[encore] 710: Acknowledgments by Nkosi Nkululeko

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily Episode: [encore] 710: Acknowledgments by Nkosi Nkululeko
Release Date: June 30, 2025
Host: Major Jackson
Guest Poet: Nkosi Nkululeko
Original Host: Ada Limón

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Introduction

In this encore episode of The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily, host Major Jackson delves into the archives to present a poignant selection from Ada Limón's tenure as host. Major Jackson commends Ada's "thoughtfulness and deep love of poetry," setting the stage for a reflective and moving session.
Timestamp: [01:02]

Poem Recital: "Acknowledgments" by Nkosi Nkululeko

The centerpiece of the episode is Nkosi Nkululeko's powerful poem "Acknowledgments," initially introduced by former host Ada Limón. The poem serves as a heartfelt homage to community, identity, and the complexities of existence.

Key Excerpts:

• On Identity and Heritage:
  Nkosi Nkululeko states, “I do not have my parents name but their blood runs through me like hyphens”
  Timestamp: [03:21]

• Community and Belonging:
  Nkosi expresses, “Allegiance is the only name that binds I pledge it like a president”
  Timestamp: [03:46]

• Struggles and Resilience:
  He poignantly shares, “Death is sometimes my shadow and when the block is full of them it becomes a beautiful carnage of darkness.”
  Timestamp: [05:08]

• Homage to Harlem:
  Nkosi concludes with a deep connection to place, “Shout out to Harlem, the mangled heaven I know too well to leave.”
  Timestamp: [05:31]

Discussion and Insights

Throughout the recital, Ada Limón and Nkosi Nkululeko engage in a nuanced conversation that underscores the themes of the poem. They explore the idea of feeling "enough" within one's community and the layered emotions that come with acknowledging both personal and collective struggles. Nkosi's verses navigate the tension between despair and hope, illustrating how acknowledgment can be a form of resistance and affirmation.

Major Jackson reflects on the poem's ability to "make room for complicated praise," highlighting Nkosi's talent in capturing the multifaceted nature of community bonds and individual identity. The discussion emphasizes the importance of poetry as a medium for both personal reflection and societal commentary.

Conclusion

This episode of The Slowdown offers listeners a deep dive into Nkosi Nkululeko's "Acknowledgments," enriched by the thoughtful introductions and reflections of Ada Limón and Major Jackson. By presenting this encore performance, the podcast celebrates the enduring power of poetry to illuminate, connect, and inspire.

For more reflections and daily poetic moments, listeners are encouraged to explore The Slowdown's extensive archive and stay connected through their newsletter and social media channels.

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Notable Quotes:

• Nkosi Nkululeko: “Allegiance is the only name that binds I pledge it like a president.”
  Timestamp: [03:46]

• Ada Limón: “What if I allowed myself to already feel like I have enough?”
  Timestamp: [01:29]

• Nkosi Nkululeko: “Shout out to Harlem, the mangled heaven I know too well to leave.”
  Timestamp: [05:31]

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The Slowdown: Poetry & Reflection Daily is produced by APM Studios in partnership with The Poetry Foundation and supported by the National Endowment for the Arts. For more episodes and to subscribe, visit slowdownshow.org.

Transcript

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[Major Jackson]

Hey, it's me, Major Jackson. We're reaching into the archive to bring you some of our favorites. Here's one from Ada Limone's tenure as host. Her thoughtfulness and deep love of poetry made her time on the show very special. I hope you enjoy this selection from the Archives.

[Ada Limon]

I'm Ada Limon and this is the Slowdown. The question that has been on my mind lately is what if I allowed myself to already feel like I have enough?

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

What if I am looking to be.

[Ada Limon]

In community, but I am already in community with the people I see on.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

A daily basis during my routines? The animals, the plants, my family, my chosen family. What if I am already connected to everything? What if I allowed myself to feel not just happy or joyful, but content, full, satiated. What if I allowed myself to feel.

[Ada Limon]

Like I have enough? To feel like I am enough?

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

Even thinking about it makes my shoulders drop.

[Ada Limon]

I exhale and feel the breath in.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

My lungs and it's something like peace. What if I allowed myself to love not just where I am going or.

[Ada Limon]

Where I've been, but where I am right now? And in that acknowledgment, give praise to.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

Everyone who is walking through with me on this journey? What would happen? Today's poem is an exploration of shouting out ourselves and our community. I love how this poem makes room for complicated praise.

[Ada Limon]

Acknowledgments by Nkosi Nkululeko When I hear my name, I feel like I am my own country.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

I do not have my parents name but their blood runs through me like hyphens Shout out to the fam Addicted to addiction the conception of greed for the feeling a body has when it.

[Ada Limon]

Has too much I know men on.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

The block are full to the ends of their skin with sin on the.

[Ada Limon]

Corners of my block Brothers rep their.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

Hood like nations would Allegiance is the only name that binds I pledge it like a president One hand on the Bible the other dipped in blood I'm faithful to my people with no God Godless tribes deserve the Shout out the call to the hopeless we have no church to burn. Shout out to the streets undone the concrete that memorizes the word surrender Shout out to to the surrendered. You fail for us to fail easy When I jog through rain I feel each bulb catch fire on me Watch me sing bright with a somber song Shout out to the women who've sung for me. I am a man with many songs but sing none I want to acknowledge the homes I know the brick frames.

[Ada Limon]

With smoke in the interior I want.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

To give a shout out to the.

[Ada Limon]

Place that's displaced the 5am mornings where.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

My city is no longer mine but belongs to the cool breeze that sweeps the easy blood off the ground. Shout out to the blood the body it once belonged to must be lighter now. Death is sometimes my shadow and when.

[Ada Limon]

The block is full of them it.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

Becomes a beautiful carnage of darkness. Shout out to the ones that finance the the wreckage, the economical philosophies of place how we lose it but never bound by the lack of it. Shout out to the lack of the.

[Ada Limon]

Absence in which we make home In.

[Nkosi Nkululeko]

Shout out to home the blues that brings me closer to the earth to sing Shout out to Harlem, the mangled heaven I know too well to leave.

[Major Jackson]

The Slowdown is a production of American Public Media in partnership with the Poetry Foundation. This project is also supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts. On the [e-mail] to get a poem delivered to you daily, go to slowdownshow.org and sign up for our newsletter. Find us at on Instagram @downdownshow and bluesky.downdownshow.org.

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