{"id":1875,"date":"2014-02-05T14:19:44","date_gmt":"2014-02-05T14:19:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/?p=1875"},"modified":"2014-02-15T06:13:30","modified_gmt":"2014-02-15T06:13:30","slug":"black-girl-song-danez-smith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/?p=1875","title":{"rendered":"BLACK GIRL SONG & POEM – Danez Smith"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0 verse <\/i><\/i><\/i><\/i><\/p>\n

more than perm or not
\nmore than hood or not
\nmore than Chicago or Brooklyn
\nor Omaha or Biloxi or not
\nmore than somebody\u2019s woman or not
\nmore than somebody\u2019s mama or not
\nmore than some body made burnt Venus
\nor Mammy or syrup dripping or not
\nmore than a body made sex-crazed and sexless
\nmore than a strong back or not
\nmore than you can handle
\nmore than big hips or not
\nmore than thighs or not
\nmore than thick curves, thick lips
\nmore than thick nose, think ankles
\nor not.
\nmore than thick or not. more than thick.
\nyou are so much more than what they\u2019ve made
\nyou think your name is. how they shorten
\nsongs that used to ready the air for your scent
\ninto here comes that black girl again.<\/i>
\nwho raised these unlearned children?
\nreckless and dumb with tongues,
\ndon\u2019t listen when they call you anything
\nshort of Madonna, Onyx Thunder
\nhere comes that light wrapped in palm again<\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 here comes that sunbaked siren again <\/i><\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 here comes that caramelized forbade fruit again<\/i>
\nyou the first ocean with feet, grew a world
\nfrom what feels like rain sometimes. you the big bang,
\nway you swoop that hair make a world fall and rise.
\nyou the prototype for dirt, way the world
\nspring up from it. you the first church,
\nmake a body bow and shout in you.
\nyou the first religion, pulpit for a jaw and a tongue
\nthat saves. you the first sin, wasn\u2019t no fruit more sacred
\nthan what Adam found \u2018tween your branches.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 bridge <\/i><\/p>\n

I got no business writing this.
\nIf I was wise, I\u2019d write copper<\/i> & manna<\/i>
\n& breathe<\/i> & all your black girls names
\nall over all the books & skies
\ntill the wide world was your jam
\n& everything smelled like church
\n& pink lotion & cocoa butter
\nwas recognized as greased gold
\n& currency\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 but I am not wise
\nI am stupid with your scalps\u2019 sweet
\nchar, your hips & their twerk
\n& birth & how they mount akimbo
\nwith ashy, smooth fist, how the whole
\neverything started right there
\nin that soft wild that makes the world
\ncrave & fear you so.<\/p>\n

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 chorus<\/i><\/p>\n

here comes the sun, little darling<\/p>\n

here comes rain, baby girl<\/p>\n

here comes wind filled with cinnamon, honey<\/p>\n

here comes a storm of golden hail, sista.<\/p>\n

here comes a mouth filled with hosanna, sweet miss.<\/p>\n

here comes a boneless god, queen.<\/p>\n

here comes love, girl-child.<\/p>\n

here comes heaven round the corner, love.<\/p>\n

here comes an ocean of light, Ke Ke.<\/p>\n

here comes a song about your skin, Shameaca.<\/p>\n

here comes a fire that burns everything but you, Keisha<\/p>\n

here comes salvation, Aisha.<\/p>\n

here comes everything that says your name right, little darling<\/p>\n

& I say: It\u2019s alright.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

genesissy<\/b><\/p>\n

for Dwayne \u2018Gully Queen\u2019 Jones<\/i><\/p>\n

the lord begat man \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 man begat sin \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 sin begat a new joy<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

a new joy begat hate \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 hate begat Leviticus \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Leviticus begat Sista Rose<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sista Rose begat that ugly rumor<\/p>\n

ugly rumor begat the truth<\/p>\n

truth begat the need to pray or run
\nthe need or run begat the knees
\n(& that is a kind of praying too)<\/p>\n

the knees begat the mouth splattered
\nacross him-colored dirt road
\nthe mouth splattered across her
\n-colored dirt road still begat song
\nsong begat hymn\u2019s at the sweet \u2018boy\u2019s\u2019 funeral<\/p>\n

the sweet girl\u2019s funeral begat
\nher aunt\u2019s disgusted head shake<\/p>\n

his aunt\u2019s disgusted head shake
\nbegat the world that killed
\nthe not a boy-child
\n& stole her favorite dress
\nright off her cold shimmering body
\n& that can\u2019t come from God\u00a0\u00a0 right?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\n

\"Headshot,Danez Smith is a Cave Canem Fellow, Pushcart Nominee, Survivor & Black Queer from St. Paul, MN. Danez is the winner of the 2014 Reading Series Contest sponsored by The Paris-American, was featured in The Academy of American Poets\u2019 Emerging Poets Series by Patricia Smith & was a finalist for the 2013 Rattle Poetry Prize. Danez is the author of \u2018hands on ya knees\u2019, a chapbook published by Penmanship Books. His full-length collection, \u2018[insert] Boy, will be published in 2014 by Yes Yes Books. His writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Poetry Magazine, Ploughshares, Devil\u2019s Lake, The Cortland Review, Anti-, & elsewhere. Danez started writing because of slams & necessity, & placed 6th<\/sup>\u00a0in the world at the 2011 Individual World Poetry Slam & is the 2013 Rustbelt Midwest Regional Slam Champion. Danez twerks with the best, has no time for the rest. He writes & lives in Oakland, CA.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0 verse more than perm or not more than hood or not more than Chicago or Brooklyn or Omaha or Biloxi or not more than somebody\u2019s woman or not more than somebody\u2019s mama or not more than some body made burnt Venus or Mammy or syrup dripping or not more than a body [&hellip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1899,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[41,65],"class_list":["post-1875","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-poetry","tag-art","tag-brianna-mccarthy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1875"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1875\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1998,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1875\/revisions\/1998"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1899"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/narrativenortheast.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}