Exclusive Interview with Patrick Washington: From OG of DC's Black Broadway to Director of Poetry at the Words Beats & Life Academy
Patrick Washington, director of poetry at the Words Beats & Life Academy, shares his journey as an independent artist and activist, exploring '90's hip-hop, go-go and his vision for youth poets to fight marginalization.
Pen-for-hire, Patrick Washington discusses his journey as an independent artist to his current role as Director of Poetry at Words Beats & Life. A poet during the golden era of hip-hop, Washington forged his fame as an activist through lyricism. An OG of DC's Black Broadway on U-Street, the king of lyrics a.k.a., Black Picasso, toured the country as a member of the legendary poetic group, the POEM-CEES. Washington has spit the illest of rhymes on Russel Simmons' HBO series Def Poetry and the NFL Network. His poetic work has been published in distinguished literary journals such as Rom Publications Life Through Black Eyes and the award-winning Beltway Poetry Quarterly. Washington's talent has been immersed in historic moments — notably he narrated Tavis Smiley's National Museum exhibition 'Amercia I Am'. In 2011, he stood alongside prominent leaders of the civil rights movement during the dedication ceremony for Martin Luther King Jr. 's National Memorial. This significant moment in history included a keynote speech from President Barack Obama, a poem curated by Washington, and a performance by Aretha Franklin.
In this exclusive Q + A, Mazi Mutafa, the Executive Director at Words Beats & Life, sits down with Patrick Washington to discuss how '90's hip-hop culture and its sub-genre go-go forged Washington's career path and influenced his values and identity as an independent artist. He walks us through the moments in his life that equipped him to step into his current role at WBL. Washington brings us into his vision for the future of the Youth Poet Laureate programs in Maryland, Washington, D.C. & Virginia. His twenty years of experience in the poetry slam circuit and the art industry allows him to provide youth poets with the platform to be heard by government officials and enact necessary changes — Washington helps fight marginalization by centering their voices.
Mazi: Since the mid-ninties, you have been a staple in the DMV poetry scene and are referred to as the Black Picasso, how did you get that name?
PATRICK: Black Picasso was a name that I was given back in high school. Like most kids, I wanted to be a rapper, well, most kids around my way at the time. I was in a duo with Anton Baxter, his stage name was Gangsta Hip-Hop, and he looked the role. He had swag very much like Just-Ice, you know? Anton Baxter aka Gangsta Hip-Hop gave me the name Black Picasso, partly because I spraying graffiti in PG Country, I was hitting up the walls behind the school, and overpasses.
Mazi: As a child you lived abroad in Japan and then as a teen you moved to Prince George's County, landing you in the DMV during the height of the go-go genre. What role did go-go play in your development as a poet?
Patrick: Moving to the DMV from Japan I felt like an outcast, once again. I was so into hip-hop, and the DMV was all about Go-Go. I felt like literally the biggest “bamma” on earth. In high school I started playing instruments, I played the sax and the trumpet. I became valuable to musicians and I gained popularity. I felt better because I found my creativity once again through playing in neighborhood bands.
MAZI: How long did you stay in your artistic duo with Anton Baxter a.k.a., Gangsta?
PATRICK: In our early twenties after we graduated, we got an apartment together in Temple Hills, MD. We started going to studios and for a short time, our mentor was a dude named Robert Reed a.k.a., Dyke. Dyke played keyboards in the go-go group, Trouble Funk. We would go to his house and for a discounted rate he helped us learn the business side of the industry. He would tell us about his exploits and what it was like being in a founding group of Go-Go. He even took us up to his job at Omega studios.
MAZI: For decades you dominated the poetry game, sharing your voice to enact change. You are known for spitting game in a unique hybrid of rap and poetry. How did you go from a hip-hop head who aspired to be a rapper to mastering the spoken word?
PATRICK: I started to notice that hip-hop was being presented in a way that I wasn’t feeling. There was an ultra-masculine and aggressive vibe; “I’ve got to be ready to pop off at a moment's notice,” and that wasn't me. I was like Justin Warfield, (for those who know), and I’m still kind of like that. I backed off and instead I started writing poetry about hip-hop. That’s when things changed for me. I went to an open mic at It's Your Mug and that's where I met Toni Asante Lightfoot, Holly Bass, and DJ Renegade. I showed up, spit a poem, and it blew up! Oh, they loved it. That is when I knew I found my people.
MAZI: POEM-CEES is a poetic group consisting of 3 artistic wordsmiths; yourself also known as Black Picasso, Darrell Perry who goes by Naturalaw, and Rhome Anderson a.k.a DJ Stylus. When did the POEM-CEES form?
PATRICK: POEM-CEE’s formed in the early nineties as an offshoot of the larger group Generation 2000. Before we established POEM-CEES we began to see a lot of artistic groups form; like-minded individuals who found each other and started creating together. Groups like The Modern Urban Griots (Toni Lightfoot's group) and Collective Voices. For a while myself and a few others were just floating on the fringes of those other groups. Eventually, some of us brothers got together and created a group. Keep in mind this was like early to mid nineties, so we needed a cool name. We decided on Generation 2000, at the time the looming turn of the century was a big topic, so it just made sense, and we were representing the future. Generation 2000 became the crew & we rocked together for a couple of years. We made a good name for ourselves on the college circuit. Eventually a couple of brothers fell off, and we added a few sisters to the group, Tiffany Thompson and Lisa Pegram. From there we really took off because it was a whole different energy. Black Broadway (U Street in D.C.) was our home base. We had an open mic series that we ran out of a place called the Kaffa House. 1212 U Street was the address. I’ll never forget that. Thursday nights at the Kaffa House, Howard University would show up, and we would just blaze the mic until the Jamaican Sound Boys showed up and took over this spot.
