Our City Speaks – United We Stream

Manchester City of Literature and spoken word collective Young Identity have teamed up with Contact to bring a special livestreamed performance featuring poets and spoken word artists to a screen near you. Our City Speaks will be the latest offer from United We Stream, which, with its specially constructed studio located at The Met, Bury, has provided a virtual platform to the city’s best performers, musicians and DJs since lockdown was imposed and which has already hosted Mancunian cultural icons the likes of New Order and Maxine Peake, as well as digital editions of some of Manchester’s legendary club nights.

Our City Speaks will be hosted by Manchester City of Literature’s (and Contact board member) Reece Williams, fresh from his gig as MC at One Mic Stand Online, and will feature a mix of sets specially pre-recorded for the night as well as solo artists appearing live at United We Stream’s studio.

Manchester City of Literature and spoken word collective Young Identity have teamed up with Contact to bring a special livestreamed performance featuring poets and spoken word artists to a screen near you

The first half of the evening will hear from poet Tony Walsh, whose crowd-pleaser This Is The Place became a symbol of Manchester’s strength and unity after the Arena terrorist attack three years ago; the second half will be headlined by actor, musician and creative producer Keisha Thompson, whose solo show Man On The Moon was awarded Best Studio Production at the Manchester Theatre Awards in 2018. Other artists confirmed so far include Nadia Begum, Damani Dennisur, Saf Elsenossi, Roma Havers, Isaiah Hull, Argh Kid, Mandla Rae, Jardel Rodrigues, Dave Scott, Dave Viney and Louise Wallwein,

The performances will be live from 7pm on United We Stream’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. United We Stream is free to watch. Donations are welcomed towards their fundraiser, which provides aid to Manchester-based entertainment venues, bars and restaurants and artists struggling from closures and revenue loss during the COVID-19 pandemic.