Abiodun Oyewole

Abiodun Oyewole is a poet, teacher and founding member of hip hop forefathers The Last Poets.

Often referred to as the godfathers of rap, The Last Poets, were formed in 1968 at a memorial for Malcolm X. Steeped in black consciousness and Afrocentricity and evoking a sense of pride and a feeling of empowerment their words were a call to arms for a generation of oppressed black Americans. Encompassing revolution, sex, death, drugs and Black Power these words were used as an art form and a statement of intent.

Oyewole has had a long and illustrious career working with such luminaries as Pharoah Sanders, Bill Laswell, UNKLE and former Last Poet Umar Bin Hussan. Alongside music Abiodun has written and published several collections of his poetry alongside essays and short stories reflecting on his experiences as a poet and activist. Perhaps his greatest legacy is “Sundays @ 110”, where every week for the past thirty years he has opened his home to feed his fellow artists with food for thought, body and soul. During these sessions he critiques, shares life experiences and his love of poetry with writers and musician from around the world.

“Experimenting with street poetry and percussive sound, the music of Harlem’s Last Poets helped lay the groundwork for hip-hop” Rolling Stone

Today, still continuing to write poetry, almost every day, Oyewole travels around the world performing, teaching workshops and lecturing on poetry, history and politics.

Fire Songs and AFAR are proud to present a whole new way of thinking socially, politically, emotionally, and humanly via the perspective of Abiodun Oyewole of The Last Poets with his new solo album ‘Gratitude’. It’s not a protest album, it’s an inspirational album. This is not an angry man, but an older wiser man reflecting on his life and spiritual quests. Rappers love him for coining the phrase “Party and Bullshit” decades ago, but this is not that, this is a sacred journey with a universal message for all people regardless of their background and nationality.

“One of the most influential spoken-word groups that pioneered hip-hop” NPR