Meet Blk Swan

We had the good fortune of connecting with Blk Swan and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Blk, is there something that you feel is most responsible for your success?
When I think back to my first time on the mic up until today, I would have to say being unapologetically me has contributed to the success of my brand. I know my style of poetry is not for everyone and I’m okay with that because I’m not for everyone. It has been a journey becoming this version of me and I love the person that I am and others’ opinions of me are truly irrelevant at this stage of my life. Therefore, when I get on the mic I am able to give you all of me authentically without any reservations whether someone will like me or not.

When I think about it, I’ve always been different. In the past, I’ve allowed my differences to make me feel wrong because I wasn’t like everyone else. The more I tried to be like others, the more I sacrificed myself. Because I’m in the season of me, what you see is what you get. When I perform, I bring diversity to the mic and show the multiplicity of a human being and that we are not just one dimension. I feel being true to myself in my poetry has allowed me to connect with people and it’s the people’s love for my authenticity that contributes to the success of my brand.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I am a poet and a spoken word artist. My poetry is as diverse as I am. It ranges from rate E for everyone to XXX mature audiences only. I’m often asked who influences my poetry or my style of poetry and every time the answer is no one. I’ve always loved going to poetry shows but couldn’t say I was a lover of poetry or that I had a desire to be a poet. I feel because no one directly influenced me, my style authentically developed without outside influences, so it automatically set me apart.

When I think about my poetic journey, there are a lot of things I’m proud of accomplishing. Most notably, I host a quarterly show called Poetic Therapy, a monthly open mic called Poetry Pornography, published my first poetry book “Poetic Therapy; A Woman’s Journey to Healing & Discovery” and I’m a professional spoken word artist (I get paid to perform!).

The journey wasn’t as hard as one would think but I can say this, it does take work. There are a lot of pieces to put on a successful show. Doing most of the work yourself can be a little stressful, specifically when ticket sales are low and expenses still have to be paid. When I curated my first public show, I did not have a huge fan base to market to, but that didn’t stop me. I went to almost every open mic I could to bring visibility to my art. I also reached out to my personal network and invited them into my poetic world. Because of my efforts, my first show was about 65% sold and the next one sold out!

What I’ve learned in this journey is to always remember your WHY in everything you do. When things get hard, reflect on it and it will help you get through that moment. My why for creating my first show was to create a platform for me to share my gift unapologetically. Therefore, when ticket sales were low going into the last week of the show, I remembered my why and it helped take the stress away. It didn’t matter if there were 5 or 50 people in the audience, I still got to perform!

I want the world to know, you can book Blk Swan to perform at your private parties, bachelorette parties, and special events. When you hire Blk Swan your guests will get more than poetry, she creates poetic experiences they will always remember!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
First, I will tell them to come the 3rd week of the month so we can hit all my favorite poetry spots. If they arrive on Sunday, we will start at the Poetry Lounge hosted by Se7en at Heike and Pillot where there is food, drinks, and hookah. Monday. we will rest and just take in some girl time because I need her energy to be up for the rest of the week I have planned. On Tuesday, it’s Poetry with Write About Now at Rudyard’s where there is also good food and drinks. Wednesday, we are outside at Avant Gardens with Write About Now. Hopefully, she’s not tired of Poetry yet because we have two more days to go! Thursday, it Poetry on the Northside at 4Gents Bar & Lounge with Taste Budzzz Food Truck. We close out the week on Friday with Poetry Pornography hosted by me “Blk Swan” and my co-host Anno da Poet at Da’ Town Sports Bar where there is full bar, food, and hookah on the patio. What a week, as you can see Poetry is where I spend all my free time!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Several people have supported me on my poetry journey, but I would like to take this opportunity to dedicate this shoutout to the one person who always supports me in everything I do and that is the beautiful and multi-talented Jasmin Tia with GleamMeek. She is my Brand Manager, Spiritual Advisor, Fashion Stylist, Assistant, and Beautiful Daughter. She is responsible for everything you see visually of Blk Swan or a Blk Swan production.

I am so grateful for Jasmin Tia because before there was a Blk Swan, there was a woman who grew up a Tom Boy, with a career in a male-dominated field wearing only blacks, browns, and greys dulling everything about her that makes her a woman and Jasmin transformed her! She showed me how to use my divine feminine energy to move with confidence, express myself with fashion, and allow my energy to brighten any room I walk into. Because of her, you get the Blk Swan you get on the mic today!

In the voice of Juvenile, the rapper:
“Where you get that confidence from?”, I get it from my daughter
“Where you get that walk from?”, I get it from my daughter.
“Where you get your style from?”, I get it from my daughter.
And so on and so on….

Website: www.blkswanpoetry.com

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Image Credits
JVarner Media Kaegan Lane Photography