Remembering David Blair

 

I am so saddened to hear the news that David Blair, the poet and performer, the singer and songwriter, has died. The Detroiter who embodied so much joy in his art was only 41 43 years old. It is unclear how he died, but Metro Times indicates that it may have been heat stroke, though more investigation is needed.

Blair was a 2010 Callaloo Fellow and a National Poetry Slam Champion. He is the author of Moonwalking, written in the wake of the death of Michael Jackson. His band, Blair and the Boyfriends, released an album called The Line. He has been nominated for seven Detroit Music Awards and, in alt-weekly reader polls, Blair was named Best Solo Performer and Best Urban Folk Poet. Blair was a regular presence in Detroit public schools, senior centers, and the YMCA, where he brought music and poetry into communal spaces. The poet was a New Jersey native who came to Detroit in the 1990s. He became an electric center for the artistry of the city, though his words -- written, spoken, sung -- move farther than anyone knows.

I could continue with the profiling, but here is how Blair described himself:

I'm a black, queer writer and musician. I went to South Africa and on a a few tours including a six month independent tour of the U.S. I grew up in New Jersey. I live in Detroit. I'm interested in every kind of music. It just has to move me. Always been interested in doing a lot of different styles. I feel I'm ready to dive deeper. I've written a one man show called Burying the Evidence. You can check one of the blogs for a description of it. Come see it sometime. I'm working on a book. I've been published in Black Rennaissance Noire (NYU Press) by Quincy Troupe and some newspapers and journals over the last few months. My dad looked like Chuck Berry, played like Hank Williams. My mom cleaned white folk's houses. She raised five children. On her own. I inherited all sorts of ghosts from both of them. Sometimes I can fly.

And here, Blair puts an Emily Dickinson poem to music:

 

 

This is such a grave loss. With him goes my words: I don't know what else to say.

 

Related:

• Remembering D. Blair -- "This is a site to share media, memories and reflections on the life of David Blair."
• David Blair's "Little Richard Pennimen Tells It Like It Is"
• David Blair's poetic tribute to Michael Jackson
• "I remember"
• "Meet Poet-Musician David Blair" (The Detroiter)
• "Healing the World" (Between the Lines)
• "Blair laid bare" (Metro Times)

 

Image credit: Serious artists

Comments

[Nina Misuraca Ignaczak]

that was amazing thanks for sharing. chills.

[Dan Wickett]

Truly sad.