Black Sounds and Phonographic Poetry

Abstract

n 2021, Motown Records announced that it would be relaunching its shortlived Black Forum sublabel, rereleasing all of its 1970s pressings, and offering what they call “a platform to a new generation of writers, thinkers and poets.” Between 1970 and 1973, Motown’s Black Forum released overtly political spokenword recordings by black activists and poets, but how many listeners today would remember? Although the roster of recordings included Martin Luther King, Jr., Stokely Carmichael, Elaine Brown, Langston Hughes and Margaret Danner, and Amiri Baraka, the label lasted only three years and for decades the records remained out of print. The announcement, made by Motown’s first female President, Ethiopia Habtemariam, seemed to be an attempt by Motown to reassert its relevance and rethink its past: “As we navigate our way through unprecedented times, racial and social tensions are at a high. We felt an urgent need to reactivate Black Forum in order to provide information alongside inspiration.”1 Like many cultural platforms, Motown was responding to the rising tide of public outrage and protest against police murders of black citizens. But why the return to the recorded poetry and spokenword aesthetics of the