“You have to be willing to be outspoken because whatever you're talking about, you might be speaking life into someone else.” -Sixfootah the Poet
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Inspired by Maya Angelou’s “Still I Rise” in the fifth grade, Sixfootah the Poet writes poetry with the intent to inspire the children she teaches and the crowds she performs for. Her role as a Teaching Artist for Bay Area Creative gives her the opportunity to do so.
Born and raised in Oakland, CA– Sixfootah began writing poetry in the fifth grade and never stopped. Originally, she began her career into the poetry sphere with the message of saying no to tobacco. Sixfootah had expressed “if I'm able to stop one person from smoking a cigarette then I did my job”. Whether it be in relation to tobacco or anything else, she stands strong in the belief that you should always share your writing because as long as it affected one person then it made a difference. This is one of the many things she teaches her students who have become a big part of her life, career, and poetry.
“If you don't take care of you first nothing else works, nothing else works.”
As a teaching artist, Six regularly reflects on the gravity of her job and the important role she has in the lives of her students. Her motivation stems from a feeling of feeling lost, unheard, and unseen as a child which was what largely kept her writing throughout childhood into adulthood. Having experienced the ways in which poetry helped her, she wants children to be able to view poetry the same way. Poetry can be a form of healthy coping and expression that Six encourages her students to do. Beyond just writing poetry, she encourages students to perform their poems as well. In Six’s first open mic she admits she was incredibly nervous, especially considering it was on her mom being sick and hospitalized. After her performance, an audience member who went through a similar experience came up to her to thank her for sharing the poem. By sharing her art she let another person know that “someone else that is going through the exact same thing so that they are not alone in this world”. Six lets her students know she’s been through what they have and by sharing experiences, they can feel less alone by connecting with others.
Sixfootah’s accomplished career in poetry has led her to many different opportunities and experiences. She’s interviewed with Oprah, performed at Oakland Coliseum, and has had multiple appearances in the newspaper. Despite these beautiful moments, she felt proudest when her cousin and aunt called her after hearing her interview on the radio. Her transition into teaching poetry was naturally fueled by her desire to be the reliable, inspiring person she wished she had as a child. Six works with Bay Area Creative to help kids understand how poetry can be a healthy, creative tool for them to use all throughout life just as she has.
“believing yourself and loving yourself first because no one else is going to do it like you.”
