This Sunday I woke up and heard the news about Will Da Real One, one of Miami’s BEST poets. In fact, he was like every spoken word artist’s godfather down here.
He was shot and killed in front of the poetry spot that he built and ran for the past 6 years. He appeared on my show. I saw him all the time when I was into performing poetry. Every poet in Miami owes him a debt of gratitude. He BUILT the scene and kept it going with his own hands and words over the years.
I attended the Memorial service last night and made this video but it still seems unreal.
I have had family members die but really this is so wild to me because he was a peer that I saw regularly on the poetry circuit. I had respect for him and his craft. I considered myself lucky to share the stage with him.
And now, everyone is listening to his poetry and reading his words. Those are his lasting legacy. It makes me think about this blog and my other websites and exactly what I would leave behind if I died suddenly.
Is it something worth remembering?
Now that he’s gone, I can see the magic of his words magnified.
Man.
Damn.