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Levi Tafari

Levi Tafari

Levi was born and raised in the Toxteth district of Liverpool. Born in 1960 to Jamaican parents, he grew up in the Granby Street area and was heavily influenced by the different cultures around him.

A keen sportsman and student, Levi eventually decided to train as a chef and attended catering college where he studied classical French cuisine. He graduated with a distinction and entered the world of catering as a profession.

Around this time in the late 1970s Levi became interested in the Rastafarian movement and remains a committed member to this day. He was also looking for an outlet for his creative expression and began writing poetry and attending The Liverpool 8 Writers workshop. Inspired by this and the performance poetry explosion of the early 1980s he left the trade he loved for the art he loved even more.

Levi’s work is deeply rooted in the oral tradition. He sees himself as an Urban Griot, the griot being the traditional consciousness raiser, storyteller, newscaster and political agitator. He has had three collections of his poetry published. His work has also taken him around the world and down many paths – live performance, TV, radio, plays and creative workshops.

Levi now has a family of his own and continues to live with them in the community that inspired much of his early work, Toxteth.

For our project he has recited four examples of his poetry and has also kindly donated signed copies of them for our collection.