People want to hear our stories says British Muslim slam poet Usaama Minhas

A British Muslim performer today said that being crowned UK poetry slam champion showed “that the majority of everyday people actually want to hear our stories”.

Usaama Minhas, 27, won the Hammer & Tongue spoken word competition in Hackney before being entered for the national finals at the Royal Albert Hall last week. Winners were chosen by five random members of the audience.

He told the Standard: “What I realised after the win was there is a symbolic significance in a brown-skinned, Muslim, bearded guy talking about Islamophobia, talking about sexism, talking about racism, talking about foreign policy, being voted by the audience members to win.” The poet, hip hop artist and actor has been writing verse since he was 13.

His winning poem, See Something, Say Something, criticises public service announcements such as those asking people to report suspicious items or behaviour, saying they are damaging to our “social psyche” and often make people look at minorities negatively.

He said that despite “the rise of the far-Right, with the increase in hate crimes and Islamophobia” his win “just reminded me that the majority of everyday people actually want to hear our stories, see us on stage and champion us.” He added: “I am not the Muslim guy who won the British slam, I am the British Muslim who won.”

Mr Minhas works with charities and has given workshops on spoken word poetry in schools. He said: “There is a real onus on these performances to cultivate community and talk about the issues and topics we speak about because we are so disconnected.”

Lucy Noble, artistic director at the Royal Albert Hall, said: “It’s brilliant to see an artist as original, challenging and talented as Usaama take this year’s title.”