We recently connected with Justin Patton and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Justin thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?
I first knew I wanted to dedicate my life to becoming a world class spoken word artist after getting laid off and fired from different jobs within 2 years. I was already performing and writing at that time, but it wasn’t until then that I decided I wanted to be a full-time creative. After getting fired, I was at my parents house trying to decide what my next career move was going to be. While sitting in my old bedroom, my mother walked in and handed me a folder that contained old work I had turned in throughout elementary and middle school. Within that work were 2 poetry chapbooks that I had turned in in the 6th grade with construction paper and shoe strings tied together to bind the pages. After reading the poems, I googled the words to make sure they were my own works. That’s how good I thought they were. It was at that point I thought to myself, “I’ve been doing this; poetry is nothing new for me.” And it was at that moment that I decided that being a spoken word poet was the path for me.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
Since as early as I can remember, I have always written. Whether it was journaling or writing poetry as an outlet for my own sanity, I have always written to help process my emotions. While in college, I was going through a tough period dealing with some deaths in the family and struggling to find my place in the world, I was writing poetry often. One day a friend came to visit, and found some of my writing scattered about. He mentioned that he didn’t know that I wrote poetry, and that I should do something with the poems. I brushed him off. About a month later, that same friend called me and told me that he knew someone that was putting a spoken word show together, but the artist he had bailed on him at the last minute, and asked me if I would come and perform some of my poems. I reluctantly agreed. The show was the next day, so with almost no time to prepare, I wrote something that night and tried my best to memorize it for the show. I got on stage, froze up, forget my words, and completely embarrassed myself. Proud of myself for trying, I knew I could do better so I started going to open mics to work on my craft, and since then, that dreadful performance has led to me being an author, producing my own show called ‘Soul Therapy Poetry Show’, partnering with organizations as a brand ambassador, conducting workshops and performing across the U.S.
Our goal with poetry is to not only entertain and inspire with our live performances, but to show that poetry is a practical tool that can be used to help understand and process our emotions. We also aim to show poets and spoken word artists that it is possible to build a business around your art. The art of spoken word in my experience has been shown to be just as impactful as other art forms, but has only been introduced to the masses by a select few. We strive to shed light on other amazing spoken word artists, and give them a platform for their work to be seen.
What separates my brand from others is that all of my work is filtered through the lens of Justin Patton. While people may have similar experiences as me, no one has walked in my shoes and is able to use my story to inspire others like I can. My perspective is unique to me, and if there’s one thing I’m an expert in as my life’s journey. I’m also one of the few poetry brands that cover many different mediums in terms of providing content in all forms including video, audio, the written word, live shows, workshops, and partnership opportunities.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding part of being an artist is creating something that inspires people. To have an idea, bring that idea to life, and then present it to people in a way where they can relate and/or makes them feel something is the ultimate goal for anything that I create. To me, creating is utilizing our highest potential as human beings. It is our creations, and building upon things that were created before us that keep the world moving forward. For many artists, we are giving a piece of ourselves when we share our art, and often it’s in our creations where we feel free to be most vulnerable. While expression can be therapy for the artist, there is a great satisfaction that comes with the masses accepting your art, and holding your creation in high regard. It’s a reminder of how powerful the mind can be when we focus it towards something we care about.
What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?
The mission of my creative journey is to help push spoken word poetry to a mainstream level. It is my belief that when we write poetry, it forces us to go inward and analyze our emotions so that we can express them in a way that makes sense to us. When we perform that poetry for audiences, we express what people may have trouble expressing, inspire others on their own journeys, and not to mention provide quality entertainment! Poetry can help us to understand and deal with our emotions whether we’re the ones writing it or listening to it. Throughout the pandemic violence, divorce, crime, and anxiety were all on the rise, and a lot of that has to do with the fact that many of us had never been forced to sit still and deal with what we’re going through. At this time, the world needs more poets to speak life into lost souls, and I want to be one of the greatest spoken word artists to contribute to that cause.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.iamjustinpatton.com
- Instagram: @iamjustinpatton
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/iamjustinpatton
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/justinpattontaylor
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/taylorjustinp