Last July, Ctrl.Alt.Shift partnered with Riz MC, British Underground and Southbank Centre to collectively put on two events packed with music and activism. On Saturday (February 20), United Underground returned with a vengeance. Kicking off at midday was the main event warm up, Writings On The Wall - the brainchild of Ctrl.Alt.Shift’s deputy editor Dwain Lucktung (assisted from brainstorm session to clear-up by CAS’s photojournalist James Prosho). Boasting an insane line-up of spoken word poetry, R&B, soul, indie sounds, mash-ups and covers, issues of conflict were wrestled with prowess. Accompanied by a screen-printing workshop from Print Club London the crowd were indeed wowed (and spoiled with FREE conflict-themed posters to take away).

Inua Ellams, who’s new show is soon to launch at the National Theatre, hosted the day event with charm and likeability. With the background punching electro and dubstep beats provided by DJ Mikey Gill, the massive crowd inside Southbank’s Queen Elizabeth Hall waited, excited in anticipation…

Inua welcomed onto the stage the first act - the Rhymes Won’t Wait Collective (nine reps from the cutting edge spoken word crew of RWWC, including Camila Fiori, Dean Atta, Sabrina Mahfouz, Chimene Suleyman, Rumi Begum, Catherine Brogan, Eka, Haseeb Malik, and Deanna Roger). They kicked off with a group piece about unfair trade, “If the person, who made your dress, didn’t get paid, then you can’t call it beautiful…” Such fierce wordplay, immersive talent, leaves you feeling just that little bit changed.

Next up Sonti’s Motown infused with soulful vibes soothed the room, in a yearning, brooding and captivating performance.

Creative director of RWWC, Dean Atta, then donned the stage with a slick ‘Silence Is Not Golden’ t-shirt. Fortunately his words were as dope as his threads, dropping lines like “Silence is not golden, silence is the truth stolen… how many homeless people have you seen this week, begging for change.” Verbal ammunition, and the sound of the revolution; as further inspiring spoken word intervals were provided by members of the collective throughout the showcase...

Lauren Hogg then delivered a chilled set, the highlight being ‘Heart On The Finish Line’ - a delicious slice of harmonised heartbreak.

Songstress Juliyaa followed with a short trilogy of tracks, inspired by the strength of women in Kenya among other African musings. She brought a unique sound combining the best bits of R&B and acoustic indie, ending perfectly with ‘Drift Away’ - a track which moves and swells in all the right places.

Next up, James Massiah, persuaded me that some people are just born with swagger. A product of south London, this guy is something else, putting an interesting slant on the topic of the show - ‘conflict’. He performed a piece inspired by Kings of Leon’s ‘Sex on Fire; in which he discussed the conflicts in his head about being brought up in the church but being tempted by sex. Funny, entertaining and engaging - watch out for the man in the trench coat.

G.R.E.E.D.S didn’t let up on the vibe - being politically potent, humanising the voice of victims of war, “I am the aftermath of your war, the aftermath of your conflict.” Profound storytelling.

Ed Sheeran was next, stepping up to the stage to delight the crowd with some acoustic singer-song-writing beatbox loveliness. The man had mad skills, leaving the QEH front room stage to a rapturous applause, mouths open in shock of what this fuzzy-haired guy could do, waiting for an encore. For a taster of Sheeran, check up ‘The City’ which he rocked out for Writings On The Wall.

Keeping the music flowing, Pete McAllen strummed up some hectic guitar beats, addressing the conflict-theme with fine detail, singing what being a ‘Revolutionary’ is all about.

After that, more fantastic poetry sessions were supplied by Poejazzi members Ray Antrobus, Joshua Idehen and Musa Okwonga. All three hit hard with some powerful spoken word, and one poem that still sticks in mind was Musa’s performance of ‘My Love (for Eudy Simelane)’. Eudy was raped and killed for being a lesbian, and this was a sobering account of a pertinent issue in South Africa, as previously reported by The Guardian.

Ahead of schedule, Inua Ellams even got in on the act; being an amazing compère, but an even better poet. Having taken up spoken word in 2001 (because he couldn’t afford paint to be an artist), his storytelling has become so captivating that you have to remember to inhale at times. Inua finished up with ‘Candy-coated Unicorns and Converse All Stars’ - a work of art, no question.

The Samantha Durnan Band, a female-fronted three piece, went on to cover the Jackson 5's ‘I Want You Back’, one of my personal highlights, with the event closing to Joshua Idehen’s ‘My Love’. Heart-on-sleeve honesty, endearing frankness. 

Writings On The Wall - smart, energetic, wordplay from start to finish. If you missed it, you missed out.

Words: Holly Davis
Photos: Tekla Balfour and Shea Rico Queensborough