From anonymous storyteller to a headlining poet: The unique journey of Medgar senior Kaiyah Ellison

By Nick Masuda | nicholas.masuda31@mec.cuny.edu

It was a seemingly unassuming handle, @shewritwritesparanormal — intriguing enough to gain some momentum on the popular writers’ platform, Wattpad.

There were no fingerprints on the handle, truly a writer looking to test the market to see if her work held water in a community that can be quite critical of newcomers.

But the work was applauded.

The writer even shared some work with their unsuspecting mother, indicating that it was someone else’s work.

Mom loved it.

“Mom, that was me.”

A short while later, there was no need to hide any longer — that handle changed to reflect Kaiyah Ellison in all her glory.

She removed herself from the secret society she had created, embracing her talent as a poet.

The Medgar Evers College lower senior has grown since those middle-school days, now set to present some of her work as part of the Poetry Cafe at the Brooklyn Public Library, hosted by the Center for Black Literature’s Biennial Symposium.

Kaiyah will read on March 27 from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Dweck Center at 10 Grand Army Plaza in Brooklyn.

“It’s not Wattpad where I hid behind the username, and then it’s not middle school, high school, where I say, ‘This is me writing,’” Kaiyah said.  

“This is me saying, ‘Hi, I’m Kaiyah Ellison. This is what I look like. This is what I sound like. This is my hair color.’ It’s literally showing people me.”

This wasn’t always the plan for the 20-year-old.

For all intents and purposes, Kaiyah thought she was destined to be a veterinarian. 

She has old Google Slides that showcased her vet name and how she was going to treat dogs and cats. Oh, and crocodiles.

She was a true animal lover.

“Then things went so far the opposite direction,” she quipped.

And that came in the form of a book her mother put in her hands — “The Coldest Winter Ever” by Sister Souljah.

“I probably had no business reading that at such a young age, but it changed my perspective on the world,” Kaiyah remembers of reading the book at the age of 10.

She described the book as “raunchy” and “ghetto,” but its ability to stay steeped in reality showcased a way that she could give back to the world, but in a different way.

Kaiyah started writing stories, but quickly realized that it felt like you could never complete a story, as there were always more narratives to address in the process.

In her mind, poetry didn’t have the same obstacles. You could write something powerful that’s just a few words long — or write an intricate poem that needs a bit more attention.

Poetry allowed her to embrace her affinity for chaos.

“It’s expected to be raw and unfiltered,” Kaiyah said. “It can come from a place of agony or some of the happiest places in the world. It’s unpredictable — and that appeals to me.”

She has become comfortable with the chaos surrounding her, with the pandemic deeply impacting her path to college. She graduated from Bronx Health Sciences High School in three years, leaving her on the younger side while trying to make a life-altering decision.

After applying to a handful of schools, Medgar Evers College was the first to reply with a “yes.”

She couldn’t have accepted the offer any faster.

“I had never gotten out of the Bronx, so I was like, ‘Let’s go!’’

And since coming to Medgar, she wouldn’t change a thing. She’s found a mentor that has opened plenty of doors, while also finding ways to organize her chaos.

“I am a person who’s always grinding, always on the move — and I’ve been able to refine that thanks to my mentor and the college,” Kaiyah said.

And campus has proven to be a muse for Kaiyah, particularly when she stops to take in her surroundings — something she admits that most students don’t do often enough.

“We are all moving — you are here and there. We’re always moving,” Kaiyah said in a poetic moment.

“We’re always here and there, and sometimes you just manage to stop moving, and you realize how Medgar Evers is always in a little, little bubble — a bubble of its own, always with the tiny events where you see the little laughter, where you hear professors or staff just laugh out of nowhere. You see kids, especially in the library. I’m always around the library, and you’ll see them right there in that little huddle here, talking about class over there, not because not everyone cares. 

“This college is so vibrant, but the colors are always shifting, so you can never find one color.”