Compared to their dancehall-reggae colleagues, dub poets are rarely in the spotlight. They were the focus at Richie Innocent’s Echoes of Expression show, held September 28 at VP Records headquarters in Queens, New York.

The New York-based artiste is pleased with turnout and response to an event he hopes will be annual. It featured mainly poets from Jamaica, with representation from the United States and Zimbabwe.

“Dub poetry is very much alive. We need a supportive community of poets who uplift one another and are free from insecurity so that art can flourish and evolve for the next generation,” Richie Innocent told the Jamaica Observer. “More shows are needed to expose and nurture talent; while events like this already exist, they aren’t nearly enough.”

He staged Echoes of Expressions seven months after launching Perseverance, his first book, at the same venue. Most of its performers were female, including Maxwanette A Poetess — an American of Jamaican heritage — Marj Da Poet, Marcia Jackson and Judith Falloon-Reid.

Brimstone, from St Thomas but based in New York, and Vachikepe, from Zimbabwe, also performed on the show which featured various aspects of Jamaican culture such as riddles, ring games, and dramatisation of works by legendary folklorist Louise Bennett-Coverley.

Richie Innocent, whose interest in poetry began during the 1980s while a student at St Elizabeth Technical High School, has released a number of songs influenced by current affairs. They include Beat Dem Anyweh, Where Are The Warriors and Drugs fi Gun.

He says it is critical that more shows like Echoes of Expression are held.

“I am committed to making Echoes of Expression an annual celebration, a tradition that we can all look forward to. I will continue working with my team to create more opportunities for poets worldwide,” he vowed. “Poetry is more than just an art form, it is an intellectual and cultural force that informs, inspires, and influences society.”