A New Shade of Gray
A woman ahead of her time, unmoved by racial and gender lines, spoken word poet Bridget Gray makes the crowds holler, one poem at a time.
Living by the pen, Gray has talked about her masculine femininity, her views on the game of life, war and peace and why color should not matter. A native of Illinois, Gray traveled to Los Angeles, CA to pursue her dreams of acting. After playing a variety of roles in feature films, television sitcoms and dramas, and music videos, her infectious stage presence and twist of the tongue made her a not-so-average spoken word performer.
In 1999, she won a poetry slam and began combining old-school knowledge with a new groove and attitude, performing in various poetry spots and competitions, as well as lecturing and performing at many colleges and universities, including Princeton and UCLA. Gray’s fan base greatly increased after she brought down the house on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam and was featured on BET’s Lyric Café and ABC’s Eye on L.A. She became an underground smash hit and her poems have been published in anthologies and textbooks. In 2001, Gray released her first CD, Shades of Gray. Though it only contains six tracks, each song consists of everyday thoughts and ideas that have been taken for granted.
“My Letter to Hip Hop”, for example, is a well-crafted dissection of her perspective on hip hop. With regards to Nelly’s hit single “E.I.,“ Gray asks, “Were you that ho? Wait … was I that ho? Or do we need to spiritually grow? Does anybody know what E.I.E.I. stands for anyway? Is it ‘Eternally imprinting exaggerated ignorance,‘ or ‘exploiting innocence while extremely intoxicated?‘ I’m starting to think this whole hip hop thing has become way over-rated…” Do you?
In 2003, Gray took on the alias of the radio personality ‘Sypher 1’ for the Nissan Electric Mayo campaign. Her syndicated radio shows included interviews with musicians, such as Alicia Keys and Floetry. I remember first being exposed to the lyrical artistry of Ms. Gray; it was in 2005, around the same time her second CD, Self Love was released. Her neo soul presence, kinky curls, radiant beauty and raunchiness gave the audience a level of comfort. She gave a lecture about the facts of life, including relationships, race, class, gender, sexual politics and of course self-love. The themes I remember most from her lecture heavily focused on identity and dignity.
Another hypnotic single from her first CD, also of the same name, Gray spoke of people being obsessed with her racial statistics instead of her fun, warm personality and characteristics. Coincidentally a combination of black and white, Gray maintains her “grey” identity while conjuring her identity as separate from the universal perspective of black and white. Still lyrically inclined and raunchy as ever, Gray has begun production for a third CD in 2009 and has been recording with the many musicians from the Tempo Valley Collective. Her latest spoken word piece, “War or Peace,“ can be heard on her Myspace music page.
(Photo credits: The College Agency)
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I can’t break up with hip hop. Is unconditional. I can’t stop repeating myself to her. I have too much hope for all of humanity.
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