aja monet

Brooklyn‑born surrealist blues poet aja monet makes her Melbourne debut at the Melbourne International Jazz Festival, presenting her new album the color of rain, alongside her outstanding US-based trio.

Emerging from New York City’s legendary Lower East Side poetry clubs, monet became the youngest winner of the Nuyorican Poets Café Grand Slam at 19. Since then, she has performed at major venues and festivals worldwide, including Newport and Montréal Jazz Festivals, Guggenheim Bilbao and London’s Barbican Centre, where she headlined as the London Jazz Festival’s 2025 Artist in Residence

aja moves between jazz, soul, hip-hop and blues, reminding us that poetry predates genre itself. Following the long tradition of poets assembling within social movements, monet’s work speaks with urgency and honesty – exploring Black resistance, love and joy. For one night, aja will transform Max Watts into a living canvas of sound, story and collective listening.