Mutabaruka

One of Jamaica’s best known performance poets, Mutabaruka is often on tour. At home he is also a radio talk show host and a sound-system operator, and he has acted in films, Sankofa and One Love. Born in Rae Town, Kingston, he attended Kingston Technical High School where he was trained in electronics. His early poems were published in Swing magazine beginning in 1971. His first collection, Outcry, came out in 1973. He is the author of The First Poems (1980) and The Next Poems (2005), now put together in a single volume. His recordings include The Mystery Unfolds, Any Which Way Freedom, Blak wi Blak. . .K . . . K, Melanin Man, and Life and Lessons.

Yasus Afari

Yasus Afari is one of Jamaica’s leading dub poets, He is an “edutainer” who has travelled the world extensively to lecture and perform. Born in St Elizabeth, he attended St Elzabeth Technical High School and went on to study engineering at the College of Arts Science and
Technology (now UTech). For more than a decade he has organized “Poetry in Motion” in February each year; and more recently he has put together the “Pomedy Show” and the annual Jamaica Poetry Festival. He is the author of Eye Pen (a book of poems, 1993) and
Overstanding Rasta (2007). A novel, Vocal Ink, is due for publication shortly. His albums include Dancehall Baptism, Mental Assassin, Honour: Crown Him, Gift of Vijahn, Revolution Chapter 1, and most recently, Public Secret.

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Joan Andrea Hutchinson

Joan Andrea Hutchinson is a poet and storyteller with a considerable reputation here and abroad. She has been given the status of Language Ambassador by the City College of Birmingham in the UK, and her work in the preservation of Jamaican culture has earned her several awards, including the Sir Shridath Ramphal award and an award from the Caribbean Hall of Fame. She is the author of three books (including Meck Mi Tell Yuh and Inna Mi Heart) and producer of seven CDs on Jamaican culture (including Kin Teet Kibba Heart Bun and Hamper of Jamaican Proverbs). She conceptualized and produced Miss Lou’s final major recording, Lawd Di Riddim Sweet.

Amina Blackwood Meeks

Amina Blackwood Meeks is a highly acclaimed international storyteller, featured in festivals in the UK, the USA, South Africa, Canada and around the Caribbean. At the Jonesboro Festival in 2007 she was declared International Storyteller of the Year. She has written and performed full-length one-woman shows. She is the founder and artistic director of Ntukuma, The Storytelling Foundation of Jamaica. Her mission is “to contribute to the growth and maintenance of the rich oral tradition of the Caribbean and to ensure the recognition of the connection between the ancient wit and wisdom in the stories and modern developmental imperatives.” She is a lecturer at the Edna Manley College of the Visual and Performing Arts, the Exed Performing Arts Department and at the UWI, Mona.