A New Kind of Adult Entertainment
Image: @paolinastadler
In today’s literary landscape, where highbrow and lowbrow cultures increasingly overlap, London has become a hub for a new kind of event. Poetry nights – once dominated by earnest, scholarly settings – have evolved into something more inclusive and experimental. And as their popularity grows, readings are happening not only at bookstores but at bars, galleries and parties, too.
Late January, for example. About 100 people packed into Ginny on Frederick, a compact art gallery overlooking Smithfield Market in Farringdon. Most spilled out onto the pavement to catch the 11 speakers reading their work, with topics ranging from mental health and identity to red moons, brain drain and brushing your teeth.
“On the nights, I make a point of referring to everyone as poets, even if they wouldn’t necessarily call themselves that”
The event was organised by James Massiah, a 34-year-old DJ and poet from south London. His event series, Adult Entertainment, merges poetry, music and art, creating a blend that extends beyond the written word. Often hosted in intimate spaces with the lighting turned down low, these deliberately unconventional venues disrupt the expectations of traditional literary gatherings.
The name alone is a statement. Adult Entertainment is a provocation, a nudge that challenges the notion of who poetry is for. By choosing a name that’s tongue-in-cheek yet loaded with meaning, Massiah is signalling that this kind of poetry event will be unpretentious, open, unfiltered.
Image: @paolinastadler
While the crowds at Adult Entertainment include literary enthusiasts, more often than not, the majority are people from his own social circles, the speakers included. Some of them might be poets, but at least half are usually artists, or even architects, people who’ve never published writing to any degree.
“On the nights, I make a point of referring to everyone as poets, even if they wouldn’t necessarily call themselves that,” Massiah explains. “Sometimes they get up to the mic and say, ‘I’m not actually a poet!’ before reading their work.
“I do it because I like to expand the boundaries of what poetry is,” he continues. “Or at least try to. I like to rap, I like to write essays, and I think that both of these things stem directly from poetry. Poetry doesn’t have to be this lofty thing.”
To some extent, Adult Entertainment is a “social experiment”, says Massiah. “How many people can I get in the same room, in the same moment, taking pleasure and joy from readings?” Personally, he adds, “I want to be inspired and frightened by other poets. I want them to destroy my idea of what a good poem is.”
James Messiah (centre). Image: @j_amesg_arn
“I do it because I like to expand the boundaries of what poetry is. Or at least try to”
Lots of the crowd wouldn’t even normally listen to poetry: “I can read something that’s won a TS Eliot prize for poetry to a mate, and they will say, ‘What’s that all about?!’ So with the events, it’s important to show the kinds of people and work that I like. A lot of poetry really comes down to: do you like it or not? And to try and create energy from that.”
Massiah has been writing and performing poetry for as long as he can remember. His growing profile has led to collaborations with brands ranging from Nike to Dior. He has performed his work at venues such as the Institute of Contemporary Arts and Tate Modern. In 2018, he was commissioned to write a poem for (then) Prince Charles’ 70th birthday and was later invited to meet him. All, in other words, achievements that few other poets can claim.
He launched Adult Entertainment two years ago, a replacement for The A & The E, an event series he hosted for around a decade at various venues across London. “Often, we’d all get mashed on a Monday night, but we’re proper adults now,” he jokes. His ambition isn’t for Adult Entertainment to get any bigger. “But I’d maybe like to put on more shows around the country or in other cities around the world,” he says. “Adult Entertainment on tour.”
