We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Najya Williams a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Najya, appreciate you joining us today. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

Thank you so much for having me — it is an immense honor!  At the start of the COVID pandemic in 2020, I was in quarantine at home with my family and felt deeply called to dig into our history. After talking through my ideas with my mom, I decided to start with a U.S. Census search to see how far back I could trace our roots. Imagine my surprise when I was able to trace our lineage all the way to the 1890s in Kingstree, SC, where the Nelsons planted the seeds that have bloomed into the family of their wildest imaginations. From the discovery of that census record, I went on to interview my great-aunt and compile the beginnings of our family’s oral history. I later published them on a private site so that my cousins and extended family can access these records and hold onto the knowledge of our history for many years to come. This project remains one of my most meaningful projects because so often, Black people are demanded to honor the roots of every other place, person and thing, and this felt like a small, but mighty, step in reclaiming that of my own.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Najya (Mya with an N) and I am a multidisciplinary artist who is passionate about the intersection of health and art. My professional journey began when I was a high school student. I was incredibly involved in our poetry club that was run by our school administrator, who was also an avid poet. We performed at various venues and events throughout D.C. (my hometown) and were often met with high praise from our attendees. As I approached my high school graduation, many people in my community began to ask me when I was planning to publish my first book. I would generally laugh off these inquiries, as I didn’t believe anyone would benefit from hearing what I had to say at such a young age. However, once I left home for college, everything changed. I was immediately surrounded by passionate young adults who were pursuing their dreams with reckless abandon. I thought to myself, “If they are betting on themselves and what they have to offer the world, why can’t I do the same?”

After over a year of preparation, I published my debut poetry chapbook, Cotton, in 2017 and soon, my career as a poet and multidisciplinary artist took off in unimaginable ways. I have performed across the United States at venues large and small, including Harvard University, University of Virginia, and Busboys and Poets. My work has been accepted and published by POETRY, Black Girls in Om, ForHarriet, and a host of other outlets. I have partnered with Catapult Magazine, midnight&indigo and Write or Die Mag to facilitate writing workshops and courses that sharpen the skills of writers just entering into this field. However, even with all of the publication and performance successes I’ve had, I am most proud of the number of people who have reached out to me to say how my poetry has changed their life and encouraged them to pursue health and happiness for themselves, radically and unapologetically. To know that my works have given other human beings something to anchor and root themselves in means more than I can ever adequately express.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Society can best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem by investing into them with time, energy and especially for artists of color, financial support. We are in a particularly challenging time in history where resources are extremely limited, and it is important to remember that art and artmakers have been critical to telling the truth and preserving our stories in difficult times. In order to do that work, artists must be able to meet their basic needs, and have the space and resources to hone their creativity.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

At the very core of my creative journey, I am motivated by my desire to inspire healing and restoration in the world around me. I am currently a medical student, so I am constantly thinking about the ways in which art and medicine can intersect and better our society as a whole. If I help even one person to find an increased sense of joy and peace for themselves in this lifetime, I feel that I’ve done what I set out to do.    

Contact Info:

• Website: www.najyawilliams.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/najyawilliams

Image Credits
Hakeem Angulu