Using poetry to break taboos and misconceptions, Ravelle-Sadé Fairman didn’t set out to be a poet. After Ravelle-Sadé's grandma who was an ‘influential part’ of her life passed away, to articulate her feelings, a poem came to her in Bulwell bus station which she wrote away on her phone.
Since then, poetry has been a big part of her life and has toured the country. Ravelle-Sadé has even helped produce a BBC Three play, The Fisherman and voice acted for BBC Radio 4.
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Poetry has led her to script-writing, mentoring and having published books which is so much more than she ever imagined. Seeing the Nottingham Poetry Festival on the side of a bus, Ravelle-Sadé's career sparked from there where she spontaneously performed.
She said: “The first poem I performed was called Anxiety, after a woman cried and thanked me.
“It made me feel like writing about mental health was bigger than me, the impact that poetry has on others is bigger than you. Since then, I’ve performed in so many places and toured the country.
“I’ve performed in about 5 or 6 different cities and headlined for Vanessa Kissule.”
Ravelle-Sadé has also done work for the NHS, Youth Parliament and is a Trustee for New Perspectives Theatre Company. She continued: “It’s definitely been a journey, poetry is a financially viable route and there’s wealth and money in there. People always ask ‘do you really make money off that?’
“As a young black woman, I do feel like I’ve been used as a tick box before like when I’m commissioned at Black History Month, that’s a busy month but I go to these events and speak my truth.”
Writing poems about Windrush and the Commonwealth, Ravelle-Sadé isn’t forgetting her roots or failing to shine a light on the inequalities and mistreatment people have faced. Mental health is also another important topic Ravelle-Sadé writes about. Suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and Mixed Anxiety-Depressive Disorder, breaking the taboo is important for the poet.
She said: “Growing up the only representation was Jean on Eastenders with her ‘sausage surprise!’ I could relate to those feelings but it was never portrayed in the greatest of ways.
“I want people to gain a realisation from my poems that they aren’t alone. With mental health struggles, it can feel like you’re on your own and that you’re the only one, but when you realise you’re not and there’s a commonality, it creates humanity.”
She continued: “I’ve done workshops in schools and it’s amazing, you plant a seed and watch it grow. I go to inspire the children but I leave being inspired by them.
The 29-year-old added: “People will reach out to me and say ‘my niece hasn’t stopped writing since seeing you’ and that’s what makes this worth it, being a black woman and a poet is possible, it’s possible to be yourself and be heard.
“One of my favourite poems is called ‘I am a Queen’, it’s noble, it reminds women that they are capable of so much sometimes, we don’t give ourselves enough credit.
“I decided to write my books because people were saying, ‘I really want to digest what you’re saying.’
“The children’s colouring book I created is of a diverse nature with people with different hair and from different cultures so kids can see themselves, it has affirmations that they’re brave and important.”
Describing her poems as ‘self-affirming’, ‘self-celebrating’, Ravelle-Sadé added: “I never set out to be a poet but poetry for me is a mode of communication that breaks barriers, there’s a poet in everyone and it’s exposed me to so many different avenues.”
Poetry has also impacted another Nottingham resident's life. Mayor Lindsay uses poetry to bring commuities together along with his son, Zaydn. He said: "Poetry extends to boundaries beyond what the average person thinks. Poetry is the greatest form of self-expression, it allows you to put down your emotions and points of views whether it's been politically or emotionally.
You can find more information about Ravelle-Sadé poems here .
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