Welcome to the website of The Poet Lady Rose!
My name is La Toya A. Hampton, the poet known as Lady Rose. I began performing spoken word poetry in 2008, taking my stage name in honor my beloved father Roosevelt, who passed in 2000. Although I began performing in 2008, I took a hiatus around 2014, when I lost my inspiration to create, however, in 2020, with the onslaught of the COVID pandemic, with a need to process so much that was happening, I found my way back to writing and expressing, as a form of self-care, but also as a way to connect with others in community, by taking part in Zoom and Instagram Live open mics, as well as virtual poetry workshops. Although there has unfortunately been an immense amount of loss experienced by so many, with myself being included in that, this time of uncertainty has also given me the gift of reconnecting with Lady Rose and connecting with others virtually, who have become a real source of support and inspiration, that arguably wouldn't have been possible without the shutdowns.
Now, about 18 months following getting back to Lady Rose and after a number of performances and features (please see the About page to learn more of just some of what I've been up to). I am excited to continue moving forward in sharing my experiences and works past and present, the stretching, the lessons, the growth and transformation--with you all. So, that means you can look forward this site being a source to experience my work in written, audio and visual form, and learn of upcoming opportunities to see me perform virtually or in person, as current health mandates will allow. And keep current on the timeline of upcoming published works, with my book "Holes of a Piece of Me: An Introduction to Lady Rose," being slated for release in February 2022.
In the meantime, please excuse the "dust," as the website is still under construction, but please still take a look around and join the email list, so you won't miss out on all of the excitement to come!
Peace and Love,
~ Lady Rose