aja monet

aja monet, lead vocals; Brian Hargrove, piano; Micah Collier, double bass; Zach Morrow, drums

aja monet is a multidisciplinary artist in the finest sense of the word – a poet, writer, spoken-word virtuosa, cultural worker, community organiser and activist based in Brooklyn. Her writings address the themes of injustice, persecution, resistance and systemic violence from East New York to Palestine (she has been deeply involved in discourse surrounding the occupation over the last ten years), but also belonging, motherhood and notions of community. At age 19, she was the youngest ever Nuyorican Poets Café Grand Slam champion.

Her debut album, when the poems do what they do, (recorded in collaboration with a roster of esteemed musicians, most notably Chief Xian aTunde Adjuah, and also Samora Pinderhughes, Lonnie Holley, Marcus Gilmore...) is a mind-altering spoken-word cry, centering around themes of Black resistance, love, and the inexhaustible quest for joy.“These aren’t poems for poets, but poems for everyone.” Last year, it was nominated for a Grammy Best Spoken Word Poetry Album. Her upcoming book, Florida Water, explores migration, belonging, and healing amid climate change and systemic violence.