B'ham Love Pts. 3 & 4/28: The Village & Glenwood

Like most people in the late 90s, I was introduced to the spoken word via the movie, Love Jones. In 1999, I returned to Birmingham from school at The University of Alabama and immediately set out to try and find the scene. After months of frustration, I finally hunted out a venue, The Phoenix, where they did spoken word every Wednesday. I was impressed with the poets that performed there and began writing as well. I eventually took to the stage and became a regular on the spoken word scene along with Kumba Nia, Obeah, LR, Shay, Buff & many ,many others. I became a DJ at UAB’s internet radio station, Blazeradio in 2002 and began to DJ during the intermissions at the poetry sets and performed as a poet less and less.

The Village used to perform frequently at The Phoenix and released their album Nothing To Lose in 2002. The Village consisted mainly of Lando and Bilal AKA Duality and featured spoken word by Obeah. My favorites are the more introspective gems, or the more unconventional tunes that speak about social ills or the plight of a young black man in today’s society. The title track introduces the listener to The Village’s stories of hard times and bad luck over a blues riff.


The Village - Nothing to Lose

Glenwood and I formed a friendship while on the scene at The Phoenix. Our friendship proved to be beneficial because we were ultimately charged with keeping the spoken word alive in Birmingham once Kumba Nia disappeared and Urban Grooves(sp) folded. We traveled from spot to spot for years and finally ended up at The Highnote Lounge as The Magic City Premier Poets with Phat Tuesdays, a popular night that birthed the majority of the next generation of poets.

During this time Glenwood was touring different cities/states and recording his EP, Bits & Pieces. One of my favorites is City Ov Bumz which features Lando from The Village. City ov Bumz is a double entendre which speaks about Birmingham’s socio-economic state and pays homage to the 16th Street Church bombing.


Glenwood Urbz; Lando - City Ov Bumz