Today we’d like to introduce you to Brittany Williams.
Brittany, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
I started writing poetry when I was a child as a form of personal therapy. It wasn’t until I joined a poetry club in high school that I discovered the power of speaking out the poetry I’d written and it changed everything.
Now as a spoken word poet, storyteller and writer, I create experiences with words that I hope make people feel the same way I do whenever I share what I’ve created – I hope they feel seen, heard and understood.
I started BSPOKEiT Poetry and Media because I wanted to create a platform for people like me who found it difficult to find a safe space for their voices to be heard and their stories to be told. We’re still growing – right now producing the Bay Street Podcast with plans to launch a few more this fall.
Has it been a smooth road?
I don’t think the road to anything worthwhile is smooth. In fact, bumps and potholes in the roads of life are why I became a writer. One of my biggest challenges along the way has been the internal struggle of embracing what I believe is my calling to be a storyteller and the vocational pressure to pursue a lucrative career. I come from a family where financial struggle was the norm and have heard my entire life that I had to be responsible and make money. My family also encouraged me to follow my dreams, but it was always laced with the hope that this included making a lot of money. Even my career choice to pursue a degree in landscape architecture and environmental design was made with the hope of striking some compromise between my desire to be an artist and the need to meet the expectation of being financially responsible and successful. I worked in corporate design for five years pushing hard to make my very expensive degree worth the cost, but I was miserable everyday. Taking the leap to quit a very lucrative job to be an artist is probably the greatest leap of faith I’ve taken yet. It has brought its own challenges especially during this pandemic. It has also reminded me how short life is and how important it is to get up everyday to build your own dreams instead of spending your life building someone else’s. The fear is that you fall flat on your face, but then there’s a freedom in that, too.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
BSPOKEiT Poetry and Media is an online storytelling platform, and I specialize in spoken word poetry and storytelling. I’m known for my poetic performances, hosting cultural events, and facilitating workshops for artists and art lovers alike. Here is where I help those who feel like they have no artistic ability to discover and unlock their creative potential. I also help fellow artist to expand their craft by tapping into the power of story and narrative.
I’m most proud of stepping out and turning something that has helped me in life and that I’m passionate about into tools that I can use to help others. What sets me apart from others in what I do is me just being myself. I don’t think that I’m anyone who’s extra special, but I do believe that I’ve found my purpose in using my art and words to help others find theirs. I believe that poetry and storytelling is a full body and soul experience, so my workshops and performances are not static experiences, but involve all five senses to help those I engage with better connect with themselves and others.
Is our city a good place to do what you do?
I had the opportunity to share my art in LA during a short time there and found the people I connected with delightful and receptive. However, I cannot speak for LA since I launched my career as an artist in the Bay Area. What I can say is that I think something every city can do to help support up and coming artists is to create safe spaces for people to connect with people who can and want to help them. There is a lot of predatory behavior in the art community which I’ve witnessed myself and know how it can discourage and destroy talented people. My hope for any city with a reputation for launching artists is that they would make safety and protection from abuse and exploitation a top priority.
Contact Info:
- Website: bspokeitpoetry.com
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bspokeit/
Image Credit:
Moo Cow Productions (Tiffany Cowan), Lyrical Opposition, Matthew Tejuco
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