BMP (Buffalo Music Players) BREAKING EPISODE: Lea The Teacha

Welcome listeners to the BMP podcast!

In this episode, Max talks to local community member Lea The Teacha, who you might recognize from her musings on insta, or dancing to the beat at a local hip-hop show in the summer nights of Buffalo.

Speaking on her path in life, Lea was great to talk to as she took us into confidence on where she hopes to be, as well as events she'll be at with her books. Take a listen and give respect to the Teacha!

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Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:08

This is the B and P parcass. If you are artists, no matter just a player, we'll help you out. Don't believe in gatekeeping. We all gotta eat and this is our way of helping out. And Joe's the host. So here we go. Like, why you got a podcast? Everybody got dogs. To be quite honest, I don't got a job. Looking at prospects like who I'm going wrong. Thank Joe for the pot. I'm not designed for. I'm too pretty for present. But talking off the dome. I'm finna make a kill. If Joe Rogan can do it, I sure can. I've never fucked a stool, so I've got the upper hand. If Joe Rogan can do it, I sure can. I've never fucked a stool, so I've got the upper hand. After a long day, it's hard to turn off. That's why I go to Mammoth Cannabis on dude level highlighted. There's a double heavy laid out flattered in a mammoth. From flower to pre-roll, from vaporizer to concentrate. You can rest assured that something big is waiting for you in Mammoth Dispensary. Just keep in mind, if you smoke cereal from the General Mills factory nearby, they can't help you. You have to go home and get a bowl yourself. It's a dispensary, not an eatery after all. Hello guys, this is Max from the BMP Podcast. Today I am joined with Leah the Teacher. Introduce yourself.

SPEAKER_03 1:55

Hello, I am Leah the Teacher, poet, activist, um, and entrepreneur, community advocate, community organizer.

SPEAKER_01 2:04

Community staple, for those in the know. Um now, Leah the teacher, can you explain your name? Because as I know, it's more than just like a name.

SPEAKER_03 2:12

Um, well, my name is Leah, short for Kalia. Um, and the teacher, I actually got it, is inspired by Kara Swan. Oh really? Yes, yes. Uh I'm in love with hip hop. And um it also, crazy enough, uh I've always wanted to be a teacher. So since I was young, that's been one of my goals. I even interviewed a bunch of teachers in my school and like high school, and um, you know, just really um wanted to see what they like about the job or not like about the job, and yeah, so I've always wanted to be a teacher, and then there is KRS1, the teacher, um, and I combined both of them and made Leah the teacher.

SPEAKER_01 2:54

Nice. Actually, um, would you say that KRS One kind of helped you figure out to be a teacher? Because I've always thought of like KRS one as like one of those pioneers of hip hop that did teach us a bunch.

SPEAKER_03 3:05

I discovered KRS One like later on, like while I was in college. I was born at Buff State College in 2019.

SPEAKER_04 3:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:11

And that's when I like um, you know, of course I've heard his music growing up, but that's when I dig deep into the discography of Boogie Down Productions and started like pretty much falling in love with hip-hop um on my own.

SPEAKER_04 3:24

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:24

Yeah, yeah. So he he inspires me, um, and he he inspired the name, but mostly because um I consider myself a hip-hop head, and um I also consider myself, you know, a teacher, and someone with a lot of knowledge. He's spreading a lot of knowledge in his songs, a lot of things that I um agree with. And also, he has this one song on Boogie Down Productions album, it's called Poetry. And it's yeah, yeah. Full circle. Full circle, literally. So it was it's just very divine. Um, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:04

That's dope. That's super dope.

SPEAKER_03 4:06

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 4:06

Um, what made you so community-minded?

SPEAKER_03 4:09

Um, well, growing up, um, I was taught a lot by like my father about you know this corrupt system and about you know how black people are affected disproportionately and things of that nature. And it's just always been my goal to get black people out of the situations that we're in. Honestly, like I'm community-minded because I care about my people and my community. Um, I had to grow a little bit more in order to start expanding my worldview and caring about all humans, not just black people, but you know, black and brown people, immigrants, um, and you know, things of that nature, and also white people, because race is a construct, and uh not all white people are evil. But um uh growing up, my my father, he was very much um very what is the word for it? I just I I'm I'm just gonna say that he was avidly against white people. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 5:11

Understood.

SPEAKER_03 5:12

And and it was passed down to me.

SPEAKER_04 5:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 5:14

And um, you know, it's just it was a lot of hate that like I started realizing later on that it's just unnecessary and that's not gonna get us anywhere at all. Nobody. It's not gonna get anyone anywhere, not even not the black people, no one. If we are, you know, if we are being hateful towards other people, pretty much. Yeah. So yeah, so um uh my my main priority is the black community, but um, I feel like when we are free and thriving, everyone else is as well.

