Jamaican artist, poet and performer Queen Majeeda recently launched her fearlessly unique new immersive album Wedding Invitation. The project features a series of conceptually connected poems, evocatively performed alongside cinematic musical productions that brilliantly reinforce the feelings and scenes of each track.
We were blessed with the opportunity to interview Queen Majeeda, to find out more about the album, what inspires her, what her ambitions are, and plenty more. Here’s the conversation in full.
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Queen Majeeda – excited to talk with you! To introduce things, where are you based, and who or what was your first ever introduction to poetry?
Thank you! I’m excited about this opportunity too. I am based in Central Florida. I am originally from Jamaica. I was born and raised there.
My first ever introduction to poetry was in grade school. We used to have to memorize and recite poems from our textbooks, as well as Scripture verses. I fell in love with words then. The teachers were adamant that we pronounced words clearly in poems and songs and that really made me develop a high regard for words and how we should use them.
What is it about poetic expression that draws such passion from you?
“Poetic expression is liberating. It frees the speaker, the listener, and the reader.”
I use it to address the ills of society and to call attention to what society may be overlooking, I also use it as a voice for the voiceless, and I use it as a way to connect with the Most High. My thoughts about the world are expressed through poetry, it offers me a platform to be heard and I like to think of poetic expression as a vehicle for change and to foster understanding where there are differences that needlessly separate us.
Huge congrats for the unique new album Wedding Invitation. What inspired the theme of this project, and where do you imagine people listening to get the best experience?
Thank you! During the COVID lockdown, I felt like there was something at odds somehow. Times just didn’t feel normal to me. I felt like whatever theories people had about the cause of the pandemic, there was an awakening for us to see what the world could become like in deeply troubled times.
My mind kept going to Matthew 24. I re-read it and saw the word pestilence – that pestilence would come upon the Earth in the last days. I never thought to look up the meaning of that word before; I always assumed it means pests, but I looked it up after re-reading the chapter. I was surprised to see that pestilence means a fatal epidemic. I realized we were experiencing a global pestilence foretold in the book of Matthew.
The following chapter, Matthew 25 tells the story of a wedding that was in procession and how some invitees were locked out of the wedding because they were not fully prepared. The theme of the wedding kept on playing through my mind. I felt almost compelled to write poems bearing that theme and how we are all invited to a wedding by our Maker who refers to Himself as our Husband, as the Bridegroom and people who are faithful to Him as the bride.
I thought about how the Bible begins with a wedding, how the Messiah’s first miracle was at a wedding, and the fact that the Bible ends with a wedding. This theme became grand in my mind. As such, the album speaks mainly of women the symbol of the bride, and the Bridegroom is also central to the story of the album.
I imagine people listening would get the best experience if they are in a position to envision and meditate on the words. They could be relaxing, sitting in cafés, lying in bed, hanging with a friend, taking a walk, lying on the grass in a park — anywhere they would have the opportunity to ponder the words and see the word picture painted in the poems.
How did you decide which twelve stories and poems you wanted to include in this album, and were there any that just missed the cut?
I wanted to create a chain with the woman as a symbol woven throughout the stories in the poems. So I began with Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. In that poem, I hope to bring across the message of the power of a woman’s influence. I think we women are not aware of the influence we wield. We are powerful influencers for good or bad. I included Rahab because I wanted to show how a woman risked her life to save the lives of spies and her own family. I wanted to show that a woman who would normally be thought of as having little value because of her questionable occupation could become a stalwart.
Talk of the Town is another poem that raised a woman from a low estate as society saw her as unworthy because she had relations with a married man. Society blamed her, looked down on her but excused the man. When they brought her to the Messiah, He set her free because He saw through their plot. They were willing to overlook the fact that a married man was having an affair with her but not willing to overlook her part in the affair. I wanted to show that the Messiah is not in favor of treating women like second class.
I also chose to focus on how weddings took place in Eastern cultures – as a matter of fact, weddings are still conducted like that in Eastern countries. I included Wedding Invitation and The Wait to show a comparison with weddings in our society. I find it quite interesting.
There is one poem that didn’t make the final cut even though I had included it in the self-distributed release before the official release. That poem is I Said Yes. I drew inspiration for that poem from the TV Show “Say Yes to the Dress.” I intend to officially release I Said Yes as a single in early summer.
