hug, The People Could Fly, Price We Pay for the Sun, Granny Granny Please Comb My Hair, The Fat Black Woman's Instructions to a Suitor, and Two Old Black Men on a Leicester Square Park Bench. May this Black History Month continue to inspire you to deeper knowledge of the culture and empower you to greater heights. Have a productive week. Mr. Africa - February 15, 2023
Influenced by a wide range of 20th-century poets, from W.B. Yeats to Countee Cullen this brother went on to become a professor and later penned the famous poem "Those Winter Sundays". Even today Robert Hayden lives on through poetry, and the thousands upon thousands of people whom he has inspired to pick up a pen. RH Black poetry; Tour 5, Names., Sphinx, The Web, The Rabbi, The Whipping, The Prisoners, Theory of Evil, Crispus Attucks, The Broken Dark, The Tattooed Man, Paul Laurence Dunbar, "As My Blood Was Drawn", "Incense of the Lucky Virgin", and "'Mystery Boy' Looks for Kin in Nashville"... Author of four books of poetry, and winner of numerous awards, Poet Tracy K. Smith is leaving her mark on literature. Part of this new generation of writers, this sister words continue to be felt by those who love this art-form. TKS black poetry; In Brazil, Mothership, I Don't Miss It, A Man's World, and We Feel Now A Largeness Coming On.
This poet is a prime example that one can become a better person after spending time in prison. While there Etheridge Knight expressed himself through poetry, and was able to capture prison experiences in an unprecedented way. Years later after being released he went on to release five books of poetry. EK black poems; GENESIS, MEMO #9, MEMO #43, ON THE YARD, COP-OUT SESSION, IT WAS A FUNKY DEAL, FOR LANGSTON HUGHES, REPORT TO THE MOTHER, HE SEES THROUGH STONE, FOR FRECKLE-FACED GERALD, And Tell Me Poet, Can Love Exist In Slavery?, FOR BLACK POETS WHO THINK OF SUICIDE, On Seeing The BlackMmale As 1# Sex Object In America, A POEM FOR MYSELF (or Blues for a Mississippi Black Boy), and On Watching Politicians Perform At Martin Luther King's America. With that it's nice to see more brothers sending poems our way. Over the years quite of few of them have went on to self publish books. Everett Lacey who has been writing for years, have a few poems one shall enjoy reading over. EL black poetry; PRETTY GIRL, AN INTRODUCTION, AFRICAN JOY JUICE II, "NOT YET 'FREE AT LAST"', and "THE WORLD IS A GHETTO". Can't forget our African brother Patrick K. Antwi. A Ghanaian by birth, this school teacher also has a passion for poetry. I want to encourage more of my sisters and brothers living on the continent of Africa to share their words via poetry with us. PKA black poetry; Nature, Sunrise, The Ant Hill, Hundred Percent, and Fruit of the Fathers, Sins of the Sons. We love giving new poets a platform; please feel free to send poetry so that we can share your pen can be shared with readers. As the seasons continue to change in the last quarter of the year, you can count on us to continue to supply you with poetry that feeds the soul. Have a nice day. Mr. Africa - November 1, 2022
The Motherland has birthed so many greats, and I'm here sharing some of Nigerian novelist, poet, professor, and critic Chinua Achebe black poetry; 1966, Flying, Answer, Lazarus, Vultures, Air Raid, Question, Love Cycle, The First Shot, Generation Gap, Mango Seedling, Their Idiot Song, Knowing Robs Us, Misunderstanding, A Wake for Okigbo, Pine Tree in Spring, Penalty of Godhead, Love Song (for Anna), Beware, Soul Brother, Christmas in Biafra (1969), Public Execution in Pictures, and A Mother in a Refugee Camp. A man whose first novel "Things Fall Apart" is still the most widely read book in modern African literature. Such a character, and poet who just loved his people. Up next, the poetess Stormy Nyghts. If one is a lover of words, than do intake her flow; Attraction, Love Letter, ghetto reality, Dance With the Devil, and Solitude (Ode to Billie Holiday). I'm so happy to see my people picking up a pen. Do know, this art-form embraces every creed/race with love. Before I head out, we have Pauli Murry. A civil rights activist, feminist, and one of the first who had status to push for gender equality. The sister lived an interesting life, and also became the first African-American woman to be ordained as an Episcopal priest. If you get a chance, do look her up. PM black poems; Hate, Ruth, Words, For Pan, Tongues, Conquest, Prophecy, Nazarene, A Presence, Youth to Age, Without Name, Love in Wartime, Woman and Man, Dinner for Three, Harlem Riot, 1943, To the Oppressors, For Mack C. Parker, The Song of the Highway, To Poets Who Have Rebelled, and Mr. Roosevelt Regrets (DETROIT RIOT, 1943). Poetry is an art form that is always evolving just relevant in any period that it is read; may the poets continue to tell our story, and inform our perspective. Have a nice day. Mr. Africa - September 1, 2022
Writer Ida Rowland was also a part of the movement. She was not only a poet, but a Distinguished educator who enjoyed teaching kids. This sister later, on in life, would establish a company which published books for Black Children. Enjoy reading over some of IR black poems; Autumn, Our Heritage, Autumn Evening, Lines to a Friend, and Wind among Leaves. The poet Edythe Mae Gordon also participated in the Harlem Renaissance; like some fellow peers, she organized an African-American literary group which would be known as, Saturday Evening Quill Club. She was also a brilliant storyteller. Subversion was published in 1928; it was listed among that year's distinguished stories by the O. Henry Award prize committee, which at the time rarely noticed works by non-white authors. Feel free to intake EMG words; Tribute, Elysium, Worship, April Night, Young Love, Buried Deep, I Understand, and Let Your Rays. The man, a genius who happens to be James Baldwin, still resonates within the literary community. Not one literature lover can claim to have never taken the time to engulf themselves this man words. One of the greatest writers of all time, I do encourage each one of you - to read line for line while viewing the following black poems; For A., YOUTH, For EARL, PARADISE, Imagination, Judgment Day, The darkest hour, Mirrors (for David), Black Girl Shouting, A Lover's Question, BALLAD (for Yoran), 3.00 a.m. (for David), Some days (for Paula), Guilt, Desire and Love, Song For The Shepherd Boy, Conundrum (on my birthday) (for Rico), and A lady like landscapes (for Simone Signoret). There is always a lot going on in the world; allow poetry to continue to be a light to your soul. Have a nice week. Mr. Africa - August 8, 2022
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