MERCI D.
WHO IS MERCI D?

My name is Mercedes D. Loving-Manley AKA MERCI D. I'm 21 years old, my pronouns are she/her and I'm from Dorchester, MA.
I create via mixed medias: Song, Poem, Video. At the center of all my work is writing. My journal entries have become poems, those poems have become songs. And the songs, my goodness. The songs paint these images of Black folk, especially Black femmes, living, breathing and fighting. Taking back our communities, proclaiming victory through education and through sisterhood and siblingship. These images, to me, are just as much written work as an essay, a poem or dissertation. The flesh of my work--the visuals, the songs--are held up by the bones otherwise known as the writing.
I create via mixed medias: Song, Poem, Video. At the center of all my work is writing. My journal entries have become poems, those poems have become songs. And the songs, my goodness. The songs paint these images of Black folk, especially Black femmes, living, breathing and fighting. Taking back our communities, proclaiming victory through education and through sisterhood and siblingship. These images, to me, are just as much written work as an essay, a poem or dissertation. The flesh of my work--the visuals, the songs--are held up by the bones otherwise known as the writing.
How do you define a creative?
A creative is someone who uses their art to mobilize folks and bring about liberation for folks in one way or another. Someone who studies and appreciates the old and produces young, fresh, innovative content
Why do you create?

I have a story to tell. I have many stories to tell. For the sake of my nana. For the sake of my great grandmother, god rest her soul. For the sake of my mama. For the sake of my dad. I have stories to tell for the sake of my full and total liberation, whether it be achieved by my dying day or not. One thing I will always know is that I fought to share the stories of my ancestors and little cousins and most of all, my damn self.
Why is it important as a Black woman to create?
As a Black transwoman, it is essential that I create. I cannot imagine what my life would be if I didn’t sing my poem aloud, if I didn’t spit my verse, if I never typed that thought down in my phone. I have written Black women, femmes and transwomen into life in a way that the mainstream does not. It is imperative to discuss the racialized gender violence we experience, and the moments of laughter we have with one another. A Black femme’s joys cannot be written without the history of pains highlighted at some point. It is important for us to create because if we leave the curation of our archive in the hands of the institution, only the wind will carry our songs to the ears of the Black children to come. It's important for me to preserve my history, curate my life’s archive, and love all the way to liberation.
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For more of Merci D. works click here for her Instagram + Soundcloud link!