Linton Kwesi Johnson CD

Born 1952 in Chapelton, Jamaica, he is widely recognised as the father of reggae poetry, a genre that fuses verse with reggae rhythms to articulate the lived experience and political consciousness of Black communities in Britain and beyond. 

Linton Kwesi Johnson (LKJ) arrived in London in 1963 studying Sociology at Goldsmiths College in the early 1970s, where he began to write and perform his poetry. He later described this period as formative, recalling a “laid back… friendly learning environment” that helped nurture his voice.  

His work confronts racism, migration, policing, state power, and resistance. He famously characterised his practice by saying that “writing was a political act and poetry was a cultural weapon”.  

Over more than five decades, his poems, in particular works like New Cross Massahkah, have given shape to collective memory, trauma, and protest, and have influenced generations of artists, activists, and thinkers.  

LKJ’s achievements include being the first Black poet, and only the second living poet, published in the Penguin Modern Classics series; notable awards such as the Golden PEN Award; and honours including the Silver Musgrave Medal from the Institute of Jamaica, and in August 2014, it was announced that he would receive the Jamaican national honour of the Order of Distinction, Commander Class.  

In recognition of his enduring impact on literature, culture and political thought, Goldsmiths awarded him an Honorary Fellowship in 2003.  

In January 2026, during Goldsmiths’ 120th anniversary year, the University honoured LKJ further by dedicating a lecture theatre in his name, a space that will carry forward his legacy of creativity, social justice, and critical engagement.