Unstoppable: ‘Queer’ poet, Romeo Oriogun, bags Harvard Fellowship

In the literary world, it is almost impossible to separate the artist from his work. But despite being misunderstood, vilified…even threatened, Oluwasegun Romeo Oriogun is ingraining his name in the world’s consciousness as an artist and with his work.

Already, together with 22 other accomplished poets, Oriogun has been made a 2018-2019 W. E. B. Du Bios Research Institute Fellow through the Harvard University’s Hutchin Centre for African and African American Research,

The other fellows are mainly professors, scholars and well-known artists.

Perhaps, a brief history of Oriogun’s world would help in understanding his life, personality and work.

The 26-year-old poet hails from Ilesa, in Osun State, but lives in Udi in Enugu State. Oriogun lost his parents at a young age and, according to him, has experienced depression one time or the other in his life.

Three times he had tried to kill himself. Then, in junior secondary school, one of his female teachers introduced him to poetry.

“My teacher introduced me to it (poetry) as a way of naming the war in me,” he said.

But he soon lost interest in poetry after some time and sought other ways of fighting his demons. Then again, he found and reconnected with poetry.

“At this point, I knew there was no turning back. Poetry became a means of finding the way forward; of naming the chaos and the fear inside me; of celebrating every joy I meet on this way to life,” he said.

Few years ago, Oriogun was a rookie in the literary milieu, and his voice was a mere whisper. But with time, the small town of Udi, with its hills, trees, choir of birds, music and local cuisines transformed him into a literary icon with a roaring voice.

About Udi, he reminisced: “It makes me restless; the solitude and the people of this place make it possible for me write and live and smile.”

Though Oriogun has little higher education and writing-workshop training, he has  risen sharply to fame to the point that people find it difficult to believe he just started his writing career four years ago.

Within this period, he has amassed international prizes and fellowships that would probably take some writers many years to attain.

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Today, his writings have not only made him to ‘live and smile’; they have also distinguished him. As the cofounder and editor of Kabaka Magazine, he has succeeded in becoming a wordsmith whose work has attained global readership.

His copious poems have appeared in many reputable online and print magazines, and he had published two poetry chapbooks, Burnt Men (2016) and The Origin of Butterflies (2018), which have received rave reviews as well as severe criticisms. More importantly, his work has won him some nominations and prizes.

Among the 10 shortlisted poets selected from nearly 1,200 entries for the ₤3000-worth 2017 Brunel International African Poetry Prize, Oriogun won it with his Burnt Men. He is now among the four Nigerians that have won the prize since its inception in 2013.

The Brunel Prize judges noted that African poetry is now undergoing a revolution with the publication of many brilliantly unique poets who are changing the literary landscape of the continent.

About Oriogun, they said: “Romeo Oriogun is a hugely talented, outstanding, and urgent new voice in African poetry.”

Oriogun was also among the five finalists of the $1000-worth 2018 Sillerman First Book Prize for African poets for his full-length poetry manuscript, My Body Is No Miracle.

Two other Nigerians, Logan February and Rasaq Gbolahan, were among the finalists; but the prize was awarded to Botswana’s Tjawangwa Dema for her collection, The Careless Seamstress. Unfortunately, no Nigerian has won that prize since its inception in 2013.

Perhaps, what makes Oluwasegun Romeo Oriogun controversial as well as unique is his queerness and genius. His poetry is resplendent with queer themes and delicate issues in the society.

While some writers resort to the use of pseudonyms when addressing these issues, Oriogun confronts them head-on.

“I am queer; I am Nigerian. I don’t have the luxury of forgetting my identity. It’s one I must carry and always be aware of as I navigate spaces where I don’t feel welcome; and it sits over my shoulders as I write,” he said of himself.

In an interview, Gaamangwe Mogami, who understands the relevance of separating the writer from what he writes, asked Oriogun who the speaker in his poetry speaks for, and why? Oriogun, again, was open and blunt.

“Some of the poems have the speaker who tries to run away because the environment makes life difficult, and love is not enough to conquer it. These dark places happen around me, especially because you have the law that has criminalised queer people, and so you have people who are hiding to express and show love.

“Because I write about these things, I’ve become subject of online threat and abuse. Sometimes, this is the price I pay for writing; but it is better than keeping quiet,” Oriogun said.

Now a 2018-2019 W. E. B. Du Bios Research Institute Fellow, Oriogun is rubbing shoulders with the big men in his craft.

In fact, with the portfolios and ages of the 22 other fellows, Oriogun is more or less a baby in their midst. His work has, literally, placed him among giants.

“We are happy to welcome yet another class of scholars and artists engaged in timely and exciting work,” Henry Gates, the Director of W. E. B. Du Bios Research Institute, said.

But the Hutchin Fellowship is only kind of icing on the cake for Oriogun, who was once a Fellow of Ebedi International Writers Residency in Nigeria. He is also an Institute for International Education (IIE) Artist Protection Fund Fellow, as well as (a member of the) Harvard Scholars at Risk Fellow for spring 2018.

Oriogun who currently works in Harvard University and lives in the university’s town of Cambridge, Massachusetts, is expected to complete a volume titled The Emergence of Queer Voices in African Literature during his fellowship at the Hutchin Centre.

Contemporary African literature has come a long way, and there is no doubt Nigeria is at the forefront of it, both in the production of quality literary work and in the quantum of awards.

Sentiments, bigotry and fanaticism aside, Oriogun is yet another Nigerian whose work has intensified the momentum and relevance of Nigeria in African and global literary spaces.

Kingsley Alumona is a writer and reporter with the Saturday Tribune.