HUMANS OF THE ISLANDS - ERIC SOAKAI

ERIC SOAKAI

POET

SAMOAN/TONGAN

Eric Soakai is a Samoan Tongan activist, artist and academic based out of South Auckland. In his artform Eric explores indigenous storytelling through his lense as a Polynesian man. 

The young and talented creative was featured in The Panthers Documentary where he shared a powerful spoken word piece.

We got to catch up with Eric and chat about his art, purpose and passion for telling indigenous stories through poetry.

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You did a powerful spoken word piece as part of the Panthers Rapp doco series - what was the essence of this piece and what drove you to write it? 

For me the essence of the piece is ‘ka mua, ka muri’. It is an expression of walking backwards into the future, of recognising we bring all that was of our gafa/whakapapa into a space of potentiality/ what will be. The way I was able to understand better the weight of what this carried was to learn the history behind the different names I carry. I think we are all placeholders for long and proud lines of Artists, Scholars, Warriors and Nurturers, all of which are hidden in our names.

I was driven to write the piece out of anger and frustration, the idea that I would be forgotten or mistaken for someone else started the first draft as “You Will Remember My Name”, however, I soon realised I don’t walk alone, and my name is part of ‘Our’ shared history, so it changed to “You Will Remember Our Names”.

How inspired were you to speak on the Panthers movement and issues islanders went through in this time? What is it about these experiences connected with you? 

I was very inspired to talk about the Panthers Movement and the issues Islanders went through because the personal is political, and while today people see these as Social Studies lessons, I had/have family who were affected greatly by this period in time.

While I am blessed to not have to fight the exact same battles they did, I recognise the fight isn’t over, and the way we are still treated today, sometimes as ‘Second-Class Citizens’... I’m not here for it, we didn’t navigate, agitate and continue to liberate our peoples to be called “Leeches”, Criminals and Overstayers.

What are your personal connections to this time, did you have family that went through these experiences? 

Both my Samoan aiga and my Tongan family were part of the movement and/or hounded in the Dawn Raids. I’ve been really blessed recently to talk with some of my Uncles/ Aunties who were alive and advocating during that time. Hearing how some of them had to leave their loved ones for their own safety really pissed me off, however, listening to how they nostalgically talk about Ponsonby is really cool.

I’d also like to acknowledge my uncle Pakilau Manase Lua who has been a very public advocate and champion for our peoples, the way he has shared his story has really helped personalise the movement for those who couldn’t quite understand it before.

Tell us about Slam Poetry - for those that don't know, what is it and why has it had so much appeal to young people of colour? 

Slam Poetry, if nothing else is what we do on Social Media, but in real life. Which is to say, you get to shout into the void for around 3 minutes and then get heaps of compliments because everyone in the space is really lovely and wants you to succeed. 

How seriously do people take this form of performance poetry? Is it recognised as much as you think it should be in the hierarchy of the arts? 

Some people (me) take it very seriously, I have gotten to do a bit of international work due to Performance Poetry, and it’s opened up a lot of doors financially, socially and mentally. So for me, like any good craft, I put in a lot of work because I feel I get a lot out of it too.

One of my mentors Ken Arkind once said something along the lines of “Performance Poetry/ Spoken Word is like the Dandelion of the Arts”, which I think perfectly sums up how it’s positioned in the hierarchy of the arts. Some people would call it a ‘weed’ or trashy because it isn’t exactly highbrow, but it’s for the people and people love to engage with it. 

This space seems so raw and at the same time confronting - do you feel vulnerable in this space? what are the challenges and the triumphs for you? How exhilarating is it to be in the moment of this type of performance? 

The space is very raw, and very confronting, it really does feel like being loud on social media in all the scary ways to because there’s always the fear people will judge you or mock you. One of the biggest challenges are not taking it personally when a judge, critic or patron doesn’t like what I’ve performed or written for them when I feel put my heart and soul into the work, but I’m working on it lol. In terms of triumphs, I managed to win the National Slam Poetry title in 2019 so that’s pretty cool, and because of my collective work got to do a Spoken Word Residency in Canada (pre COVID).  

I think it’s as exhilarating as a great game of Volleyball, Basketball or Theatre show. You’re 100% invested, everyone participating is letting their skills do the talk (or in this case literally talking) and trying to leave it all on the stage/field.

Why is this art form important for young Pasifika people - whats cool about spoken word as an outlet / expression? 

I think about this question a lot as I work with young people a fair bit. Shout out to Action Education, Te Kahui and Unibound. I think this form of education is important because it gives our people a voice. 

As a young person, your job is to listen and obey, I don’t think we feel very heard at times. However, Spoken Word is about being listened to and trying to understand your story/you. Which is what I think the allure is. 

This seems to be artform that requires the artist to be hugely passionate in their performance - what are you passionate about in your work and what are you vibing on at the moment? 

I agree, I think all the best artists put a bit of them into the story and that’s the secret sauce. I’m passionate about understanding what the world around me is and how I relate to it. Using my words to help articulate a feeling that might be a bit hard to say without taking the time to unpack what is really happening. 

Been really vibing this quote that goes “You read to understand the world, you write to change it”. Which I think sums up where I’m at with it all at the moment. Thanks for listening to me lol.