# Sophia Thakur ✷ Black Poets in Britain ✷ Episode 10

Free with YouTube's ads, posted by Apples and Snakes.

Internationally acclaimed award-winning artist, best-selling author and performance poet Sophia Thakur shines in this live recorded episode of Black Poets in Britain.

Sophia has performed shows all over the world and tickets are always in high demand, usually selling-out within hours of going on sale. Her debut poetry book ‘Somebody Give This Heart a Pen’ became a #1 Bestseller and is included in many school curriculums.

Recorded at Mason and Fifth, Yomi sits with Sophia to talk what it means to live as a poet — on and off the stage. Sophia reflects on her earliest entry points into spoken word (from Def Poetry Jam to her first performances), why certain rooms and circuits build muscle, and how her performance style evolved to an intimate, soft-power delivery.

She shares her poem ‘Affirmation’, unpacking how self-affirmation, faith, and emotional honesty shape her writing process and why some pieces arrive as a 'plea to myself'. The episode closes with a powerful performance video choice of Daniel Beaty’s ‘Knock Knock’, plus an honest look at poetry’s commercial possibilities and creative integrity.

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Apples and Snakes was established in 1982 by rebel & radical poets. We develop performance poets, empower the poetry of underserved communities & produce public programming with poetic bite.

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- What it is: Full episode
- Series: [Full episodes from Apples and Snakes](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/library/rights-holders/series/9c59cdad1f66)
- Length: 1 h 12 min
- Rights holder: [Apples and Snakes](https://applesandsnakes.org/) (its site links the channel: https://applesandsnakes.org/)
- Channel: [Apples and Snakes](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5A-_k-Us2UhiCtty18xnWg)
- Plays: Wherever YouTube plays: its rights holder sets no limit
- Who can watch here: Adult profiles and older (no rating is recorded on YouTube, so adults only)
- Made for kids: No, as YouTube designates it
- On YouTube: [Watch on YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UB6D8K99PnU)

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