My name is Juliet Franklin, I'm a fourth-year journalism student with big hopes and aspirations for the future. I wrote a feature article called ‘The Sound of Colour’ about the founder of Black Tones, a monthly open mic especially for people of colour. I have been in love with poetry and music since I was a toddler and I got to express this in my final year project.
I co-creative directed, styled and hosted a fashion shoot for Currently magazine (which won 2024 magazine of the year at the Smedia award’s) the collaboration with Irish brands, musicians and models celebrated the creativity in the Irish community. I also love to Dj, so if you need one contact me!
Black Tones is an exciting open-mic poetry community in Dublin for upcoming black Irish poets. Juliet Franklin interviewed its founder.
Black tones is an open mic organisation founded by Esther A. Fatoye. The young black Irish poet created this community to give a voice to people of colour in the creative scene."There weren't a lot of spaces that I could invite my friends to, or that welcome young black crowds. It's something that I wanted to see, and I hadn't seen it for a long time. So, when I graduated, I thought why not just do it myself;' she said. The non-profit organisation began when Esther was fed up with not seeing people of colour like herself, represented in the open mic spaces she had visited around Dublin.
Establishing Black Tones as a first-time event organiser was a difficult process for Esther. "Dublin is an interesting city and there's such a beautiful community in it. But it's a difficult city to live in as a young person. I think the government and the privatisation of a lot of things has to do with that," she said.
Esther said that people don't drink a lot during Black Tones, so the audience does not bring in a lot of revenue to the establishments which they are normally held in, hence, making it difficult to book from a business perspective.
Unfortunately, she found that some business owners refused to rent out their spaces because of their presumptions that people of colour would cause disruption. She still has hope that Black Tones will be something bigger than just an open mic.
"Away from just being an open mic, Black Tones is a literary community that is focused on promoting and encouraging black writers and the development of a black literary voice In Ireland. There is a lot that we want to do in terms of adding this kind of
literature to the educational syllabus," she said.
During Esther's time in school, she was not formally introduced to any form of black poetry.
"In a way, I almost thought that there were no black poets. I wasn't taught anything about black poetry,'
"One of the first black poets I started reading was Langston Hughes. I was so shocked that it exists, and it was really freaking good!" "I feel kids shouldn't have to have such a late entry to black literature in that way. It shouldn't be something that they have to go and find on their own. Diasporic literature has so many beautiful aspects and such a beautiful history that it's worth teaching, and I would love to bring that to schools," she said.
Even though race has been an issue for so long and the same topics are being discussed, Esther explained that speaking about these struggles can still give a person of colour something to relate to and thus, provide a sense of belonging for them.