Jordan Stephens is a British musician, actor, author and presenter, best known as one half of hip-hop duo Rizzle Kicks.
From music and acting to writing and advocacy, Stephens has built a career exploring creativity, masculinity and emotional expression. He now joins More Fire, a celebration of performance poetry presented by Apples and Snakes at London’s Woolwich Works, sharing the stage with pioneering spoken word collective The Last Poets and a host of contemporary poets.
Stephens reflects on the freedom of spoken word, the revolutionary power of poetry, why men need to explore their inner lives more openly, and his fascination with the moments that can change everything.
Please introduce yourself …
Jordan Stephens, author, musician, Aquarius.
Describe your life in one word or a sentence …
Chaotic.
Why are we here?
We’re here to provide More Fire.
You’ve done a bit of everything at this point: music, acting, writing, presenting. Now you’re stepping onto the stage for
More Fire. What is it about performance poetry that appeals to you, and does it feel different from expressing yourself through music?
When I was younger, I used to listen to this CD called Lyricist Lounge. There was a performance poet called Sarah Jones who performed a piece called Blood over a drum beat. When you feel like you’re talking to a person, there’s a different energy to it, where you’re not confined. Sarah Jones was using a drum kit, but you don’t have to have a beat. You don’t have to stick to a form, do a chorus or anything. It’s slightly more liberating having the freedom to dictate how something is said and delivered and connecting to the feeling of it.
You’re sharing the bill with The Last Poets, who were laying the foundations for hip-hop long before most of us were born. How familiar were you with their work, and what does it mean to be sharing a stage with them now?
I listened to Last Poets growing up. I think my mum would have probably played them. And then years later Bella Freud made some Last Poets jumpers, and I had one. Their presence is complex. It just lends itself to the power of this shit. Somehow, in some spaces, there’s this idea that poetry is inaccessible. Or, you know, “who’s going to change the world with poetry?” And then you hear about poets who end up in prison, or who have their books banned. And you go, well, it’s gotta be pretty powerful if people are gonna legislate against it, you know? The Last Poets, Benjamin Zephaniah, Gil Scott-Heron’s Whitey on the Moon … Serious stuff. I feel like you can shift an entire people. Through a strongly and powerfully structured piece of writing. No one should underplay how powerful words are.
You’ve been vocal about the pressures men face when it comes to expressing their emotions. Do you think spoken word and poetry offer men, particularly young Black men, a space to explore vulnerability in ways that traditional ideas of masculinity don’t always allow?
There are a lot of incredible young Black male poets. I think the short form can be more accessible. There’s no pressure to have to completely flesh out an idea; you can just get something down in the moment. It clearly resonates, and there’s a whole history to it. I mean, I’m performing with The Last Poets. It really is a revolutionary space.
But straight men, especially, have a lot of self-excavating to do. We really need to try and show the world our interior lives.
With More Fire taking place on Bonfire Night, it feels only right to ask: what still lights a fire in you creatively? What gets you excited enough to think, ‘Right, I need to make something out of this’?
I’m really obsessed creatively by the single moments that change lives. I don’t know if I actually write about that, but I am certainly obsessed with the idea of it. What happens to a person when they find out that they won the lottery? Or that their friend died, or they’ve actually got a superpower? I live in constant apprehension of those moments, actually. Someone you love says, “I don’t love you anymore”. One sentence and your entire life is shifted. Maybe I should write about that, actually…
GETTING TO KNOW …
If not this, then what? An Archaeologist.
What’s made you sad, mad, & glad this week? I’ve just been travelling, so a bit sad about being back in England. Mad at the hive mentality on the internet. I feel actually super glad about music. This sounds so vague, but I’ve just re-listened to two albums I love.
What’s currently on your playlist? Parachutes, Coldplay’s first album. Listen, I know Chris Martin’s doing his best job of messing with his PR, but that first album. I stand by it with chest. I think Parachute is one of the best albums ever. I remember they didn’t include it in the Apple Music 100 Best of All Time, which I think is delusional. Just because their new music somehow overshadowed this one. And Kendrick Lamar’s album, Mr Morale & the Big Steppers. I will die on the hill of that being his best album, even though many Kendrick fans would say that’s absolute blasphemy.
What are you reading? I’m reading two books at the moment. One is called Braiding Sweetgrass by Native American author Robin Wall Kimmerer. It’s so good. And my friend Thomas Page McBee just wrote a book called Trans Time Travel: Our Shared History, which is amazing. I had to give a quote for it, so it’s not actually out yet.
The last live music event? I saw James Blake perform live last month. James has the best voice in the world.
Where’s your happy place? On a scooter in Southeast Asia listening to Parachutes.
Celebrate someone else … My manager, Laura.
Celebrate yourself … This week I cried about something in therapy that I don’t usually cry about. I cry a lot, to be fair, but this is one thing I had a block on, and I managed to get there.
Where can we find you? Insta & TikTok: @JordanFStephens
Where can we watch you at work?
More Fire by Apples and Snakes is at Woolwich Works on Thursday 5 November, doors from 7.30 pm https://applesandsnakes.org/event/more-fire/