Poet & writer, living in Johannesburg, from Lesotho (and Ghana and Germany). Fascinated with the world behind the words, Kojo’s poetry embraces the spectrum of human experience and brings together a range of emotions and thoughts in free flowing verse. Uninhibited by boundaries, he is constantly learning and attempting to stretch his craft… “on a quest to find the perfect poem, a gentle balance between word, rhythm and thought …a poem that sends the moon and sun dancing over the skyline hand in handâ€.
His poetry is a passionate journal detailing a life still finding its truth, a life that is neither ordinary nor extraordinary, a life that is representative of us all. As a performer, Kojo struggles to make peace with exposing elements of his soul, while driven by the need to interact and share with his environment. It is a love/hate relationship … “what is it I do, standing before you, sprouting words of pseudo-intellectuality … I, the poet, and you, the listener, or is it, I, the patient and you, the psychiatrist.†The voices in his head still speak, and the words still come.
He has performed extensively in Southern Africa within a range of spaces and has also published two collections of poetry, "Voices In My Head" and "And They Say: Black Men Don't Write Love Poetry."
i stand at the centre of a war / that has been waged for hundreds of years / a war that has been fought with burning crosses and thick rope / with shackles, chains and whips / with hidden looks and clutched handbags / with segregation and cultural destruction / with guns and warplanes / with bullets and bombs / with sharp tongues and the devil’s eyes / with fake smiles and darkened hearts / with misunderstanding and deception / with hate and cruelty / with knives in the back and hangmen / with religion and courtrooms /
i stand at the centre of war / that has been televised
commercially edited / digitally mastered / and broadcast in stereo /
i stand at the centre of a war / where everything is black or white / yet i am the grey area between warring parties / i am neither black nor white / and yet i am both / i am neither african or european / and yet i am both / i am your future / devoid of a side to pick / i am your hope / devoid of your understanding / i am your greatest fear / and i am your wildest aspiration / i am the merger of your strengths / and i am the failure of your weaknesses / i am a symbol of your love / and a victim of your hatred / i am the unification of your desire to separate / and separate from your desire to unify / i am a power unto myself / and the product of your power / i am so much / and yet represent so little /
i exist in the midst of the confusion / your birthed me into / because i am the product / of two factions stuck / on extreme poles of reality
