Poetry has always been inextricably linked to the world of rock. Bob Dylan famously argued that he considered himself a “poet first and a musician second” (even if his poetry collection Tarantula was widely lambasted when officially published in 1971). Patti Smith was mentored by none other than Beat Generation icon Allen Ginsberg. And everyone from John Lennon and Joni Mitchell to Leonard Cohen and Lou Reed proved their words could be just as effective when unaccompanied by melodies.
Artists including Billy Corgan, PJ Harvey and Ryan Adams have all tried their luck at the art form with varying degrees of success. But this kind of moonlighting is no longer exclusive to rock or folk. Since the late 1990s, a whole host of names from the worlds of pop, R&B, hip-hop, soul and country have attempted to stake their claim as modern day bards.
In fact, you can’t peruse the poetry section of your nearest bookstore without stumbling across at least half a dozen names more synonymous with the Billboard charts than the T.S. Eliot Prize. Mary Lambert, Cody Simpson, Mike Posner, Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, Ashanti, Jill Scott — these are just some of the hitmakers who have poured their hearts out in verse, sonnets or prose.
In the middle of National Poetry Month, not to mention the impending release of The Tortured Poets Department by Taylor Swift, what better time to celebrate these double threats? Here’s a look at 10 who have officially published material designed to snap your fingers at.