Tell me about the production of the album – Did you design each soundscape, and did you perform the poems over these to bring out more emotion in your voice, or add the music later?
I had an idea of what I wanted certain tracks to sound like but I recorded them first and then added the music later. Dianna Wright from 16 Bars Multimedia, who is the musical director on the album, gave lots of good ideas as to what the tracks should sound like. The result was a blend of what I had in mind and her direction for the soundscape.
Which track from this project would you perform in a live setting if you had just one opportunity to connect with and impress an audience, and why?
Haha! That’s almost a difficult choice. I would say between Talk of the Town and Unfaithful Woman. Perhaps I would go with Unfaithful Woman since that is such a performance-driven piece.
How important is Faith and Christianity to your creative work, and why do you think these stories are important in the modern world?
As a believer, I acknowledge that my gift comes from a higher power so faith is important to my creativity. I draw inspiration from the Creator. He was the first spoken word artist. He said, “Let there be light” and there was light. The very ground we walk on is because He said, ”Let dry land appear.” Because of that, I realize that words have power and they can create our reality. Words can affect the way our day turns out, the way we feel, the way we make someone else feels, and what we become. Words have that amount of power so we have to be careful how we use words. As the saying goes, “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.”
“I think these stories are important in the modern world because they were written for generations who would come after. They are stories that are both timeless and timely. The stories are past and present.”
They are important because we don’t live forever to recall incidents that took place millennia ago; so we read them, we share them, and we reflect on them because they show that people are the same regardless of their backgrounds or where in the world they exist or have existed. They are also relevant because some of the poems depict futuristic stories.
Tracks like Unfaithful Woman present a clear stylistic shift – how did you decide what kind of performance and soundscape to use in every case?
I’m glad you asked that! When I first recorded it, I guess I was diplomatic in my description of her. However, Dianna called me up and said, “I want you to rework that poem. I want you to take that woman to court and sentence her. I want the listener to see her for what she is.” So I rewrote the poem with a more accusatory tone so that everyone could see that she deserved her sentence. Hahahaha.
For The Wait, I’m glad Dianna decided a wedding march was the best fit. I was thinking along the same lines too. At times, I could actually hear what I wanted the soundscape to be like while writing the poem. I wanted sounds that would reflect the tone and beautiful harmony of a wedding. Sometimes a third person enters a marriage and disrupts the harmony and so Unfaithful Woman shows that stylistic shift.
New Jerusalem is a beautiful closing track – what does this final piece represent in terms of the whole journey of Wedding Invitation?
Thank you! I’m so glad you like it. New Jerusalem represents the wedding that we are all invited to. So the listener now arrives at the destination. Those who accept the wedding invitation literally live happily ever after. The fairy tale is real in this instance.
Will there be any visual accompaniments to this album, and if so, what will that visual side bring out in the poems and music?
Yes, there are plans for visual accompaniments. My plans are for visuals for Conversation at the Well, The Wait, and Unfaithful Woman. I intend that the visual side will bring out a greater appreciation of the poems and music and make the stories come more alive. Viewers will be able to physically see what they envisioned while they were listening to the poems.
Given the theatrical performances throughout, do you also partake in theatre or acting as a creative, or is this your sole focus right now?
It’s funny that you should ask that. As I was recording this album, I realized it was also a play. I have taken acting classes. I love acting too. I am not currently partaking in theatre or acting right now but I have an idea to present Wedding Invitation as a play as well. I would love to be able to present a play with other members of my community, perhaps with members of the Boys and Girls Club. It’s something I have talked about doing at churches also.
What’s your biggest ambition at present?
My biggest ambition right now is to embark on a more expansive tour so that I can engage with many more people in person. I even dare to say, now that there is a Grammy category for poetry, my ambition is to be considered for that category. Just a nomination for now. That would be life-changing in terms of where I want to take my career. It would open more doors of opportunity for me to use poetry to make a difference in the lives of many more people.
Is there anything else we should know?
Yes, I am compiling a collection of my poems to be published later this year. I am also working on a new single on climate change to be released this summer. The climate discussion is key. There is a great piece of detail that we are leaving out when it comes to proposed solutions. I address this in the upcoming single.
Thank you so much for having me. I really enjoyed this interview.
Massive thanks to you too for your time and insight!
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Find Queen Majeeda on Instagram, YouTube & her Website.
