Verbal Weaponry

Clearly I’m no poet, but Fighting Words are masters at the art form of spoken word and song. Following are profiles of the talented group, which you can catch around the city and at Midtown Arts and Coffee Lounge, 19 E. 38th St. on Sunday evenings for Spoken Soul Food Sundays.

“From being a poet and performer, I knew what my vision was and I wanted to bring in other artists and create opportunities for them. That’s what I do, create opportunities.”

Joe Woods had the mental seed to create a locale for poets giving birth to Fighting Words, a label for poetry.

Diddy is to Bad Boy Records as aLLEN iMAGERY is to Fighting Words.

aLLEN iMAGERY did not journey to find this group of talent but states the spoken word artists an vocalists found him. Each Fighting Words artist is unique, which makes them the perfect blend.

Although a boss in the poetry game, literally and figuratively, aLLEN iMAGERY will always remain a poet at heart. His charismatic demeanor draws you in no matter how cumbersome or lighthearted his poem may be.

aLLEN iMAGERY’s poetry has depth and much of his subject matter revolves around relationships. Be careful not to categorize him as a “love poet.” His poems range from his tumultuous relationship with Sallie Mae to domestic abuse to how he adores the simplicity of a woman in “Flat Shoes.”

Although aLLEN iMAGERY has unselfishly created a movement, his transparency, aptitude and masculine grace will ultimately make him a king of poetry.

Spoken word is the love of his life and aLLEN iMAGERY is using Fighting Words, his “baby,” to single-handedly change the face of Indianapolis poetry.

 nSAYchable

Kendria Smith is arguably one of the best female poets in Indianapolis. Her poems, in fact are insatiable, as they never cease to draw you into her storytellings about life and love.

nSAYchable says it’s hard for her to come up with subject matter to write about, but her arsenal of poems and topics are carefully chosen, vast and speak truth. Much of it is loosely based on her life, while others are indirect quotes from her life.

“I take different situations I’ve been through or things I believe people have been through and generalize it so maybe it can affect more than one person in a different way,” said nSAYchable.

Furthermore, she’s considered the premier and breakout artist of the Fighting Words poetry label. Everyday happenings of life may have catapulted nSAYchable to poetry stardom, but originality and innovation is what drives the dynamic poet.

“I want to be known for not conforming to what society wants me to be. Those three or five minutes mean the world to me. You’re either going to like it or not, and if you don’t it’s OK; it was in my heart.”

To this idyllic powerhouse, poetry is freedom and is crystal clear through her word choice, body language and pitch of her creamy voice. nSAYchable is in high demand yet vows to continue to use the gift God gave her to spread veracity and wisdom in each poem she speaks.

 St. Peace

The meaning of Corey Ewing’s stage name, St. Peace, is undisclosed, but the connotation of a military man spilling his feelings on stage about world harmony couldn’t be farther from the truth.

In all genuineness, St. Peace is a poetic beast. He states in the beginning of his poetry days, his writings were vanilla until he made the trek to a New York university where he got to taste the flavor of slam poetry.

“They weren’t using a bunch of gimmicks to pull you into their poetry. It was all excellent writing and was so much better. I grew immensely,” said St. Peace.

St. Peace can sometimes be adulterous in his marriage to competitive poetry or as he calls it “poetry for bullies,” to flirt with performance poetry. His grand stature manifests itself on stage as controlled intensity getting his poetry through to his audience. Facial expression and variance in tone also gets his messages across. He defies many poetic stereotypes and lets his words speak for themselves.

“I look like I could be robbing you, but I’m going tell you a poem instead,” jokes St. Peace.

 Queen Victoria

They don’t call Victoria Hawes “queen” for nothing. This 18-year-old can belt out a note in the ranks of the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin, and the queen of gospel, Mahalia Jackson.

While relatively young, Queen Victoria describes her style as old school, eclectic and bluesy.

“There’s something homegrown when I sing,” said the regal diva.

But don’t rest on the idea that Queen Victoria is simply a singer. She acts and lends her poetry to the Fighting Words collection.

She grew fond of poetry drawing from her mother, also a poet, and hearing other Indianapolis rhapsodists. She’s been with Fighting Words for a year yet hopes to continuously draw inspiration from her natural gift of song and translate that feeling into raw and unbarred poetry.

“I aspire to be naked on stage; to be bare to those who are hearing me.”

 Pharez

“It feels good to be the Puerto Rican amongst my African-American brothers and sisters. Growing up in the neighborhood, having Black friends was the norm. We’re all a part of each other.”

A Chicago native, Michael Perez has lived in several large cities and uses his megalopolitan experience giving forth poetry that opens the eyes of the masses to worldly ills. Even when Pharez tries to go in other directions his thoughts carry him back to headlines and breaking news.

Even his everyday life revolves around uplifting the socially oppressed. Pharez’s nine-to-five involves working with inner city kids through a church plant.

Whether speaking his mind about human trafficking or what it was like to be a spectator as Jesus died on the cross, poetry is no hobby for Pharez. Poetry became the ignition to the flame inside of him to voice a message and inspire people to bring change.

 Raynah

As a humble and gracious young woman, all Raynah Diggins ever wanted to do was sing. Many won’t see Raynah as a limelight stealer as she lends her vocals to soften ears and express her inner most feelings.

“Whenever I get upset or have a problem, I’ll write a song about it,” said the songbird. “I’ve always thought of my life as a video.”

Other Fighting Words members use words and pitch to create flow, yet Raynah uses the power of song to reach her audience. To this 20-year-old, music is a spirit that lifts up the spirit. Raynah states when she adds her melody, it lets the audience feel the tone of the poetry that much more.

Though Raynah may be exclusively a singer, she adds to the Fighting Words family her passion for music and in turn is grateful and appreciative to work with such a dynamic group of artists.

“When I’m on stage they bring out another side in me. It’s so fun.”