In Conversation with Princess Latifah

Princess Latifah is a spoken word artist from South East London. She writes raw, real, rebellious, power-reclaiming, self-reaffirming, feather-ruffling, trauma-healing, insecurity-shattering, self-loving, table-shaking, unfiltered and yeah... sometimes controversial poetry.

She also sings and merges poetry with music. She believes that words are spells, so writing is magic, and spoken word is extremely powerful.

Her mission is simple: to walk loudly in her own power and wake women up to their power, their beauty, and their magic - just as they are.

ourppls caught up with Princess Latifah to talk about creativity, community, and what inspires her spoken word.

Who or what keeps you and your team inspired when the work feels heavy or resources are low?

A lot of my pieces are about female empowerment - encouraging confidence like in STOMP, or loving ourselves exactly as we were made, like in POWER PUFF and WITHOUT MAKE-UP. For the most part, I don’t have a team. My family are great, and I have a few good friends, but it’s my daughter who keeps me inspired the most. Her innocence, her raw beauty - she’s so perfect and pure. It’s the need to protect what makes her unique and special from a society that will try to poison her and sway her away from her natural perfection. After my daughter, it’s my son, and then it’s simply my love of women (females in general) - my reflection. We are the portals of life. We build the nation. First food, first home. Seeing us destroy ourselves with surgeries, chemicals, and confusion is heartbreaking, so I write to remind us of who we are.

What’s one thing people don’t always see about what you do?

The hard inner work and healing it’s taken (and in some ways is still taking) - to like and accept myself. To be satisfied with the way I was designed by the divine. So I can be an example of self-love for my daughter first, then my son, and for anyone else who needs it. So I can stand up and speak on certain things with my chest - because it’s real and true. I write for me, and then I write for you.

Self-love is so important because we can only love another as deeply as we know love within ourselves. A better world starts with a better self.

How do you sustain yourself while giving so much to others?

I don’t. lol. I’m such a mess of a princess! A shambles! But I make it work. I still feel like a child myself - learning and growing - yet I’m a mum of a 2-year-old and a 5-year-old. Through the sleepless nights, early mornings, tantrums, overwhelm, and overstimulation… we move. And we keep moving. Because the work I do is so much bigger than me. My voice is a gift. I must use it.

If you could dream big, what would the impact of your work look like in your community five years from now?

Honestly? That my work would help cause a shift in society. In the world. For black women to be natural and free. I’d love to create space - in such an artificial, superficial society - where make-up is a choice, not a need. Where we don’t feel tempted to tamper with our bodies because they’re seen as trophies, temples, not trends. Our hair grows proudly towards the sun, with no pressure to burn it, fry it, slick it, or hide it. Afro hair is frequently plastered all over films, music videos & the internet. Afro hair is the norm. Black women are confident in their skin, glowing and overflowing with joy. Image management is no longer an unhealthy obsession, and we can finally focus on being the magical, intuitive, intelligent beings that we are.

Princess Latifah's spoken word is more than the controversy that sometimes surrounds her work, she is a voice shaping generations to come. Through her bold spoken word performances, she challenges harmful beauty standards, celebrates black identity, and encourages her community to embrace its roots without apology. Her art is not just powerful words, it's an ongoing act to uplift, healing, and cultural pride that continues to resonate far beyond the stage.

Follow Princess Latifah on Instagram @princesslatifahofficial