Mady Burner
Mariah Ivey is a spoken word artist and poet who grew up in Indianapolis on the poetry
scene. At 14, she was in a slam poetry contest, where she made it to the championship round.
Once she graduated high school, she attended Columbia College in downtown Chicago and later,
she moved to D.C. and was a part of an East Coast poetry tour. She then moved back to
Indianapolis, where she got her master’s at IUPUI, and wanted to create spaces for people of all
ages to be able to experience new and local artists.
Mariah Ivey has such a passion for art, education, and community, and you can tell just
by the way she talks about these topics that they are something special to her. While talking to
the Rhythm and Revolution class this Spring at IUPUI (now IUI), she said, “Artists make it okay to feel.” She went further into explaining that quote by telling how there is a certain vulnerability between the artist and their audience. Many people choose to go to an event to get something specific out of it, whether it is knowledge or something else, but there is always a possibility they will leave with a deeper connection to the artist due to experiences with similar situations or emotions. “Art is supposed to stand out, [to] say the thing you’re not supposed to say,” says Ivey.
She mentioned how all art can spark conversations that later, hopefully, lead to actions. A song lyric might stand out to you that makes you start a conversation about it or a line from a poem. A piece of artwork might catch your eye and lead you to do the same thing. Conversations about topics of social change begin in many different ways, and Ivey made that a major point she talked about.
Mariah Ivey is one of the most beautiful souls you will ever meet. She is kind and caring,
and you can tell just by the way she includes everyone in the conversation and in the way she
talks. In the Rhythm and Revolution class, Ivey took a few minutes out of her time to have
everyone introduce themselves, and it showed that she cared about each individual in the room.
There is something unique and beautiful about the way that Ivey carries herself and how she
cares about others and the community.
There was a brief discussion of how some things from the past are better than things now,
and how certain things, especially in the music realm, have evolved over time. During this
discussion, Ivey mentioned, “It is important that what was informs where we go.” This quote and
way of thinking can be used in many areas of life. It is important that the past teaches us how to
move forward in a more efficient way, and it is important to learn from past mistakes.
Mariah Ivey is making a large impact in the Indianapolis area by helping young artists in
many different ways, including finding them places to perform their art in front of audiences that
were not available before. By integrating art, education and community together, she is creating safe and sacred places for everyone to gather and be creative. There is so much that can be said about Mariah Ivey and the wonderful person that she is, but the one thing that is undeniable is that she has a heart of gold and truly cares about the people and community around her.