Spoken Word and the Politics of Awareness

In this episode, Awa speaks with spoken word artist Tariq Brown about using poetry to make power visible. They explore how he transforms complex, often academic ideas – from capitalism to systemic oppression – into poetic, thought-provoking verse. It’s a conversation about heritage, awareness, and the poet’s role in illuminating systems of oppression.

JINGLE

“Niamey Nights”, Bamako Bae, Shutterstock, ⁠⁠https://www.shutterstock.com/music/track-1221135-niamey-nights⁠

REFERENCES

el-Kurd, Mohammed. 2025. Spoken remarks at the Closing Plenary of 25 Years of Human Rights at LSE Conference: Subverting Human Rights: Left, Right, and Centre, London School of Economics and Political Science, London, May 16, 2025. 

Poetic Unity. https://www.poeticunity.org.uk/ 

CONTRIBUTORS

Host: Awa Sow

Guest: Tariq Brown

Editor: Awa Sow