Spoken-word poet, performer, and LGBTQ activist Staceyann Chin recently featured in the latest issue of The Edit. Shot by Thomas Giddings, Chin sports body conscious maxi dress paired with chic strappy sandals and minimal jewelry. The stylish activist counts The Row and Rick Owens among her favorite designers.
In the accompanying interview, Chin speaks about her sexual orientation, her career, and shares her perspectives on life and art.
At the age of 24, Chin moved to Brooklyn. “I moved to New York to be a lesbian because it’s so difficult in Jamaica,” she says over a ginger tea in her favorite local café. “If you have money you can carve out a space where you can be safe, but I didn’t want to live like that. I wanted to live in a place where people respected my partnership.”
After performing as part of Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry Jam on Broadway, and working on the HBO show of the same name, Chin’s career took off, but as she grew older she felt the desire to settle down and have a family.
She’ll be chronicling her experiences trying to have a child in a soon-to-be-named one-woman show, which will be produced by Sex and the City star and stage actress Cynthia Nixon.