MAZI: Did Generation 2000 evolve into the POEM-CEES?
PATRICK: Darrell Perry a.k.a Naturalaw was one of the members of Generation 2000. We had a real good connection, we had great chemistry, we would finish each other's lines. We really hit it off creatively. When Generation 2000 dissolved, as things do, Naturalaw & I stayed together, and said “hey, let’s keep going, let's create our own thing,” and POEM-CEES was born. The first time that the POEM-CEES performed together as a group was at a Words Beats & Life event at the University of Maryland.
MAZI: When I was going back through WBL’s history, I rediscovered that you were featured in the first issue of our Academic Journal. [insert photo of journal or poem?] I was flipping through and found one of your poems, alongside the works of Jessica Care Moore and Mark Anthony Neil; people who are also superstars now. The idea that all of you contributed to the first issue of the WBL Journal is striking.
MAZI: How did becoming a father impact the trajectory of your career?
PATRICK: I was 28 when I first became a father. That was the beginning of my career as a teaching artist. I realized I'm bringing the next generation, and I need to be on point. I need to know what they're talking about, I need to understand. I need to understand their fears, their hopes and how they communicate with each other. Being a teaching artist was helpful for my development as a person and as a father. I wanted to be able to communicate with my own kids that were on their way. So I practiced on the kids at the WBL Academy. That is when I started taking teaching the arts more seriously, up until that point I was a hired gun, or a hired pen, entertaining students dancing around & beatboxing. I was the cool guy to the kids at first, but I’m at the point now where I'm no longer the cool guy. It’s 15 years later. Nobody wants to hear me beatbox a poem for 20 minutes. So, I'm at a point now where my game had better be tight. I need to be better than just entertaining.
MAZI: I appreciate your humility, but I've also seen you show up and leave the audience dumbfounded by your ability, over time your pencil has gotten sharper.
PATRICK: I appreciate that.
Mazi: What are some of the organizations you've worked with over the course of your career as teaching artist?
PATRICK: Oh, man,I feel like I have touched just about every active local organization when it came to either poetry or youth development. I’ve worked with D.C. Scores, The D.C. Creative Writing Workshop (who I still work with to this day), the American Poetry Museum, and the Washington Performing Arts Society. I spent several years working with incarcerated youth, state organizations and, the Poets of the People's Army in Political Exile. You name it, I’ve probably done it. I've worked with them all and I learned something from each experience.
MAZI: During your time working with our organization you have built out our Youth Poet Laureate programs in Washington D.C. and Arlington, Virginia. You also started the organization Dialect of Prince George’s County (PGC) where you lead the PGC Youth Poet Laureate (YPL) program. What have you gained from running the Youth Poet Laureate programs for WBL and Dialect?
PATRICK:
Stepping in as Director of Poetry at Words Beats & Life really was a perfect fit. My mission as a human aligns perfectly with WBL's mission, it went hand in hand. I continue to gain an appreciation for that alignment, an appreciation that we both seek to create spaces for youth to develop their voices and help provide youth with the opportunity to speak to adults and officials. Allowing kids to be apart of the political process, the democratic process, and teaching them how to represent themselves effectively is important. The Youth Poet Laureate programs aim to do just that.
MAZI: How has that experience impacted you as a professional?
PATRICK: Wisdom is gained by experience… and by failure sometimes. I think of the places where I fall short, and try to learn from them, personally and professionally. I think a lot about the “L’s” man, and how not to repeat them. The places where I could do more, those are the things that I tend to focus on looking forward.
MAZI: What do you see in the future for the poetry department of the Academy at Words Beats & Life?
PATRICK:
That's the dope part, we are witnessing that unfold before us right now through our former Academy students applying to become teaching artist at the Academy. We’re seeing that cycle, it’s beautiful. My mentor, Askari, who my son is named after, was an elder poet that took care of us younger artists as we were coming up. When Askari passed away, it deeply affected a lot of us. I remember during a WBL staff meeting I mentioned Askari’s passing. Dom responded to me with, “yo, doesn't it seem like you're picking up that mantle and taking over from him?”, and I got choked up, cuz I didn't think about it. These things are happening right before our eyes. Whether we wanna recognize it or not, we wanna act like we're here forever, but yeah man - time is undefeated. I’m very happy to see number one that these young artists are picking up the lessons or picking up the mantle and they're coming up right behind us. I wouldn't be mad at all if one day Sasa took over the poetry department at WBL. No matter what the organization is, that is always a beautiful goal. You know, being like water, understanding that we gotta fit in where we can. We may need to relinquish and let go when it's time. You may become ice, or you may become steam, but it’s all a part of the process.
MAZI: Creatively do you see the POEM-CEES making more music?
PATRICK: Naturalaw and I talk almost weekly, we're currently shooting ideas back and forth, so the POEM-CEES will be getting together and creating new work soon.
MAZI: How do you see your creative future - you have a comic book, too, right?
PATRICK: I have a comic book, it’s called YNEGMA & it can be found at younaversecomics.com. I’m sitting on my book of poetry, I've never published my own entire book, my work has been featured in anthologies and CDs but I don't have my own book of poetry, yet. I've also got a screenplay coming. I spent 30 years working as a 911 dispatcher, that really challenged me as a person, and I have 15 years worth of notes about that, so there’s a screenplay that I need to finish. I’m excited to get back because, there's a huge creative part of me that is screaming to get out and it's gonna happen. Stay tuned.
This article was the exclusive cover story from issue two of our bi-annual magazine The EQ.
