George the Poet

Last updated

George the Poet
Birth nameGeorge Mpanga
Born (1991-01-14) 14 January 1991 (age 33) [1]
Neasden, London, England
Genres
OccupationsPoet
Years active2006–present
Website iamgeorgethepoet.co.uk
Awards: 2019 Peabody Award

George Mpanga (born 14 January 1991), better known by his stage name George the Poet, is a British spoken-word artist, poet, rapper, and podcast host with an interest in social and political issues. [2] [3] [4] Mpanga came to prominence as a poet, before progressing to spoken word and hip hop. This led to him being signed by Island Records, culminating in the release of his debut EP The Chicken and the Egg to critical acclaim. However, Mpanga felt constrained by the art form, [5] quit rapping, [6] and left his record label prior to the release of his debut album. [7] He moved on to performing poetry and created a podcast entitled Have You Heard George's Podcast? [8]

Contents

In 2018, Mpanga was elected to be a Member of the National Council of Arts for Arts Council England. [9] Have You Heard George's Podcast? won five awards at the 2019 British Podcast Awards, including "Podcast of the Year". [10]

In 2019, Have You Heard George's Podcast? won a Peabody Award, becoming the first podcast outside of the US [11] to win the award. [12] [13] [14]

Life and career

Mpanga was born to Ugandan parents on the St Raphael's Estate in Neasden, north-west London. [1] His paternal grandmother is Ugandan politician and former cabinet minister Joyce Mpanga. [15] He began performing rap and grime when he was 15 years old. [1] He attended Queen Elizabeth's School, Barnet, an elite selective grammar school, from 2002 to 2009. [16] He subsequently studied Politics, Psychology and Sociology at King's College, Cambridge (2010–2013), [17] where he decided to adapt his rap output into poetry so as to communicate more effectively with his audience. [18] Mpanga said, "I think rappers are primarily expected to make money for the industry and provide party soundtracks, but obviously there are exceptions and grey areas. The poet's 'role' is usually to provide thoughtful social commentary." [19]

During his studies, Mpanga won a social enterprise competition organised by Barclays and Channel 4 called The Stake, which asked entrants how they would spend £100,000. He used his £16,000 prize to fund The Jubilee Line, a series of secondary school poetry workshops for underprivileged children in London. [2] [20] In May 2012, he premiered the piece "My City", about his hometown London. [21] Subsequently, BBC Radio 1 selected him as the face of their Hackney Weekend (in June 2012), [1] and Sky Sports F1 commissioned him to write poems for their coverage of the 2012 Formula One season and the 2013 Monaco Grand Prix. [18] [22] In July 2014, the consumer watchdog group Which? released the track "It's Yours", a collaboration between Mpanga and producer Jakwob, as part of a campaign lobbying the UK Government to improve their response to complaints about public services. [23] "My City" was adapted as a music collaboration with dance producers Bodhi, and released as a single in August 2014. [24] In October 2014, Mpanga released the EP The Chicken and the Egg and the single "1,2,1,2" (once again with Bodhi), describing the former release as "about premature parenthood. Through the story of a rocky relationship, it outlines the cycle of fatherlessness in seven tracks." [25] Vice magazine wrote that the EP "showcases perhaps the tightest lyricism of the year to date". [26]

In November 2014, it was announced that Mpanga had been shortlisted for the Critics' Choice category at the 2015 BRIT Awards. [27] He came fifth in the BBC Sound of 2015 poll. [28] As of late 2014, Mpanga was writing a debut album and working on theatre and film projects. [29] He released the single "Cat D" in February 2015. [30] His first collection of poetry in book form, Search Party, was published by Virgin Books in 2015. [31] [32]

In March 2018, it was announced that Mpanga had been elected as a member of the national council of Arts Council England. [9] Shortly afterwards, in June 2018, it came to media attention that Mpanga had been stopped and searched by police in an incident that was video-recorded. [33] Mpanga opened the BBC coverage of the royal wedding, between Prince Harry and Megan Markle, by reading a love poem. [6] He has also appeared twice on the television programme Question Time . [8] In 2019, Mpanga turned down an offer to become an MBE, citing the British Empire's treatment of his ancestral homeland, Uganda. [34]

As of July 2021, Mpanga was studying for a PhD in economics at University College London, focusing on the potential for black music to catalyse social power and economic progress. [35] [36]

Artistry

Mpanga's influences include rappers Nas, Dizzee Rascal, and Tupac Shakur, and poets including Maya Angelou, Black Ice, and George Watsky. [28] [29] [37]

Discography

Extended plays

Singles

Guest appearances and collaborations

Podcast discography

Have You Heard George's Podcast Chapter One (2018)

Have You Heard George's Podcast Chapter Two (2019)

Awards and nominations

YearOrganisationAwardResult
2015 BRIT Awards Critics' Choice [57] Nominated
MTV Brand New for 2015 [58] Nominated
BBC Sound of 2015 [59] Fifth
2019 British Podcast Awards Audioboom Podcast of the Year [60] Won
Best Arts & CultureWon
Best FictionWon
Best New PodcastWon
Smartest PodcastWon
Lovie Awards Artist of the Year [61] Won
2020 Peabody Awards Podcast/Radio Award [13] Won
Webby Awards Best Podcast Series [62] Nominated
Visionary ArtsInfluencer of the Year [63] Won
Broadcasting Press Guild Podcast of the Year [64] Won
NME Best Podcast [65] Won
Audio Production AwardsBest Presenter – Speech [66] Won
2021 Audio and Radio Industry Awards Best Speech Presenter [67] Won
Best Factual Single ProgrammePending
Best Fictional StorytellingPending
The Creative Innovation AwardPending

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References

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  2. 1 2 "Rare Rising Stars 2012". Rarerecruitment.co.uk. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
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  4. ↑ Arts, Lanre Bakare; correspondent, culture (30 November 2019). "George the Poet: 'If I accepted an MBE, what would my descendants think?'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  5. ↑ "Series 3, Episode 11: George the Poet". Channel 4 News. 24 July 2019. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  6. 1 2 Khalaf, Roula (27 August 2019). "From rap to representation with George the Poet". Financial Times. Retrieved 7 December 2019.
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  8. 1 2 Thapar, Ciaran (21 October 2018). "George the Poet: 'My manifesto was in poetry when I ran for student union chair'". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 7 December 2019.
  9. 1 2 "Introducing our new National Council Members | Arts Council England". www.artscouncil.org.uk. Retrieved 3 July 2018.
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  11. ↑ "George the Poet on why ending racism shouldn't be on 'special' Black people | CBC Radio". CBC. Retrieved 8 February 2021.
  12. ↑ "Podcast award winners revealed". BBC. 19 May 2019.
  13. 1 2 "Peabody Awards 2020". Peabody Awards. 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2020.
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  15. ↑ George the Poet (31 December 2019). "31/12/2019". Today. Event occurs at 2:17:45. BBC Radio 4. We're gonna meet my grandma, Joyce Mpanga, who was the first Women's Minister of Uganda.
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  22. ↑ "George The Poet delivers Monaco Grand Prix inspired poem over James Blake's "Retrograde" [Video]". SoulCulture. 28 May 2013. Retrieved 5 January 2015.
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