Many performers can capture the attention of an audience – only a few can actually mesmerize a crowd. Meet Liza Lakes. A Flint, Michigan native, whose love affair with words not only charms her audience, but also brings many (including this hard-shelled journalist) to tears.
I caught up with Liza to find out about her unique blend of words, emotion and cadence, and to discuss how she is using her ownership of the spoken word to raise hip-hop’s next generation.
Describe yourself in five words.
The power of the word is immeasurable. I have to be extremely careful in everything I speak and write. Words carry energy and this can be interpreted in so many different ways. The high esteem of oneself can be dangerous, but with all that considered I will give you these words: thankful, focused, free, delicate, strong and vessel.
Interesting choice. What makes you feel free?
What I have been gifted to do is share my story and with that comes responsibility of being honorable in all my actions. So I am free in the sense that when I perform I try to never get in the way of the message. It is in some ways similar to being possessed. The higher being is using me as a vessel.
When did you first realize you had a way with words?
Everyone has a way with words. Everyone manifests his or her reality. I was blessed to awaken at an early age and realize the importance of making my speech excellent. I was always fond of letters and sounds and the power they held. I use to fill pad after pad with the cursive writing of a four-year-old. Loops and loops and loops.
You are the mother of two young boys, Ezra and Eli. Has either of them discovered the same fondness of letters and sounds that you cherish?
My oldest, who is now six, could count the number of syllables in words before he knew the names of the letters. The youngest just turned 4 and has favorite songs that he asks to hear. They are intrigued by the same combination of rhythm and words that we all find fascinating. They do their freestyle and have me make beats on the table, chairs or floor. It has been a blessing to have them involved. They attend most of my events. They love hip-hop. I try to expose them to all the elements.
Speaking of the elements, when we first met, you said you thought spoken word was hip-hop. Can you explain what you meant?
Hip-hop is self-validating, so it has a wide and broad definition. The oral tradition of the spoken word is what emceeing is, so I don’t necessarily consider there to be any boundaries. It is all related. I am hip-hop, my kids are hip-hop and we don’t need a checklist to be this.
Finish this sentence: Liza Lakes is a self-confessed…
Slave. I am only a vessel. I am a slave to the creator and the purpose he has given me with these gifts. Within this knowledge and understanding, there is immeasurable beauty. I am in no way oppressed. The more I accept this the more beautiful it becomes.
Liza Lakes is available for speaking engagements covering feminism, hip-hop and activism. You can purchase her first book, You Never Knew Until I Spoke, online at www.lizalakes.com.
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