10 Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah

Find out the famous English dub poet, writer and Rastafarian in Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah. He was born in Birmingham, England on 15 April 1958. In 2008, he was included in the list of the Britain’s 50 post war writers in The Times. He earns the nickname “Jamaican capital of Europe”. Let me show you more facts about Zephaniah below:

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 1: the parents

Zephaniah’s parents were a Jamaican nurse and Barbadian postman. He was raised by his parents in Handsworth district of Birmingham.

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 2: leaving the school

Zephaniah decided to leave the school when he was 13 because he could not write or even read. He was a dyslexic.

Benjamin Zephaniah Facts

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 3: the poetry

The poetry of Zephaniah is unique. He calls it street politics for it is influenced by the Jamaican poetry and music. Get facts about being an artist here.

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 4: the criminal record

During his young time, Zephaniah had a criminal record because of burglary.  He had to spend his time in the prison because of this act.

Benjamin Zephaniah Pic

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 5: the first performance

Zephaniah was on stage for the first time when he was 11. He had it on the church. The Handsworth’s Afro-Caribbean and Asian communities knew a lot of about his poetry when he was only 15 years old.

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 6: expansion

He decided to expand the audience of his poetry for he was not satisfied of being recognized only among the black poet communities. When he was 22 years old, he relocated to London to gain broader audiences. Get facts about Beatriz Milhazes here.

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Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 7: Pen Rhythm

Pen Rhythm is the title of his first book of poetry. The publication involved three editions. He wanted to increase the popularity of poetry among the people. He wanted to take the poetry everywhere. Therefore, he had a concert like performance for the poetry reading to gain more audiences.

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 8: The Dread Affair: Collected Poems

The Dread Affair: Collected Poems was published in 1985. It is the second collection of Zephaniah’s poetry. You can find some poems created by the writer to criticize the legal system of Britain.

Benjamin Zephaniah Poet

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 9: Rasta Time in Palestine

In 1990, Rasta Time in Palestine was published. It was an account of his visit to Palestine. You can find travelogue and poetry here.

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah 10: Rasta

Zephaniah also had his album. It was Rasta in 1982.  This album was on the top chart in Yugoslavia.

Facts about Benjamin Zephaniah

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