Poetry Slam: The Roots Beneath My Voice – Dolly Kinny (Eastern Christian College)

Duration: 3:43 521 transcript words EN summary

Video summary

Dolly Kini opens her poem by challenging the common expectation that identity is defined solely by geography and place of origin. Instead of simply naming a village or describing the landscape behind hills where roads remember every footstep, she asserts that her true heritage lies in what she carries within herself rather than just where she comes from. She describes this internal inheritance as stories passed down orally from grandmother to child, likening them to small flames cupped between two hands that have survived without ever being printed in books. These narratives represent a living connection to ancestors who spoke before the world imposed other languages, emphasizing that culture is not merely an attire or a set of traditions like neckties, but is deeply rooted in how one respects elders, tastes familiar food, and finds solace in songs when feeling lost in a changing world. The speaker acknowledges the tension between embracing new dreams and the fear of losing oneself in the process of modernization. While she admits to having aspirations that go beyond her ancestors' imagination, she refuses to believe that moving forward requires leaving the past behind. She uses the powerful metaphor of a tree to illustrate that one cannot forget the roots that made them grow, just as a person cannot learn new languages or travel new lands without silencing their own voice or forgetting their homeland. Her stance is clear: she intends to engage with the world and speak new tongues without unlearning who she is, ensuring that her heritage remains a dynamic force rather than a frozen photograph of history. Ultimately, Kini redefines the concept of origin by shifting from pointing to old photographs to declaring that her people are the stories that have survived and the songs that refuse to disappear. She presents herself as a living vessel for the voices of those who lived before her, stating that their past lives in her presence and their stories live in her voice. By giving the audience a song instead of just a tale when asked where she is from, she demonstrates that heritage is an everlasting virtue woven into existence itself rather than just dances or plots. The poem concludes with a powerful affirmation that she embodies both yesterday and today, daring to dream about tomorrow while ensuring that the legacy of her ancestors continues to live through her presence and voice forever.

Read the full video transcript

Good morning everyone. Most respected judges, participants, organizers and to all the audience present here. My name is Dolly Kini of BAF first semester department of English proudly representing Eastern Christian College Democra. The title of my poem is the roots beneath my voice. I am not a music piece. They asked me, "Where are you from?" And I could give them a place, a name, a village readed behind the hills where roads remember every footsteps and of languages that sounds different when the old speaks. And somehow slightly different when I speak. But today, I don't want to just tell you about where I come from. I want to tell you what I carry. I carry a thumb. When my forefather spoke before the world told them another language mattered more. I carry stories never printed in books because some stories like a small flame cup between two hands were passed from mouth to ear from a grandmother to a child from a generation to another. But all I'm afraid sometimes afraid that one day I will be a stranger to the meaning of the words I speak to where my culture is an entire only wonder celebration. Afraid that one day songs will only become performances and my tradition frozen only photographs for heritage is not just an attire. It is not just about putting on neck ties. It is in the way I respect my elders. It is in the food that tastes like home. And in songs that cinders me when I feel lost amidst the world that is changing. I know I am changing too. For I have dreams beyond my ancestors imagination. Yet scared to lose myself with it. I study, I speak, I travel. I dream beyond the heels that raised me. And sometimes people think moving forward means leaving the past behind. But is that so? Can a tree forget the roots that made it grow? No. So now I will learn the world without unlearning myself. Speak new languages without silencing my own. I will walk in the new lands without forgetting my land, my heels. And someday if a child asked me where did we come from, I do not want to point to an old photograph and say once we used to be this. Rather I will say we are the stories that survived. Songs that refuse to disappear. We are the language that never ceases to fade and continues to leave. We are today. We are yesterday, standing today, daring to dream about tomorrow. This voice you hear today is not just mine alone. It is an echo of every voice that once lived before me. So ask me again, where are you from? And I won't just give you a tale. I'll give you a song. I will give you a song so virtues everlasting of heritage not merely woven in the dances, plots or celebration. For I am them, they are me. Their past lives in my presence. Their stories lives in my voice. And they will continue to live through me. Thank you very much.