Spoken word poetry is a powerful tool for storytelling, activism and self-expression. Ella Al-Shamahi speaks to two award-winning poets who use the craft to amplify issues they care about.

Sofie Frost is a Norwegian actor, slam poet and spoken word artist. She won the Norwegian Poetry Slam Championship in 2017 and was a finalist for Norway's Got Talent the following year. Sofie's poems have repeatedly gone viral, amassing millions of views online.

Wana Udobang from Nigeria is a writer, poet and performer. She has released three spoken word albums that explore the themes of familial relationships, womanhood, joy and the body. Wana's work has been commissioned by organisations including the Edinburgh International Festival, Deutsches Museum and the Gates Foundation.

Produced by Emily Naylor

C&: Printing your poems on drapes installed in the gallery space is simply genius. They take on the form of scrolls inscribed with averred truths. How important was the choice and color of the drapes, font type and size, and the positioning?

WW: Everything from the scale of the works to the weight of the fabric was deliberate and important. It was necessary for them to feel imposing and confrontational, because one thing I ask of the audience is to sit with discomfort. You can’t hide or ignore yourself in that setting, even though this is what we often do in real life. The idea around shame is to make us hide. Nothing is hidden here. As the wind blows, the fabric moves around you. It is not static. We noticed that visitors were whispering to each other when they wanted to talk. In some ways it seemed to be a kind of respect for the experience of others reading, but it also represented the ways we whisper and speak in hushed tones about stories like the ones on display.

With over 15 years of a trailblazing storytelling career across journalism, performance poetry, filmmaking and TV, Wana Udobang is one of the poets who revitalized the Nigerian poetry landscape in the last decade. But before she found success as a poet, she began as a freelance features producer with the BBC World Service, and the first editor of Bella Naija. Her oeuvre includes freelance work for the likes of The Guardianand Al Jazeera; a decorated career in radio; Culture Diaries, an archival project; three spoken word albums. She has dedicated the better part of the past two decades to addressing cultures of violence and shame in Nigeria, particularly the impact of these cultures on the lives of Nigerian women. 

Deconstructing shame is at the core of Wana Udobang’s work. She invites us to examine closely what we consider disgraceful, why it is so, and what is left when we let go of the notion. This interest takes on a different, more tangible form with Dirty Laundry, a three-day event of installation and performance titled after her first spoken word album. It interweaves personal histories, familial complexities, and gender-based issues. Stories some strap to their chests or only relay in lamentable whispers are out in the open and central to the works presented.