News Archive

 Levi Tafari vists Cardiff

From 23 – 26 November 2009 acclaimed DUB poet Levi Tafari will be visiting schools in Cardiff to run workshops with both teachers and pupils. The participating schools are Cathays High School, Fitzalan High School, Willows High School and Cardiff High. As well as running the workshops each school will also be treated to a performance by Levi of his own unique style of poetry.

Levi has performed and led workshops and writing projects in schools all over Britain. He also works in further education, community centres, prisons and libraries. Levi has given performances in many major venues, including the I.C.A. and the Royal Festival Hall in London; the Green Room in Manchester, the Edinburgh Festival and Caribbean Focus festival at the Commonwealth Institute. He has also toured in Europe, Middle East, Africa and the U.S.A.

Born and raised in Liverpool by his Jamaican parents, Levi Tafari discovered an
early talent for verbalising on the many sound systems in and around his hometown.
In his 20’s he started attending the Liverpool 8 Writers Workshop desperately seeking a new medium of expression. It was the early 80’s and there was a performance poetry explosion happening in Britain and Levi had begun to make a big impression on the performance scene. A firm member of the Rastafarian movement, although his early performances were in that community, he saw it as his duty to reach a wider audience.

Liverpool 8 was receiving a lot of negative press but with the support of his community Levi started to take his poetry further afield, his writing began to take on universal themes which meant that he was getting his message through to ever wider audiences.

Levi’s work is deeply rooted in the oral tradition and has often been described as an Urban Griot, the griot being the traditional consciousness raiser, storyteller, newscaster and political agitator. His words move to a strong reggae beat, but it’s also very humorous. In the past he has teamed up with reggae and soul bands. He recently spent two seasons as poet in residence with The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

The visit is part of the British Council led INDIE (Inclusion and Diversity in Education) project. This is run in collaboration with local and regional education authorities across nine European countries: Belgium, Germany, Greece, Italy, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain and the United Kingdom. Click here for more information on the project.

The visit is supported by Academi.

For more information contact Academi:
029 2047 2266 / post@academi.org