Delivering poetic news: Michael Council performs spoken-word poetry, works to spread positivity as ‘Navigator’

Mike Council is a man with rhythm in his voice, as well as in his life.

His delivery is deep, with tempo and inflection, and his 47 years on this earth have recurring themes, like a chorus in a song.

He's also not your typical student at Southeast Missouri State, a single father who has found Cape Girardeau long after graduating from high school in 1987, operating a 26-ton tank in Desert Storm in the U.S. Army and later opting out of one of the nation's biggest cities for a simpler life and new chapter.

"I'm a nontraditional student," Council said. "I've got to balance real life with college life."

Born in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, cotton has threaded its way through his life. From chopping cotton plants to starting a clothing company in Atlanta to his artistry, where he goes by the name Navigator, the name of the men's clothing line he came up with and kept for himself personally.

Mike Council also known as, Navigator, a spoken word artist from Cape Girardeau recites his piece Hold On, Thursday in Cape Girardeau.Andrew J. Whitaker

"Navigator is the one who gives direction and speaks with direction, and that's why I implement them all into the idea," Council said.

Language also has been a recurring theme for Council, from reciting Easter speeches at the age of 5 to writing letters to a classroom of children as a lonesome soldier in the Middle East to his current major of multimedia journalism and broadcasting with a minor in creative writing.

Navigator speaks in a rhythmic style -- he was a drummer in high school -- about his experiences in life, combined into a collection of "songs" that can be found on Reverb Nation's website and cdbaby.com on his CD, "Navigator Swirl."

While Navigator easily could be categorically filed by many as a rapper, spouting off quick rhymes to beats, Council bristles at being labeled in such a way and will quickly correct.

"Nooo, Noooo. No, no, no, no. No sir," Council said in his rhytmic style. "I consider myself a poet first of all, a poet, writer, artist. I definitely would not say that. I'm way beyond that."

Mike Council also known as, Navigator, a spoken word artist from Cape Girardeau recites his piece Hold On, Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017 in Cape Girardeau.Andrew J. Whitaker

Spoken-word artist is his category.

It's a relatively new genre where a poet rhythmically verbalizes words. It can be with a beat or a cappella.

On reverbnation.com, Navigator is ranked No. 1 regionally among spoken-word artists, 60th among 439 nationally and 80th among 626 globally.

"I hadn't realized how many spoken-words artists are out there," Council said after recently checking his ranking.

He says spoken-word artists speak from a different perspective than a rapper or hip-hop artists.

"Navigator is the news," Council said. "I'm giving them poetic news. The reason I say it is poetic news because poets are speaking in truth."

They're truths he acquired through tribulation and soul searching, some from seeing the faces of death in Desert Storm, others from relationships and even some from encounters with the law, which he calls "misdemeanor stuff."

It was enough to land him about 20 days in the Cape Girardeau County Jail and inspiration for "The Windows Around My Pain," which talks about someone trapped inside the system.

He's emerged a wiser person by the experience rather than having a hardened mentality, even employing "to the Almighty I pray" in the song, although he's more spiritual than religious.

"What I think prayer leads to is focus," Council said. "... You're praying for yourself to rise to what you need to be here for. And what I think prayer does is it clears your mind of everything that's around you."

"White Brick Road" is a poem he wrote for a friend to read at a cousin's funeral years back, one which he was told moved many to tears, and which he most recently posted to reverbnation.com.

He displays a flair for words in the song, which such a line as "I'm riding these lyrics like a surfboard, through cloud 7, cloud 9."

In "Let's Be," he rhythmically spouts, "I've gone through heartaches and pains, tremendous shames, but what I've gained, I must obtain and restrain from what caused those pains."

He's learned that life is a balancing act, where you have to stay centered, work and stay focused on the truths. He said he's content with his poetry by itself, but only puts the words to music so people will actually tune in to his message of living in peace, love and harmony.

"I don't have one perspective or way to look at everything," Council said. "I observe everyone, because at the end of the day, we're the same color if we start bleeding. I've got a mixed son, and he's 7 years old, so I can't have different views. I teach him to know who he is, because he came from both sides."

It's a flexible, easy-going attitude that accompanies a mentoring approach, and one that serves him well when officiating youth and adult sports for the Cape Girardeau Parks and Recreation Department.

He likes kids and sports. He was a three-year letter winner in both track and basketball at Broad Street High School in Shelby, Mississippi, where he was inducted into the school's hall of fame a few years back.

A broad smile comes to his face when he talks about working Special Olympics events or officiating youth NFL football and youth basketball games.

"The reason why I love it so much, like on Saturdays now I'm doing the NFL Youth kids, they're kids, they love the sport," Council said. "You try to teach them as much as possible about it to keep them on the right track. Shift keys and reverse, on Sundays when you go do the adults, it's a little more stressful."

He also likes to share his passion for poetry, serving as the host at Write Out Loud poetry slams at Cup 'n Cork, where he encourages others to recite their own words about once a month.

He also has podcasts as Navigator and with the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and Arrow on the Air at Southeast.

It's a multimedia path he found after moving to Cape in 2005 and later becoming eligible for Chapter 31 benefits, a VA vocational rehabilitation education program, as a result of suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

He has a goal of getting into broadcasting and is "perfecting his craft" through his podcast involvement, building one platform to get to the next. He'd ultimately like to have his own radio show in which he could involve guests in topical discussion as well as feature artists.

"It's like a puzzle in life, so this is like one of the last pieces of the puzzle I need," Council said of getting a degree. "Some people have success at the latter end and the first part of their life, but still for what I do, it's still not too late because the broadcasting, multimedia journalism, the poetry, all of it is kind of coming together."

He's seen a lot, and his eyes are more open than ever. He has become enlightened, and he's determined to reach out to others to navigate.

"I want them to know, like any other individual I've had my trials and tribulations, but it has made me a better man, and as I look forward, I just want to spread positiveness with my spoken word," Council said. "It's a message I'm going to deliver of positiveness and enjoy."

jbreer@semissourian.com

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