Kalamu Bio

Books by Kalamu ya Salaam

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Bio-Sketch

Kalamu ya Salaam was born Vallery Ferdinand III on March 24, 1947 in New Orleans, Louisiana. He attended Carleton College (1964-1969), and Delgado Junior College from which he earned an A.A. (Associate Arts) degree in business administration.

Mr. Salaam is a professional editor/writer, filmmaker, producer and arts administrator.

He served as a senior partner in the New Orleans based public relations firm of Bright Moments Inc. (1984 - 1996) and is a co-founder (with Kysha Brown) of Runagate Multimedia, Inc. He is the founder and director of NOMMO Literary Society, a New Orleans-based Black writers workshop. Salaam is also the founder and moderator of e-Drum, an informational listserv for Black writers and diverse supporters of literature worldwide.

His latest books are the anthologies From a Bend in the River: 100 New Orleans Poets (Runagate Press 1998) and 360∞ A Revolution of Black Poets (BlackWords Press 1998). Mr. Salaam latest spoken word CD is My Story, My Song (AFO Records).

He is the recipient of a 1999 Senior Literature Fellowship from the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts; a 1998 Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities Award, a 1997 Mayor Marc Morial's Arts Award, the 1995 Louisiana Literature Fellow and guest editor of "The Music" (Vol. 29, #2) special issue of the African American Review. He is the poetry editor for QBR: The Black Book Review.

He is the author of What Is Life?-The Reclamation Of The Black Blues Self (1994, Third World Press) and the editor of WORD UP -- Black Poetry Of The 80s From The Deep South (Red Beans and Brown Rice Press1990), an anthology of forty writers.

His jazz play, Body&Soul, is the 1996 awardee in Louisiana State University's Native Voices competition. An excerpt from What Is Life? was used on the national ACT examinations as part of the reading comprehension test.

Mr. Salaam is the leader of The WordBand, a performance poetry ensemble. He and musician Fred Ho comprise The Afro-Asian Arts Dialogue, a poetry/music duo. He is the producer and scriptwriter for Crescent City Sounds (WGBH Radio Boston), a nationally syndicated, weekly, one hour radio program of New Orleans regional music carried by over 70 radio stations.

He is also a radio producer and DJ for WWOZ, 90.7FM in New Orleans and a record producer with AFO Records, a New Orleans independent record label.

In May 1992 Kalamu ya Salaam produced NEW WORLD POETS for the Houston International Festival in Houston, TX. The program consisted of three concert readings of poetry by African American poets Jayne Cortez, Haki Madhubuti, Thomas Meloncon; Puerto Rican poet Tato Laviera, Native American poet Jack Forbes, Asian American poet Genny Lim, and Chicana poet Evangelina Vigil-Pinon. The program was recorded by Mr. Salaam.

In November 1989 Kalamu ya Salaam produced A NATION OF POETS for the National Black Arts Festival in Atlanta, GA. The program was a concert reading of poetry by Amiri Baraka, Pearl Cleage, Wanda Coleman, Mari Evans, Haki Madhubuti, Kalamu ya Salaam, Sonia Sanchez and Askia Muhammad Toure. The program was recorded under Mr. Salaam's direction and videotaped for broadcast on the Atlanta PBS affiliate. Mr. Salaam is the producer of A NATION OF POETS cassette and CD.

Kalamu ya Salaam is a music producer who has produced festivals and served as a consulting producer for festivals in Trinidad, Barbados and many events in the United States. He served as associate producer and scriptwriter for the nationally distributed JAZZTOWN radio series, a 13 part, one hour each documentary of jazz in New Orleans.

He produced a nationally broadcast New Year's eve event for National Public Radio. He directed a one hour radio documentary on Blue Lu Barker, a New Orleans traditional jazz vocalist.

As a music producer Mr. Salaam's accomplishments include a three volume record series, The New New Orleans Music, released on the Rounder Record label. This series documents the contemporary jazz scene in New Orleans. Piano In E -- Solo Piano by Ellis Marsalis (Rounder Records), The Classic Ellis Marsalis (AFO Records) and Germaine Bazzle Standing Ovation (AFO Records) are a few of Mr. Salaam's recording productions.

Kalamu ya Salaam has served as a panelist for arts awards and grants programs at the local, state, regional and national level, including four years on the NEA music panel and one year on the NEA literature panel. In 1987 he served as the co-chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, Jazz Presenters panel. He is served as a field consultant for the National Jazz Service Organization.

Mr. Salaam served as the Executive Director of The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation for four years (1983-1987). Prior to his tenure at the NOJ&HF, Mr. Salaam served as the editor of THE BLACK COLLEGIAN Magazine for thirteen years. Continuing his work in journalism, Mr. Salaam writes for numerous publications in the New Orleans area.