SPEAKER_01 5:49

Gotcha. Yeah. Have um, since you kind of had this expansion of like mind and stuff to incorporate other people, and you know it's like you said, like everyone's struggle. Um, has that helped you creatively as well? Kind of like opened up the floodgates, seeing other perspectives, stuff like that?

SPEAKER_03 6:04

Yes, it has actually, because so my poetry is very much centered around black revolution in the black community. And at first when I was performing it, I was very much like I don't want to perform for white people. You know, this is not for white people. I gotcha. But um, as I started performing my poetry more, you know, white people are in the crowd, inevitably also gonna open mics where there are like some white people. Um, I'm realizing I well, I realized how important it is that white people hear my words too. You know, um I think there's something in my poetry, there's a message for literally everybody. And uh getting, you know, appreciation from certain white people that are just like, you know, this is important to be said, we actually need to hear this. I know white people that need to hear this. It always it it encouraged me and um it made me realize that I, you know, I shouldn't limit myself or limit my audience. So it definitely has helped me creatively to not limit my audience.

SPEAKER_01 7:07

Nice. Yeah, because like you're giving a perspective to them and they're giving a perspective to you just by you know you listening and them listening to you and you know.

SPEAKER_03 7:16

Yeah, and having a conversation about it.

SPEAKER_01 7:17

Yeah. And um that's commendable, you know, because like how you said you weren't like raised like that, but you kind of grew into that. Yeah. It's kind of like you had sort of like a Malcolm X moment, sort of. You know, you know, that's kind of like what happened to him.

SPEAKER_03 7:31

Um I I I definitely was uh a reckless, wild child and doing a lot of crazy things, and then um I I I changed my ways.

SPEAKER_01 7:40

And then you became a teacher.

SPEAKER_03 7:42

He became a teacher, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 7:45

I got you, I got you. So um what um what are some key things that you want to teach people specifically?

SPEAKER_03 7:53

Well, I want to teach people about history, true history.

SPEAKER_01 7:58

Because they're they're trying to erase it right now.

SPEAKER_03 8:00

They're trying to erase it. Um, and um I was about to say black history, but I'm realizing black history is really all history, you know. So just teaching people true history so that they can um learn from the mistakes that our ancestors made and do better, and then also um teaching people how to love themselves, confidence, um, self-love, self-assortness, how to have boundaries, things of that nature, things that I had to learn myself. That is something that I also want to teach people, empower people, and instill in them, you know, how to um be sovereign, pretty much, you know, um stay in ground, stand their ground, take care of themselves, protect themselves. So that's that's something that I um teach in my poetry. Um and then also how to um get yourself out of darkness. So that's that's something that has been really big on my journey because um, of course, we all go through things that hurts us and you know is traumatic, and we can we can let those things um you know deter our future, we can let those things um harden our hearts and make us a bad person, or we could overcome them, um go through them, get through them, you know, and uh transmute the the dark energies into into light, basically. So so just just teaching people that it's okay to go through shit, it's okay to be in the darkness, it's okay to not know what the fuck is going on, um, and that it's never too late to change, to improve, and to get out of it. So, so that's another thing that I really want to focus on teaching and that I teach with my poetry.

SPEAKER_01 9:48

Nice, nice. Um and your your end goal is to become like an actual teacher?

SPEAKER_03 9:53

Yes. I'm in school currently at um ECC for childhood education. Oh wow. And I'm I'm only taking um you know short amount of classes, a small amount of classes. Yeah. So that I can take my time and focus on doing other things in the community as well. Um but yes, eventually my goal is to be a teacher in the classroom.

SPEAKER_01 10:13

And you're gonna deal with uh what what age group of kids?

SPEAKER_03 10:16

I quite I haven't really decided yet. I'm gonna let that I'm gonna just um explore all ages and see what resonates most with me.

SPEAKER_01 10:27

Well, that's very commendable because we definitely need more teachers that care and stuff. So I commend you for that.

SPEAKER_03 10:32

Thank you, thank you. Yeah, for sure. And I do know a lot of teachers and they're stressed out.

SPEAKER_01 10:36

Oh, they're burned out. It's just like, why are you in this job anybody? You should have left an 85 and you're still there.

SPEAKER_03 10:42

And so, you know, I just want to see what I can do if I go into this field, you know. Of course I know that I'm going to be tested. My patients will be tested, my resolve will be tested. Um, but I think I got the chops for it, so I'll I'll be alright.

