About

Born in Baton Rouge, LA and raised in the DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia), Christian Davenport’s mother is from India and his father is Black. His upbringing was fundamental to informing his perspective today — he attended a series of catholic schools, yet each was predominately of one race: All-Black Elementary, All-Hispanic Middle School, All-White High School, followed by HBCU (Dillard University). His belief is that over the course of this inculturation, he witnessed the effects of institutional education on all identifying races and classes in America. He eventually removed himself from college once he realized he was studying other psychologist’s schools of thought and perspectives when he actually wanted to develop and understand his own way of thinking. He started typing custom poems for people in the New Orleans French Quarter as Cubs The Poet in 2010, and this is where he honed his expression of freedom and expanded how he communicates.

Through poetry, he has worked with brands such as Crown Royal, Southern Comfort, Go Daddy, US Climate Action Network, The Four Seasons, and Le Labo. He has also given a TED Talk, discussing pivotal moments in his life. He was named the inaugural Poet Laureate of Baton Rouge from 2019-2020, and self-published his first book of poems and art, What I Did With My Free Time, in July 2020. He currently writes custom books for weddings, funerals, and events.

Additionally, as he’s continued delving into what he perceives to be the lack of intimacy and vulnerability between races, Christian has discovered that paint helps him process when words fall short. His visual art exhibit Say It: I Love Black People digs into these concepts, while also discussing our collective struggle to develop self love. Most recently he has developed a performance project called Free Therapy, in which he combines typewritten poetry inspired by exchanges with the audience with live, improvisational jazz music. He is a father, a coffee drinker, and an unapologetic trailblazer.