Mr. Salaam's published plays include: The Destruction of The American Stage in Black World Magazine, Blk Love Song #1 in Black Theatre USA edited by Hatch & Shine, The Quest in New Blacks For The Black Theatre edited by Woodie King, Jr., plus numerous one-acts published in small literary journals. A 1987-88 production of Blk Love Song #1 as part of a double bill produced by Temba Theatre Company of London, England, won the Manchester Evening News 1988 Award for "Best Of Fringe."

Memories won the New Orleans CAC's 1990 regional new play contest, and a production by Chakula Cha Jua Theatre was one of only 17 companies invited to the 1991 biannual National Black Theatre Festival. Mr. Salaam's musical, God Bless The Child, was presented at the 1991 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. His one act play Malcolm, My Son was selected for The 1st Annual George Houston Bass Play-Rites Festival sponsored by Rites & Reason of Brown University and has been published in the African American Review.

His play The Breath Of Life was selected as one of six plays honored by Louisiana State University in 1993 as part of their Native Voices fellowships.

Kalamu ya Salaam is the author of seven books of poetry: The Blues Merchant (1969), Hofu Ni Kwenu/My Fear Is For You (1973), Pamoja Tutashinda/Together We Will Win (1974), Ibura (1976), Revolutionary Love (1978), Iron Flowers (1979), A Nation Of Poets (1989).

Mr. Salaam has done numerous pamphlets on political issues, particularly the issue of apartheid. Kalamu ya Salaam has written two children's books, Herufi, An Alphabet Reader and Who Will Speak For Us (written in collaboration with Tayari kwa Salaam).

He has also written two books of essays: Our Women Keep Our Skies From Falling: Six Essays In Support Of The Struggle To Smash Sexist And Develop Women (1980) and Our Music Is No Accident (1987), an essay accompanied by 20 duotone photographs.

Kalamu ya Salaam has widely published in literary, music and political journals including Negro Digest/Black World, First World, The Black Scholar, Black Books Bulletin, Callaloo, Catalyst, The Journal Of Black Poetry, Nimrod, Coda and Encore. His work is included in numerous anthologies including We Be Word Sorcerers, New Black Voices, Black Theatre USA, Erotique Noire / Black Erotica, Dark Eros, Catch The Fire, and Spirit And Flame.

Kalamu ya Salaam is a professional editor whose credits include program books for the 1992 New Orleans Olympic Trials, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival; program books for the JVC New York, Newport, Saratoga, Mellon Philadelphia, Mellon Pittsburgh, Ohio Bell and Rochester-Finger Lakes jazz festivals, and the 1989 Atlanta Jazz Series; as well as program books for numerous New Orleans agencies.

Kalamu ya Salaam is the winner of numerous awards including over six first places in Unity Awards In The Media, a George Washington Freedom's Foundation Award, two ASCAP Deems-Taylor Awards for excellence in writing about music (1981 & 1989), two NFCB (National Federation of Community Broadcasters) Silver Reel Awards for radio production, the 1986 Deep South Writer's Contest Award for prose, and a first place in the 1990 CAC Regional (Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi) New Play Competition.

Kalamu ya Salaam has traveled extensively as a journalist, activist and arts producer: Ghana, Tanzania and Zanzibar, Barbados, Brazil, Cuba, Guadaloupe, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Nicaragua, St. Lucia, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, Korea, Japan, The People's Republic Of China, England, France and Germany.

Contact Information:

Kalamu ya Salaam
5425 Wimbledon Ct.
New Orleans, LA 70131
504/710-9694
kalamu@aol.com
www.kalamu.com

Note:

WordBand is a poetry performance ensemble led by veteran writer Kalamu ya Salaam. Deeply rooted in the broad spectrum of Black music, the WordBand's repertoire includes poetry set to everything from blues to experimental new music. The personnel are two poets, Kalamu ya Salaam and Kysha N. Brown; a vocalist, Ginger Maria Tanner and a guitarist, Carl LeBlanc.

"We work out of a jazz aesthetic; so much of what we di is improvised. We don't go on stage with a set show. Instead, we let the selections flow from the particular feelings where we are performing and from the audience reactions. Sometimes we will emphasize blues numbers; other times we will be much more experimental. Our approach keeps the performance fresh--you never get the feeling of a canned show with the WordBand," says Kalamu. "WE don't have horns or drums, we don't have dancers or a back-up choir. What we offer is well crafted poetry mated to the fundamental sounds of great Black music in an intimate setting."

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updated 9 April 2008