SPEAKER_01 10:54

Yeah, and um, if you do end up, you know, dealing with like younger kids, uh, they're always worth working with, you know, because they're the future.

SPEAKER_03 11:01

Yes, they are.

SPEAKER_01 11:01

You know, so you know, if you don't if you don't care for the future, you don't really got nothing to wake up for in the morning. So I commend you again for that.

SPEAKER_04 11:09

Thanks.

SPEAKER_01 11:09

Um, and again, you know you mentioned uh that you do com you're um you're working on community stuff as well as doing school stuff. Can you uh spotlight some of the stuff that you got going on?

SPEAKER_03 11:20

Yeah, so um I have a book sale that I um do sometimes on Bailey. Okay, and um it is usually Mondays and Thursdays. I just bring the table out and I sell books for two dollars. Some of the kids' books are one dollar, and it's just to encourage more people in my neighborhood to read. A lot of people stop by and they're just like, I love what you're doing, you know, this is different. Or, you know, they stop by to chat about other things, um, or they buy books.

SPEAKER_04 11:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 11:50

Um, and I I really love, you know, seeing the kids pick out books or seeing, you know, a grown adult come out and like is happy or amazed about seeing books. So like that that really um fills my heart. And then I also uh a lot of a lot of the proceeds for the books uh goes towards mutual aid and then also towards um this other thing that I do. I uh organize community cleanups and uh it's never the same group of people that come. I just post on social media. I have pickers and trash bags and um gloves. We pick any uh in an area on the east side, usually Bailey, but we've we've done it on Jefferson too. But usually Bailey, and we just come out and we we clean a neighborhood, and um a lot of the neighbors are also really happy when they see us doing that, and they they come and they give us waters or they thank us, and um it's just really really it's a really nice thing to do for the community. Absolutely. It makes you feel better when you see a clean neighborhood, clean sidewalk, clean grass, and you know the way that the the our neighbors feel when we do it is also very rewarding because you know they're they're appreciative. Um and we're working on um I'm saying we're it's it's not really a team, but I'm trying to build a team, um, some permanent like players to continue doing this. Yeah, but um we're working on trying to get some trash cans on the corners so that you know people are less likely to litter.

SPEAKER_01 13:21

Yeah. You can just try your best with that kind of thing, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 13:25

And it'll be easier to like you know, um maintain the cleanups that we do. So there's that, and also I support other black and brown um organizations in Buffalo. So I volunteer at Color Girls Bike 2, which is a bike shop on Jefferson. Okay, and they they fix bikes, they have a uh fix a bike, get a bike free program, they do bike rides for justice. Um yes, them they're they're really amazing. Jolanda is really amazing, and then um I've collaborated with Justice for Gerodine Pointer and Martin Sol Shrey, which is a great organization who has been honoring um this black revolutionary Martin Sol Shrey, who was wrongfully, you know, convicted by the uh Buffalo police uh doing drugs when all him and his partner Ms. Jodine were running a bookstore and teaching revolutionary literature.

SPEAKER_01 14:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:21

The cops didn't really like that. This was in the 60s.

SPEAKER_01 14:24

Yeah. Oh, so they definitely didn't like that.

SPEAKER_03 14:25

Yes, and so Justice for Geraldine ran by James Coughlin. Um, they started a garden and there's like a big bulletin board, there's a picnic table. We recently had a cookout there for Juneteenth, it was beautiful. And um, I also have been collaborating with East Side Stewards, which is another black and brown organization, and they have workshops where you learn how to build raised beds, create and take care of gardens, um weed gardens, and um they they have a lot of youth working with them. Uh they recently built like a free little library, they they they do a lot, and and it's mostly gardens on the east side too.

SPEAKER_04 15:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 15:08

So yeah, yeah, those organizations that I work that I work with and that I support. I just really love the community. Um like um, especially black and brown, you know, because they are affected disproportionately by the systems, and I just want to do anything I can to help them move forward and move along. So, so yeah. And I'm I'm also just in the community supporting artists, you know. I go to music events, art galleries, and different things of poetry slams. Poetry slams, yeah, just to go out and support the people that are out here um putting themselves out there, you know. You you put yourself out there, you you're you're gonna need an audience, you're gonna need someone to cheer you on, and I love being that person.

SPEAKER_01 15:52

Nice. Have you always been so um just kind of like free and giving?

SPEAKER_03 15:59

I would say so, yes. Um I think I I've gotten a little bit more uh boundaries on how free and giving I am.

SPEAKER_01 16:08

Yeah, yeah, because you can get trained out.

