World renowned poet Xabiso Vili. Picture by Peter Molefe
When poet world champion Xabiso Vili shared his rock star-like gig guide on social media which will see him play various countries in Europe, he received an overwhelming show of love and support from the creative community.
“The love and support shown for me has always touched me and moved me, something that I occasionally I feel like unworthy of but really something I completely embrace,” Vili tells The Citizen, while still in Leeds, UK.
The South African poet is also currently the world champion on the art form after winning the 2022 World Slam Poetry Competition in Brussels, beating 40 other slam poets representing their nations.
Vili is heading to South Africa in the coming days, where he’ll perform in Cape Town, Joburg and also in Harare before heading back to Europe.
Speaking about the transformation in his life since winning the title, Vili says everything has changed yet things have remained the same in some areas.
“I’m hard at work, writing proposals, rehearsing and trying to get my name out there… but I’ve noticed the shift.
“It’s like a different playing field, my emails are filled with clients I’ve always dreamed of and having the capacity to say no to certain clients,” avers Vili.
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His performance itinerary on Facebook was shared over 60 times and received over 400 reactions.
Vili quotes one of the people who shared the post on Facebook and how that person quoted something he said when he won the World Poetry Championship.
“This is something I said when I won the World Poetry Slam Championship, that I didn’t win this for me; I won it for South Africa because we always claim to be the best poets in the world, you know, and so I had to go out and bring the title home,” he says.
“I’ve always felt so humbled to be supported by this poetry community, to be held by this creative community. It leaves me speechless, but also reminds me of such a deep responsibility.
“I remember being at the World Poetry Slam Championship and some countries were there for the first time and I’m grateful to be there at the slam.
“I remember just kind of giggling and being like ‘no man, my people have sent me here to win this’.”
Vili is an award-winning performer, new media artist, producer, digital strategist and social activist.
“It’s something that really humbles me but reminds me of the responsibility and why I do this because it isn’t to become a superstar poet. What even is that?”
“But it is to remind people like me, from my kind of background, that these dreams are possible. That they can dream bigger than their borders, that we’re not only competing internationally but we’re winning internationally.”
He speaks with gratitude about the poetry spaces in the country, mentioning the likes of Hear My Voice, Poetry Africa and Word N Sound.
“Funny story about Hear My Voice is that they provided me with my second international tour after I won their Tshwane Speak Out Loud slam which was my first really major prize winning in 2016,” says Vili.
His European tour is supported by Hear My Voice’s Mobility Fund.
“I’m really grateful for this Mobility Fund that they’re able to add to artist’s fees, which then assist in travel once we’re overseas as well.”
This isn’t the first time the fund assisted him. During the Covid pandemic, they assisted Vili with digital events in Italy.
“Organisations like these are so necessary, there’s so much talent. But we need institutions that are able to hold and house that talent, and Hear My Voice is doing such an incredible job” and”.
“[There is] such a vast array of opportunities for poets in South Africa.”
He admits that there is still so much room for improvement but concedes that the quality is of a higher level than what you’d find in other parts of the world.
“The work that South Africa produces is beyond a global scale. I think just the innovation here is so immense. The writing capacity, the performance capacity –the way in which poets in South Africa use the art form, from plays to films…”
He won’t be performing in Cape Town but will be supporting others at the Open Book festival this weekend.
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