A Playlist for the May 2020 Issue

For our May 2020 playlist, we asked contributor Inua Ellams, whose poems “Fuck / Shakespeare” and “Fuck / Time” appear in the issue, to curate a selection of music for us. Click here to open the playlist in your Spotify app.

I run a poetry and music event called the RAP Party where I gather ten poets to read a single poem each, after which my DJ plays two hip-hop songs chosen by the poet to accompany the poem. Those joyful events feel like low-key house parties with eloquent guests, and I have missed running them. Creating this playlist was an opportunity to slip back into that head space. After reading and rereading the poems, I meditated on various things: themes, imagery, voice, politics, places, etc., then thought about songs that complimented, contrasted, or in some cases furthered the ideas of the poems. I hope listeners find the connections I made, or at the very least, I hope I’m not judged too harshly for my taste in music.