Spaced Out With Spoken Word Poet Sibusiso Ndebele - Friday Feature

RVL: Who is Sibusiso Ndebele?

Siso is just that other guy, perhaps a passenger to nowhere, he knows not where he is going or where he comes from. This isn't me trying to be deep and all, I just find it really hard to answer such questions. Home is where the heart is, mine is just scattered around Joburg, born in Soweto, moved to Lenasia at the age of 6, moved to Vlakfontein (South of Joburg) soon after starting high school, moved back to Soweto after finishing my matric. I remember at some point, I moved to Roodepoort for a while, I'm in town now, contemplating my next move, it's always been a constant movement, I suppose I am just that shy bloke from Johannesburg, working for a law firm, busy with my B Com law degree, hoping to one day get into business in the arts. I love words, I love music and I love colour. I write poems too.

RVL: When did you begin writing poetry?

I started writing during my final year in secondary school. It was my attempts to document my feelings, I've never been comfortable with speaking to fellow humans about the things that made me sad. To me, writing seemed to be the easiest way, the perfect way, it made me feel good about myself, it was therapeutic in a way.

RVL: What inspires your writing?

My writing is usually inspired by the things that happen inside, my thoughts, my feelings, I think that we project from the inside with our reality as the screen, what happens in the outer could be a reflection of that which happens in the inner.

RVL: What's your take on the poetry industry regarding talent, content and skill? 

The industry is overflowing with an overabundance of talent, content and skill. It keeps growing, with new performers and new shows coming up all the time. And there's just too many local (J-Sec) writers and performers that I look up to, I'd like to mention a few in no particular order, These are some of the names the world should remember, Thobani Mntambo, Modise Sekgothe, Blaze the poet, Zewande, Mutle Mothibe, Gratitude Fisher... ey! There's just too many. 

RVL: Is there a lot of competition?

You could say so, especially now that there's platforms like the Current State of Poetry & Word and Sound where poets compete or take part in a slam. With me, it was never about competing, it is mostly about sharing and the feeling that comes with every poem written and performed for kinds and kinds of audiences, just sharing man.

RVL: Tell us more about that, because we see that between 2015 and 2016 you've managed to go from The Other Guy to Sbusiso Ndebele! And successfully made it in the top 5 of their 2016 episode 2 poetry league. 

How has the Word n Sound stage influenced your poetry and how has the experience changed you as an artist?

I think I am off to a good start, it is helping me to gather more content, learning to trust in the process, noticing growth in many other areas too, inspired by the creative path, but my aim, among others, is to share, and to keep growing. However, I'm still the other guy, an ordinary guy in his own right.

RVL: How does it feel seeing a mirage of yourself growing in the way that you are?

It's a feeling beyond compare that only I understand, yet I cannot explain. It's an inner feeling type of thing, but it is also heartwarming when growth materializes into the physical, when it becomes visible, it sure does inspire a lot and keeps one going, further and further.

RVL: Is there a concrete message that the youth is projecting?

Well, the youth I surround myself with, the ones in my artistic circle, most definitely! Among other things, reading is promoted, always. Universal intelligence that transcends biological abilities and educational backgrounds. A great passion for life emerges from their message, they speak so much light.

RVL: What does your writing do for you?

It feels like meditation, it leaves me feeling lighter, it removes a very huge burden that sometimes rests on my shoulders, I used to be very anxious a person, so my writing has taught me many lessons in letting go, and just moving with the flow; wherever the wind blows, hey! that rhymes:-D ...hence I don't usually plan because the poems just come to me.

RVL: You seem like a very open and free spirited person. How does your spirituality help in your journey to becoming a better human, a better writer and a better artist?

The plan was never to become a better human or to be above the rest in any way, I see myself as others and at times through the eyes of others, I'm not that special, but my spirituality has since shown itself to be a tremendous influence in the way I feel things, the way I see things, my livelihood, thus my art is influenced by "suchness", my intentions are almost pure, Ha ha as far as I have come to know. But spirituality plays a very important role in everything I do.

RVL: What message do you portray in your pieces?

Many things, how some of us feel about things, and that amidst all the chaos that is happening around us, in the world, inside us, it is still very possible to maintain a positive outlook on things, to see things in a better light, that we are great, we can change a lot, we can change our own lives. It portrays a lot, I can't just limit it or break it down to one thing. Listen to this for instance: Sound Cloud

RVL: What's your greatest achievement in one word?

Presence.