Synopsis
The rules were simple “it had to rhyme” and “it had to make sense” for an entire generation introduced to what they deemed to be relevant literature through hip-hop. Decades later, the remnants of what they were initially struggling to do while writing their first rhymes, can still be seen in their poetry, and even in some of their prose. Devin Wright is of this generation. From The Background is comprised of work that defines who he has been, how he has developed into who he is, and the work that helped him to develop the protagonist in In The Background. Initially, From The Background was an afterthought, only compiled to be a companion to In The Background to increase in the revelation of the main character, because there is indeed no shortage of poets, poetry, or poetry books. While it still is well suited for that purpose, it had to also become more than the book of poems it began as. It had to become a meaningful contribution to the literary world, and in doing his best to achieve this, instead of stopping at this work just being a reference for his first novel, he also allowed it to be a reference to he himself as he made his transition from hip-hop, through poetry, and to prose.From his earliest pieces, to his latest, from his narratives, to his commentaries, from his hip-hop to his short stories, and even from:Eat, sleep, and be merry, for tomorrow we shall die.Set out on quests for soul searching and only end up fault finding.Non experience, eye blinding... and experiences, ties binding, time winding waiting for only whomsoever controls divine timing,Unless it’s something known, the punk syndrome... most deny trying, the famous comfort zone, the slump and moan of all those minds dying...to:Inner war, in a war, as my feet glide... Struck by an impulse I can’t ignore, the prison of living within a law, unnatural, as my feet glide...Thinking of death as if this is what men are for, they toss the rain, as my feet glide,across this harsh terrain, do I.... march with sin or Lord?How much of my soul can my will afford, or... am I in debt to a higher purpose?Will there be a loss or gain and if in the end I’m scorned, am I ready to see God?Blessed are those... so, am I, pure at heart of vain?In fear of the divine, even at times the winners mourn...This compilation is a spectrum of what this author considers to be thoughtful, well composed, and worth sharing.
About the Author
As an author Devin Wright is not "typically" urban. He does not write narratives to satisfy the gaze of those on the outside, with characters making an appeal in their exodus of the sensationalized violence and desperation of the inner city - these characters are always different, better than what their environment has to offer, special, cut from a different cloth, more human even, to tap into the sensibilities of the audience; they are the "good ones" in the pit of hell, of all of Sodom and Gomorra, they are Lot and his kin. Devin refuses to retell this story, as so many novels, movies, and songs have, because to humanize one or two characters in this manner, means the dehumanizing of many, and he's never saw the inner city environment that has nurtured him, deserving of such treatment. He is indeed urban though, but not the urban his audience expects when they listen to him or read his works, but just as important to the fabric of the city as the others highlighting the thug, the hoe, the drug dealer, the gangster, the hustler, and the baller, if not more important, because their stories are only partial representations of urban life, and in his opinion, irresponsible and incomplete. Many times these urban standards have only made the case that his type does not exist, outside of a protagonist trying escape the evils of the hood - which is not really his type at all, because one doesn't escape what one embraces. Devin Wright has taken his urban experience to be a redeemer of sorts, inviting the rest of the characters, telling the rest of the story, and completing the mural of inner city life for the voiceless many who do not fit within the offered mold.
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