Benjamin Zephaniah

Benjamin Zephaniah is a poet, musician and author from Birmingham. He is a man that defies categories; Rastafarian, vegan, animal rights protester, playwright, and kung fu enthusiast.

He left school at 13 but was always writing poetry, at 22 he published his first book o poetry, Pen Rhythms. He made his name in the performance of Dub Poetry a type of poetry heavily influence by reggae rhythms. Dis poetry is a great example of this type of poem, it wants to be heard out loud, not just read from a page. He writes about things he feels strongly about including being a vegan. His poem Talking Turkeys! pleads with the reader to to stop eating these birds at Christmas


Be nice to yu turkeys dis christmas
Cos' turkeys just wanna hav fun
Turkeys are cool, turkeys are wicked
An every turkey has a Mum.
Be nice to yu turkeys dis christmas,
Don't eat it, keep it alive,
It could be yu mate, an not on your plate
Say, Yo! Turkey I'm on your side.

If you want to see him perform you can watch his music videos here.

Benji, as he likes to be known, is also an author. He has written 4 books for young adults; Face, Refugee Boy, Gangsta Rap and his new novel, Teacher's Dead. They all explore hard-hitting urban subjects and are written to celebrate and educate teenagers. He manages to write in a voice that is authentic and never patronising but is accessible to teenagers and adults alike. You can read an extract from Gangsta Rap here. He is talking about his new book at Sheffield's Off the Shelf festival of reading, and will be performing on Tuesday 13 November if you fancy seeing him in action.

Benjamin Zephania has a Sheffield link, too. He created 3 poems which are carved into metal plates on student residences behind Division Street. Next time you are in the city centre have a look for them.