SPEAKER_03 16:10

Yes, definitely. But I have always been a giver. I've always cared about other people, I've always wanted to see other people happy and um you know make them smile however I can. I've been this way since I was young, yes. Yeah, yeah. And um, when I was younger though, it was it was a little too giving.

SPEAKER_01 16:27

Yeah, I understand, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 16:29

So, but yes, I've I've I've always been this way.

SPEAKER_01 16:31

Good. Well, I'm glad that you um you kind of figured out like a middle ground where you can like support your community and do you and not be completely drained by giving too much.

SPEAKER_03 16:41

It took some trial and error because I have been drained before.

SPEAKER_01 16:43

Yeah, well, at least you got here, you know. That's the important part.

SPEAKER_03 16:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 16:47

Alright, guys, we're getting to the part of the show where um we're gonna name an artist or a band in the city that uh Leah enjoys. Do you have somebody in mind?

SPEAKER_03 16:55

Yes, definitely. I want to name Case Pose, an amazing hip hop artist and MC in Buffalo, New York. Um, she has an album out, actually. Uh I have it on there.

SPEAKER_04 17:07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 17:10

And it is called I'm Only Human.

SPEAKER_01 17:12

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 17:13

And it's really dope. Um, the song that I would recommend, it's not on the album, but it is called Seeing the Light. She just dropped it and she made a video for it. Definitely go check that out. It's an amazing song. This is an amazing artist.

SPEAKER_01 17:26

Alright, guys, here it comes.

SPEAKER_00 17:30

Yeah. I'm one of them ones and they need it. I never knew that I was funny special as defeated. Just that I speak to the soul that believes I'm gon' feed it. You gotta watch out for the fake broads and the legion. The stabby in your back with your leakage. You wonder why I gave a grievance. If you tweak it, you gotta be. I'ma start trying to mark asked man mad at me. Just whatever now. Man, I smile proud. They hate to see you in the front of play the bad round. They say damn I'm tired. Come on. I'm on the twenty, but this will like someone like me, I'll do the high. I was walking in the job.

SPEAKER_01 18:27

I feel like I don't have a window.

SPEAKER_02 19:16

More about Buffalo Creative Workshop can be found at Buffalo.

SPEAKER_01 19:25

Alright, guys, we're back. And I'd like to touch on a little bit more about your poetry. Like, um, what do you get from it?

SPEAKER_03 19:32

Um, what do I get from it?

SPEAKER_01 19:34

Yeah, like where what um where what creative release do you get from it? Like expression and whatnot.

SPEAKER_03 19:40

So my poetry, like it first started as um kind of like a journal. Okay. You know, something to just get my emotions out um when I'm dealing with something, whether it's good or bad, I just write and transmute that energy. Yeah. And a lot of the times, yeah, it just turns into a poem. So I've been able to learn many life lessons through my poetry.

SPEAKER_01 20:01

Oh, can you um can you go a little bit deeper on that? Tell me some maybe some stories or some life lessons that you learned from them?

SPEAKER_03 20:07

Yeah, well, um a couple of them are dating lessons. Oh okay so like um I've basically learned sometimes how I can be very idealistic, you know, a little bit like um too much of a dreamer where I'd idealize someone and create a personality for them and um fall in love with that personality, but not really know the person themselves.

SPEAKER_04 20:41

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 20:42

And I've written poems about that. Um and writing like kind of helps me realize it in the moment, you know.

SPEAKER_01 20:49

It kind of like taps into your subconscious sort of.

SPEAKER_03 20:51

Yeah, I'm just like, oh wow, this is how I was feeling. Yeah, you know, so there's that, and then there's also life lessons like let's let's think of one. Um there is this poem that I have, it's called uh Free the Guys, okay, and it's basically a poem about freeing yourself, yeah. Um not letting um this society or anything put you in a box, right? And not basically succumbing to that inner critic that tries to make you feel like you're not enough. Um freeing yourself from that that inner critic from that energy, and then also um understanding how when you when you are in that energy, when you're criticizing yourself, we're criticizing others too. So when you free yourself from that, you also um you're a better person to be around, yeah. Pretty much. Um yeah, so that that's what that poem is about, and I I I learned lessons through other people too. Yeah, so that that's That poem was actually inspired by someone else who I observed moving in a certain way, and I'm just like, you know, it doesn't have to be that way. So so there a lot of my my poems too are also like inspired by experiences I've had, but also experiences that other people have that I observe. Gotcha. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 22:21

Have you ever written a poem and like it had like a certain feeling to it, and then you were like, I can't believe I ever felt that way about this situation or whatever.

