Free The Collected Poetry of Nikki Giovanni by Nikki Giovanni Page B

over and i find
    i must remove you
    from my life

Poem for Aretha
    cause nobody deals with Aretha—a mother with four
    children—having to hit the road
    they always say “after she comes
    home” but nobody ever says what it’s like
    to get on a plane for a three week tour
    the elation of the first couple of audiences the good
    feeling of exchange the running on the high
    you get from singing good
    and loud and long telling the world
    what’s on your mind
    then comes the eighth show on the sixth day the beginning
    to smell like the plane or bus the if-you-forget-your-tooth brush
    in-one-spot-you-can’t-brush-until-the-second-show the strangers
    pulling at you cause they love you but you having no love to give back
    and singing the same songs night after night day after day
    and if you read the gossip columns the rumors that your husband
    is only after your fame
    the wondering if your children will be glad to see you and maybe
    the not caring if they are the scheming to get out
    of just one show and go just one place where some doe-doe dupaduke
    won’t say “just sing one song, please”
    nobody mentions how it feels to become a freak
    because you have talent and how
    no one gives a damn how you feel
    but only cares that aretha franklin is here like maybe that’ll stop:
    chickens from frying
    eggs from being laid
    crackers from hating
    and if you say you’re lonely or scared or tired how they always
    just say “oh come off it” or “did you see
    how they loved you did you see huh did you?”
    which most likely has nothing to do with you anyway
    and i’m not saying aretha shouldn’t have talent and i’m certainly
    not saying she should quit
    singing but as much as i love her i’d vote “yes” to her
    doing four concerts a year and staying home or doing whatever
    she wants and making records cause it’s a shame
    the way we are killing her
    we eat up artists like there’s going to be a famine at the end
    of those three minutes when there are in fact an abundance
    of talents just waiting let’s put some
    of the giants away for a while and deal with them like they have
    a life to lead
    Aretha doesn’t have to relive billie holiday’s life doesn’t have
    to relive dinah washington’s death but who will
    stop the pattern
    she’s more important than her music—if they must be
    separated—
    and they should be separated when she has to pass out
    before
    anyone recognizes she needs
    a rest and i say i need
    aretha’s music
    she is undoubtedly the one person who put everyone on
    notice
    she revived johnny ace and remembered lil green aretha sings “i say a little prayer” and dionne doesn’t
    want to hear it anymore
    aretha sings “money won’t change you”
    but james can’t sing “respect” the advent
    of Aretha pulled ray charles from marlboro country
    and back into
    the blues made nancy wilson
    try one more time forced
    dionne to make a choice (she opted for the movies)
    and diana ross had to get an afro wig pushed every
    Black singer into Blackness and negro entertainers
    into negroness you couldn’t jive
    when she said “you make me/feel” the blazers
    had to reply “gotta let a man be/a man”
    aretha said “when my soul was in the lost and found/you came along to claim it” and joplin said “maybe”
    there has been no musician whom her very presence hasn’t
    affected when humphrey wanted her to campaign she said
    â€œwoeman’s only hueman”
    and he pressured james brown
    they removed otis cause the combination was too strong
    the impressions had to say “lord have mercy/we’re moving on up”
    the Black songs started coming from the singers on stage and the dancers
    in the streets
    aretha was the riot was the leader if she had said “come
    let’s do it” it would have been done temptations say why