Born Floyd Lerone Beckworth in Charleston, S.C., on March 5, 1977, he began using his pen name, Ize Ofrika, five years ago. To family and close friends, the name holds different meanings.

Mr. Ofrika's best friend, Ranney Lawrence, said "he never really explained it in detail," though Mr. Ofrika mentioned the name's association with a tribe.

"My surmise is 'I am Africa', but rendered in dialect for African-American characters in older plays, 'I am' is often written as 'Ize.' "Ofrika' has got to be "Africa,"' said Nancy Cole, a retired theater professor at the University of South Florida who taught Mr. Ofrika. Perhaps the name symbolized "a claim of identity," Cole said.

Maybe Mr. Ofrika explained it himself in one of his poems when he writes, "Ize Ofrika, Humble Eyes of Africa."

As an actor, poet, and visionary in the spoken word community, those who remember him would say his voice just made you shiver in your bones. "It was almost like the voice of God. We don't know what the voice of God sounds like, but it was definitely close." said Venus Jones, a Tampa actor and poet.

Jones said Mr. Ofrika appeared to be "humble and shy," but when he got on stage, "it was just like he's anointed."

The two met in 2000 as Mr. Ofrika promoted his CD, "The Book of Ize, Chapter 1: The Revolution that Never Took Place." When Jones said she had no money to buy the CD, Mr. Ofrika sold it to her for $5 instead of $10.

In his poem "No More Dreams", Mr. Ofrika writes, "No more dreams. Feed me reality by the fistful. Poison my perfect picture. Scratch my eyes out and let me feel my way to freedom. Chop me into pieces and scatter my cipher, and like the rain, I'll put up the strongest root of uprising the world has ever seen. No more dreams."

Willie Floyd Beckworth, of Tampa said he realized his son's talent at a young age. A writer himself, Beckworth said he pushed for his children to excel in the use of the English language.

"He developed it into taking command of the English language, to the form of expressing himself about political and social situations," Beckworth said.

And his performances never crossed the line.

"He didn't condemn anyone," said Walter 'Wally B.' Jennings, of Tampa, a fellow spoken word poet and pioneer who co-founded the popular Black on Black Rhyme venue where Mr. Ofrika shared some of his performances. "He really possessed a love for people and for the liberation of the people."

During a Black on Black Rhyme poetry session last Tuesday night at Club Classic, an open-mic poet dedicated a poem to Mr. Ofrika before a piece from Mr. Ofrika's CD was played.

Mr. Ofrika wanted to do more acting. He had appeared in a handful of plays while attending USF, including Ma Rainey's 'Black Bottom' in 1999, in which he played Levee. He played Aaron in 2002 in the Jobsite Theater's 'Titus Andronicus'. And in 2003, he portrayed Lymon in 'The Piano Lesson' at the Tampa Bay Performing Arts Center.

Jennings vividly recalled Mr. Ofrika's stage presence.

"He would have this look on his face, and if you didn't know him, you'd think he was another brother with a militant edge," he said. "But he was so focused and had so much love inside of him, that will definitely be missed. We definitely lost one of Tampa's greatest soldiers."

In his poem "Freedom", Mr. Ofrika writes, "It is my belief that death is a release. An ease of all tension, hiatus of all grief. Casualties are the lucky ones. Those who have passed are the fortunate ones. Theirs is a mission in life for all men to complete. Those who don't find it, shall never fall asleep."

Mr. Ofrika had lived with lupus for seven years. Lupus is a chronic inflammatory disease that causes the immune system to turn against the body.

Mr. Ofrika died in his sleep at University Community Hospital in Tampa, FL from complications of the disease. He was 27.

In addition to his father, Mr. Ofrika leaves behind his mother, Lillie Beckworth, of Orlando; his brother Brian Beckworth, of Tampa; and sister Charlene Satterwhite, of Tacoma, Wash.

portions of this biography were culled from "Voice that 'made you shiver' gone." by Kevin Graham Published May 13, 2004 © Copyright 2002-2004, St. Petersburg Times