SPEAKER_03 22:28

Many, yes. Yeah, it I have some poems that I wrote like back in college that I just don't resonate with anymore. Yeah. But when I read it, I'm like, wow, I was really, really feeling this way. Yeah. And that's probably mostly about relationships too. Things of that nature.

SPEAKER_01 22:46

Well, poems can be like good like timestamps in your life, you know what I mean? Definitely. So that's kind of cool to go back and be like, oh, okay, you know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 22:52

No, it is. I love going back to my poems and my writings and just seeing where my head was at. Dope, dope, dope.

SPEAKER_01 22:59

Um, now you talked about a book drive. Can you just talk a little bit more about the importance of uh reading and stuff? Because uh uh literacy rates are going down. Yeah. And since like you're you know, you're you're being uh prepared to be a teacher and stuff, yeah. I can you just uh talk a little bit more about the importance of that?

SPEAKER_03 23:15

It is so important to read. Like you gain different perspectives um by reading someone else's story. And there's also just reading, reading is fun. It's it's a way to kind of escape a bit, but not in a bad way. Yeah. You know, you get to step into someone else's world, um, create a world of your own using your imagination. And um there this this world I think wants you to be unimaginative and very, very rich.

SPEAKER_01 23:45

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03 23:46

And dumb. And dumb. And so, like reading, no matter how small the book is, it really gets you out of that.

SPEAKER_04 23:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 23:55

Um, but also, yes, it's very important to read and have critical thinking skills so that when things happen, like the government trying to force policies on you or or or whatever, you are able to fight against that. Yeah, you know, you won't just go with the grain, you'll go against it because you know better. Um that's that's important. And it's also like some of the things that we are going through right now in this world, this story has been written in a book somewhere.

SPEAKER_01 24:27

Yeah. You know, nothing's new, it's it's just uh it's just kind of remixed.

SPEAKER_03 24:31

Exactly, exactly. So so that's also very helpful, like when you want to learn about the world around you, whether you're reading nonfiction or fiction, it could be really helpful to read. Yeah. Um another thing is it's a great pastime, it helps you calm your mind when we're in this world that wants us to be moving, moving, moving, and in all hustle and bustle, and and um when we have too many thoughts in our head, it it could be good to just chill out, unwind with a book.

SPEAKER_01 25:05

Is that how you kind of uh stop yourself from the hustle and bustle of the world? Just crack open a book. Well, I write. And write?

SPEAKER_03 25:11

Yeah, um, but yeah, I I I um crack open a book as well, like for that. But that's mostly for me when I want to like step into a new world and my kind of like escape a little bit.

SPEAKER_01 25:23

Yeah, this world is pretty hectic, so it's nice to jump into a new one every once in a while.

SPEAKER_03 25:27

It is, it is. And I'm I'm a big fan of fantasy, like like I told you with the the poems, like sometimes I can live in a fantasy world out here. And um, it's important for me to stay grounded for one. But um, yeah, like books are they're they're they're good. I've also been reading a lot of nonfiction books. So I have been reading like books um talking about um how to change the world, pretty much. So, like from mutual aid or um how to change your mindset, things of that nature. I do like books like that too.

SPEAKER_01 26:02

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, you definitely are a person that uh practices what they preach, and like I've said this whole time, it's uh it's a very nice talking to you. Thank you. It's been great having you.

SPEAKER_03 26:12

Nice talking to you too, thank you.

SPEAKER_01 26:13

This has been the VMP podcast and Leah the Teacher. You have anything else that you want to leave with the people?

SPEAKER_03 26:18

Um, I love you guys. Thank you, Leah the Teacher out.

SPEAKER_01 26:22

Alright, may the sauce be with you guys. The bringer of life, the bringer of unimaginable joy, the cause of catastrophic destruction. Knowing that you have something so powerful, wouldn't you want the best to take care of it? Pardon me for saying this. I am just a humble announcer. But if I had a gooji, I'd probably get a wax. Shiny hands waxing studio on 830 M would have. You have power in between your legs. So why not have it taken care of by the best? This is the B and P podcast. If you are artists, no matter discipline, we'll help you out. Don't believe in gatekeeping, we all gotta eat and this is our way of helping out. And Joe's the host, and Max the cough. We try our best, so here we go. Like, why you got a podcast? Everybody got dogs. To be quite honest, I don't got a job. Looking at prospects like who I'm going wrong. Think Joe for the pot. I'm not designed for crime. I'm too pretty for present. But talking off the dome, I'm finna make a killing. If Joe Rogan can do it, I sure can. I've never fucked a stool, so I've got the upper hand. If Joe Rogan can do it, I sure can. I've never fucked a stool, so I've got the upper hand.