Rasaq Malik Gbolahan (born 1992) is a Nigerian poet and essayist. With Ọ̀rẹ́dọlá Ibrahim, Malik is the co-founder of ''Àtẹ́lẹwọ́'', the first digital journal devoted to publishing works written in the Yorùbá language. He was the founding Editor-in-Chief of ''

Agbowó Agbowó is an African literary journal publishing poetry, fiction, essays, drama and visual art. The journal has published several works of literary and visual art since its launch in 2017 as well as three issues—X, Limits, Memory—of an an ...

''.

Education

Malik earned his bachelor's and master's degrees in English Language at the

University of Ibadan The University of Ibadan (UI) is a public research university in Ibadan, Nigeria. The university was founded in 1948 as University College Ibadan, one of many colleges within the University of London. It became an independent university in 196 ...

, Nigeria in 2013 and 2017, respectively.

Works

Malik is the author of two poetry

chapbook A chapbook is a small publication of up to about 40 pages, sometimes bound with a saddle stitch. In early modern Europe a chapbook was a type of printed street literature. Produced cheaply, chapbooks were commonly small, paper-covered bookle ...

s: ''No Home In This Land'', which was selected for a chapbook box edited by Kwame Dawes and

Chris Abani Christopher Abani (born 27 December 1966) is a Nigerian-American and Los Angeles- based author. He says he is part of a new generation of Nigerian writers working to convey to an English-speaking audience the experience of those born and raise ...

in 2018, and ''The Other Names of Grief'', published in 2021 by Konya Shamsrumi, an African poetry press which he formed with four other Nigerian poets in November 2017. His poems, which often come off as dirges,

threnodies A threnody is a wailing ode, song, hymn or poem of mourning composed or performed as a memorial to a dead person. The term originates from the Greek word θρηνῳδία (''threnoidia''), from θρῆνος (''threnos'', "wailing") and ᾠ� ...

, elegies and such other melancholic typologies of poetry, have attracted wide reviews on different literary platforms, including ''Open Country Mag'', ''Olongo Africa, and African Writer Magazine'', ''Qwenu!'' and in national dailies for example ''

Daily Trust Media Trust is a privately held Nigerian newspaper publishing company based in Abuja that publishes the English-language ''Daily Trust'', ''Weekly Trust'', ''Sunday Trust'' and the Hausa-language ''Aminiya'' newspapers, as well as a new pan-Afric ...

'', ''

TheCable TheCable is an independent online newspaper in Nigeria. It was launched on April 29, 2014 by Simon Kolawole, the former editor of the This Day newspaper. Its publisher Cable Newspaper Ltd was established on November 29, 2011. Kolawole is a Cheven ...

Lifestyle''. Malik's poems have appeared in many literary journals and mediums, including the '' African American Review'', '' Colorado Review'', the ''

Crab Orchard Review Southern Illinois University (SIU or SIUC) is a public research university in Carbondale, Illinois. Founded in 1869, SIU is the oldest and flagship campus of the Southern Illinois University system. The university enrolls students from all 50 s ...

'', ''LitHub'', the ''

Michigan Quarterly Review The ''Michigan Quarterly Review'' is an American literary magazine founded in 1962 and published at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. The quarterly (known as "MQR" for short) publishes art, essays, interviews, memoirs, fiction, poetry, and ...

'', ''

The Minnesota Review ''The Minnesota Review'' is a literary magazine covering literary and cultural studies which places a special emphasis on politically engaged criticism, fiction, and poetry. Issues are often "themed," recent issues examining the nature of acade ...

'', the ''

New Orleans Review ''New Orleans Review'', founded in 1968, is a journal of contemporary literature and culture that publishes "poetry, fiction, nonfiction, art, photography, film and book reviews" by established and emerging writers and artists. ''New Orleans Revie ...

'', the '' Prairie Schooner'', ''

Poet Lore ''Poet Lore'' is an English-language literary magazine based in Bethesda, Maryland. Established in 1889 by Charlotte Porter and Helen Archibald Clarke, two progressive young Shakespeare scholars who believed in the evolutionary nature of literatur ...

'', ''Rattle'', ''Verse Daily'', among several others. His essays have also been published in mediums such as ''Olongo Africa'' and ''Agbowó''. Rasaq was one of 126 established and emerging African poets who contributed to ''

Wreaths for a Wayfarer ''Wreaths for a Wayfarer: An Anthology in Honour of Pius Adesanmi'' is a 2020 collection of poems edited by Uche Peter Umez and Nduka Otiono in honour of Pius Adesanmi (1972–2019). It was published by Daraja Press in North America and Narrativ ...

'', an anthology mourning the death of Nigerian-Canadian academic and public intellectual

Pius Adesanmi Pius Adebola Adesanmi (27 February 1972 – 10 March 2019) was a Nigerian-born Canadian professor, writer, literary critic, satirist, and columnist. He was the author of '' Naija No Dey Carry Last'', a 2015 collection of satirical essays. Adesan ...

in a March 2019 Ethiopian Airlines plane crash. He, alongside 31 other poets, also contributed to ''Sọ̀rọ̀sókè: An #EndSARS Anthology'', edited by Nigerian writers

Jumoke Verissimo Jumoke Verissimo (born 26 December 1979 in Lagos) is a Nigerian poet, novelist, children's writer and critic. Life Jumoke was born in Lagos. She has a master's degree in African studies (performance) from the University of Ibadan and a bache ...

and James Yéku. Published in February 2022, the collection memorialized the End SARS protests against

police brutality Police brutality is the excessive and unwarranted use of force by law enforcement against an individual or a group. It is an extreme form of police misconduct and is a civil rights violation. Police brutality includes, but is not limited to, ...

in Nigeria. Malik has been profiled and or interviewed on platforms including ''The Shallow Tales Review, CỌ́N-SCÌÒ Magazine, Africa in Dialogue and Gainsayer''. Malik won Honorable Mention in 2015 Best of the Net for his poem "Elegy", published in ''One''. ''Rattle'' nominated his poems "How My Mother Spends Her Nights" and "What My Children Remember" for the

Pushcart Prize The Pushcart Prize is an American literary prize published by Pushcart Press that honors the best "poetry, short fiction, essays or literary whatnot" published in the small presses over the previous year. Magazine and small book press editors are ...

in 2016 and 2019, respectively. He was shortlisted for

Brunel International African Poetry Prize Brunel International African Poetry Prize is a literary award aimed at the "development, celebration and promotion of poetry from Africa." The prize is sponsored by Brunel University and Bernardine Evaristo. In the past it has been partnered by Comm ...

in 2017. He was a finalist for Sillerman First Book for African Poets in 2018. Malik regularly shares his work on his social media handles.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Malik, Rasaq Date of birth missing (living people) 1992 births Living people 21st-century male writers 21st-century Nigerian poets Chapbook writers Nigerian editors Nigerian essayists Nigerian magazine founders Nigerian male poets University of Ibadan alumni Writers from Oyo State Yoruba-language poets 21st-century essayists