Adele Ramos, a.k.a. Black Orchid, has been writing poetry since she was a teenager. For many years, she kept her verses private, since they were mostly written for family and friends, but in February 2005, she decided to make a bold step and share 30 of her love poems with the public.

In her self-published anthology, PHASES, Adele writes of love's ups and downs, and shares some of her happiest and darkest moments, making the thin line between love and hate even more visible to the human eye.

Her poetry collection is largely autobiographical, but also captures the experiences of others with whom she has crossed path. The fun in it all is that the reader is challenged to figure out which pieces are her own experiences and which are the experiences of others.

All Black Orchid's poetry draws upon real life experiences. She has written hundreds of poems on various themes, including love, abortion, poverty, betrayal, crime, political corruption, revolution, racism, history and heroism.

Adele has presented her poetry at numerous public appearances since February 2005. She was nominated for best poet in the 2nd Annual Global Entertainment Awards in late 2005 and finished in the nation's top five.

Adele Ramos has been the president of the Belizean Poets Society since September 2005, and was recently elected to serve a one-year term on the new executive.

Black Orchid has recorded several singles, beginning with Slavin' No More. Her other music selections: If You Wanna Be My Love, One Love and Hush Baby have had much airplay, as well as her dub poems: Number X and This is Poetry.

Now some of her best pieces are available on her releases - Red Graffiti and Black Orchid Raw: Volume 1...

And coming soon: Black Orchid Raw: Volume 2 - The Next Level.