Even with God-given gifts, moments of comparison can distract the gifted. For Sarah Oglio, whose stage name is Salient Voice, she had to remember that her voice mattered just as much as those she compared herself to. 

Growing up in a Christian household often creates the first community that many know into adulthood. Church was a welcome routine on Sundays, allowing Salient Voice to interact with people of different generations and walks of life. Though she enjoyed the community, there were wounds caused within her church community that took time to heal from. For Salient Voice, her pain opened her up to a greater depth and vulnerability in her artistry. 

Resolute Magazine had the chance to chat with Salient Voice before How Sweet The Sound UK, getting to know a bit about her not boxing herself in as an artist, how pain transformed her gift, and how her faith and craft intersect with one another.

How did you become involved in the art of spoken word poetry?

Salient Voice: I’ve not always been consistent with poetry. When I first started writing and performing, I was 16. Before then, I knew about poetry from school. Learning about poems and poets, not necessarily doing it for myself. When I performed at 16, that was an opportunity that came for me because I was involved in a theatre play that included spoken word as well. When I reached my late teens, that’s when I started to be more involved with poetry. Especially, like, writing Christian poetry. When I started to develop my writing skills, it started at church. They encouraged that a lot and used me for events or any performances happening with the youth group or various groups within the church. Then I stopped. And, I picked it up again during lockdown. Now, I’ve been consistent with it.

Why did you stop?

SV: I stopped because I felt like my voice wasn’t important. I remember to date, I just doubted my ability and comparison as well didn’t help. And, I used the excuse, “Well, I’ve always been the poet for my church…”. Outwardly, it was like, “She’s giving others an opportunity.” Inwardly, there were roots. I was doubting myself. I was comparing myself. Because I did that a lot, I just faded into the background, and then I just stopped writing. And lockdown came, and I picked it up again. 

You said you felt your voice wasn’t important. Was there an event that happened that made you feel that way?

SV: I don’t think anything significant happened. It was linked to comparison. I would compare, let’s say, someone else [who’s] a poet in the church– the way that they wrote. I would be like, “Oh I don’t write like that. Does that mean mine isn’t good?” You entertain it once, twice, three times, and it just forms a root inside and it was bearing fruit where I would stop myself from putting myself forward or writing. I would think, “It doesn’t sound like this” or “I’m not articulating myself the way they are, so maybe I’m doing it wrong.” Not knowing that everyone’s unique, everyone’s different. 

Who are influences for you in your craft?

SV: In terms of my poetry, I’ve had influences from Sarah Kaye. Her storytelling used to fascinate me. How she could just grab an audience as soon as steps into a room or just starts. She had a heavy influence on me when I was starting. And now, it’s mainly the people around me. Whether it’s their stories or my personal stories. I have poets that I look up to that have been writing a lot longer than I have. Music, as well does inspire my poetry. Whether that’s the gospel, or the latest recreation I’ve made was by an artist called Bridge music, called “Vulnerable”. I remember listening to their music and it speaking to my heart. I recreated it with a male singer as well.

I don’t like to put myself into a box. I don’t draw my influence from one person. It’s kind of what I hear and what I read as well in the Bible tends to influence me in my writing. Something that a few poets have said to me is that I may not always mention God in my pieces, naming God or Jesus, but they can sense that higher being in my pieces. Like, my pieces will start really sad or self-reflecting and by the time you get to the end, there’s that hope. It’s uplifting rather than keeping you in that low state. 

How did you develop your voice as a spoken-word poet?

SV: It all happened during lockdown, to be honest. I was in a very low state at the time. Like I said, I’ve not always done poetry and that’s not because I never had any interest in it. It’s because my biggest interest was in basketball. I loved basketball way more than poetry at the time. At the same time when I stopped writing and performing at church, I stopped playing basketball. That carried on until I finished uni and lockdown, and I was experiencing a lot of loss. I don’t mean, like, through death; loss of friendships, and things that I used to hold dear.

