ENTITY · PERSON (ARTIST, SELECTOR, PRODUCER…)

Oku Onuora

Well supported

Oku Onuora (born Orlando Wong, 1952, in Franklin Town, Eastern Kingston) is widely credited as the father of dub poetry. He began writing poetry in prison in 1971 while campaigning for prison reform, and in 1974 became the first inmate allowed to perform live with a reggae band. After his release in 1977 he took the name Oku Onuora and began performing alongside other poets, including Mutabaruka.

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At a glance

Type: Person (artist, selector, producer…) →
Era: Rocksteady, reggae and dub →
Confidence: Well supported

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Recordings

OKU ONUORA - Reflection In Red

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In stories

Story · Well supportedThe women of dub poetry and the spoken word

Jamaican-born women carried dub poetry's reasoning voice from Kingston yards to Toronto stages and a Halifax poet laureateship.

Story · Well supportedDub poetry and the reggae page

Dub poetry put Jamaican speech and reggae bass on the page and the stage at once, and made a form that belongs equally to Kingston, London and Toronto.