My Journey

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​​Zena Edwards been a performance poet since 1991, after graduating from the Half Moon Theatre Company's Theatre Lighting and sound course, and City Lit College in stagemanagement and stage craft.

Her work experience placement as a theatre technician began with the Riverside Studios, Hammersmith

Raised in Tottenham, North London, Zena became known as one the 'new generation’ of female performance poets to come out of London.  

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She  completed her debut album of poetry, vocals and spoken word poetry Healing Pool, Shadows and Light and featured Apples and Snakes 25 album in collaboration with Jamie Woon.

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Always experimenting with the margins of language and sound, Zena uses sampling technology (Echoplex 1995) to layer her soulful singing voice.

She toured extensively round the UK, Europe and Africa with her mentor Pops Mohamed from 1994 to 1999. Pops introduced her ancient West and South African instruments -  the  Kora, Mbira Dzvadzimu and Kalimba – (Thumb Pianos from Zimbabwe, Tanzania, South Africa respectively ).
 

Using Hip-Hop, jazz grooves and the traditional songs from her travels through the continent of Africa, she creates soundtracks for her words and stories. The magic of these traditional instruments only highlights her mellifluous singing voice. Zena is revered not only for the easy power of her words, but also for her opulent delivery, for the complex manipulation of her voice. Her poetry is not simply supported by music, but is music itself. 

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​​​Her agent, 57 Productions,  introduced her work to the British Council and Zena toured reading and performing to international audiences in Mumbai India, Malta, Finland, Sweden and America and more

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Zena has been supported by Apples and Snakes poetry organisation since 1993.

Performances and Festivals

Musicport Festival (2005), Broken Words national tour with Apples and Snakes (2005), Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Malta – as part of the British Council’s Arts and Culture Programme (2005), writer-in-residence for the Word About Town Festival, Hastings (2005), Arvon residence performance poet tutor (2005), poet-in-residence – Benenden Girls School, Kent (2005), Def Poetry – HBO (Feb 2004), Def Poetry TV Series (2004), Future Sounds of Jazz tour (2004), WOMAD (2004), The London Jazz Festival (2004), Palabras @ Paradiso – Amsterdam (2004), North Sea Jazz Festival (2004), The Cheltenham Literature Festival (2004), The Kin Tour – Renaissance One (2003), The URB Hip Hop Festival – Helsinki (2003), Jonzi D’s Aeroplane Man (2003), Palabras @ Paradiso – Amsterdam (2003), North Sea Jazz Festival (2003), The Cheltenham Literature Festival (2003), The London Jazz Festival (2003), The URB Hip Hop Festival – Helsinki (2002), Jonzi D’s Aeroplane Man (2002), Palabras @ Paradiso – Amsterdam (2002), Poetry International at the Royal Festival Hall (2002), The SpitLit Festival (2002), Black Magic Woman Festival (2002), The Zanzibar International Film Festival (2001), The Glastonbury Festival (2001), The SpitLit Festival (2001), The World Expo – Hanover (2000), The MEP International Literature Festival, Amsterdam (1999), Winner of The Apples and Snakes Poetry Slam Competition (1999), Excess Express (1999 to date), Pure Poetry (1999 to date), Farrago (1999 to date), BBC Radio 4’s Poetry Please, BBC Radio 3’s The Verb, Black Women in Music, Kindred Spirit, BBC Radio’s Young Writers Festival, Newham Festival of African and Caribbean Writing.

Published Works : Dance the Guns to Silence: Remembering Ken Saro Wiwa – edited by Kadija George and Nii Akwei Parkes, Velocity: The Best of Apples and Snakes – Black Spring Press, KIN: Commemorative Tour Anthology' - Renaissance One, 2004

Recordings include

Busi Mhlongo

Funky Xen -  Peace and Niceness

Gumdrop – Hi-falutin,

Melt 2000 Sanscapes One

Production 57 Poetry in Performance Vol. I,

Pops Mohamed - The Millennium Experience

Zohar