I was reflecting on myself and thinking, “God, I don’t really have anything that I can call my own.” I didn’t have basketball anymore. Basketball was like my baby. At the time I didn’t know what I wanted to do career-wise. I just thought, “God, I don’t know what I want to do.” 

I took a lashes course and thought “I’ll try lashes. Maybe I’ll like it.” When I would practice on my own I would get frustrated. Then I thought, “Why did I spend so much money on this course?”

I was at a point where I was like, “What am I doing? Where am I going?” I kept writing. I just felt in my spirit God saying, “This is your purpose, this is what you’re supposed to do.” I wasn’t just writing in my room, I was also attending live poetry open mics. At the time, you weren’t allowed to meet up so it was all online, and I remember I followed two particular poets in the London poetry scene. I would follow them and even perform. When I pushed myself to do that, I was like, Yes, I don’t play basketball anymore, but I felt in my spirit that God wants to use this part of me as well. 

Going into the new year, I remember God being like “I’ve called you to be creative. Do this.” And since then, I haven’t looked back. Yes, I have my waves when it’s high and low, but I’m not putting my pen down. 

How does your faith interact with your craft?

SV: It naturally does. I don’t force it. It naturally happens. As much as I’ve had my own experience with faith like I stopped going to church for two years, I’ve had my fair share of pain and hurt. But coming back to church, coming back to God, it just happens naturally.

Because Proverbs 3:5-6 has been sewn into my life, I was born into a Christian family, it’s my identity. And, of course, the devil tries to take that away from your identity. 

There are deeper levels that God could have in your craft, but I feel like, naturally, it just happens. There are times where I’m writing a piece [and] it’s not talking about the church, it’s not talking about God, but someway, somehow I’m referencing him. I’m referencing the Father… toward the end of the piece. It happens naturally, I don’t have to force it. 

You said you’ve had your fair share of pain and hurt. Was that related to the church or just life?

SV: Church. It was church hurt. But, we praise God for growing strength to strength and letting that go.

Would you say that navigating that helped you in your poetry or helped how you approach and tell your stories in poetry now?

SV: Yeah. Poetry definitely helped me to express a lot of pain and hurt. It helped me to find peace with it, I would say, and to somehow understand it and express it. I would see little fragments of it in pieces… It’s helped me to understand certain things and give it to God in a way. 

You have Philippians 1:6 listed in your IG bio. What is the significance of that scripture for you?

SV: That verse means a lot to me because it’s a reminder that it doesn’t matter what stage I’m at, God is going to complete the work that He started. 

There are times when I know I’m not perfect, I know I’m a sinner. So [thinking] have I been abandoned by God. Have I hurt God so much that He’s just not going to use or He’s not going to be able to fulfill His perfect will in my life? So, that verse is a reminder for me that God will be sure to complete the work that He has started in me. 

How did you become involved in How Sweet The Sound?

SV: I was scrolling through Instagram and I came across a competition. Initially, I was like, “I’m just gonna slide past it.” Because it said gospel music competition, and I was like, “I’m not a musician. I can’t sing.” But, I clicked on the link and read a bit more, and saw that they had a space for spoken word artists and I applied for it and kind of just left it, to be honest. 

With where you are on your journey, did you ever expect the world to open up to you the way it has?

SV: To be honest, no. I didn’t think this would be happening right now. Even when I think about it, I’m like “Wow.” 

Like I said at the beginning, you asked me how I heard about How Sweet The Sound. I applied for it, [and] I left it. It wasn’t in the back of my mind. I applied for it and left it.

And, I remember attending two different events at the Royal Albert Hall. One was of a poet and singer, and the second time I went [there was an event] where poets spoke about their faith openly. I remembered one poet who mentioned the name of Jesus. In the world we live in, not a lot of people do that. I remember sitting there and I was like, “God, I want to be able to do the same thing. To proclaim your name in front of many people.” And, of course, no kidding, I think three days later, I got the email saying “Congratulations!” I thought it wasn’t real. 

Poetry has opened a lot of doors that I wouldn’t necessarily say that I would be in if I wasn’t doing poetry.

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Writer Bio:

Shonette Reed is the editor of Resolute Magazine.