“I always say to people that I have a teenager, a toddler, and I’m pregnant,” Debris Stevenson quips within thirty seconds of starting our interview. To clarify, she isn’t talking about actual children, but rather her thought babies: her projects that she nurtures from embryonic clusters of ideas to fully...
JoinedNovember 11, 2019
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Dyslexic writer, Grime poet, working-class academic, pansexual ex-Mormon and Bashment dancing social activist from the seam between East London and Essex. Debris’ has no choice but to explore the intersectional, unexpected and unjust – it’s not just who she is, it’s her responsibility in a world that all too often summarises us into a caption.
Educated through the evolution of Grime in East London and nurtured by the Roundhouse in Camden, at just 18 Debris’ organised and hosted Turning Point Festival whilst followed by Channel 4 (Yeardot, SoTV). Since, she has graduated top of her class twice (BA and MA in creative writing), set up an organisation teaching thousands of young people poetry as a life skill (Mouthy Poets), designed and delivered foundation poetry and performance modules at Nottingham University and had her debut poetry pamphlet, Pigeon Party, published by Flipped Eye.
By 25 years old, Debris’ had raised over £300,000 with The Mouthy Poets to develop young artists and worked in over 25 countries.
Now 28, Debris’ has focused on moving into Theatre, TV and Film, her debut grime-musical, Poet in da Corner, premiering at The Royal Court in 2018.Poet in da Corner, which Debris’ wrote with Grime MC, Jammz and stared in, received 4-5 stars across the board and saw Debris’ nominated for an Emerging Talent of The Year Award at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards.
When Debris isn’t writing, speaking, teaching or performing, she can also often be found dancing to Grime, Soca, Afrobeats and Dancehall for organisations such as The Heatwave and Red Bull Music Academy.