Diamond Mason – Home II

Performed their poem “Home II”

“Poverty isn’t always ripped clothes and dirty cheeks. It is friend’s house for dinner this time. It is no seconds for a while. It is my mom letting me pick any kind of ramen I wanted it and making me think it was a reward.”

Don’t miss this poem from Diamond Mason, performing their poem “Home II”

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Rudy Francisco – So my grandmother once told me…

Performed his poem “So my grandmother once told me…”

“Don’t we all need a little editing? Aren’t we all waiting to be read by someone, praying they will tell us that we make sense?”

Don’t miss this poem from Rudy Francisco, performing his poem “So my grandmother once told me…”

Get Rudy’s book, Helium.

Phil Kaye – Summer, New York City

Performed his poem “Summer, New York City”

“Praise you, boys on bicycles who tell me to ‘watch your skinny ass’ when I know they mean ‘please be careful, we care about you and your relatively average sized ass.’”

Don’t miss this poem from Phil Kaye, performing his poem “Summer, New York City”

Get Phil’s book, Date & Time.

Junious ‘Jay’ Ward – Gentrification

Performed at Rustbelt 2019

“A lot of folk love to be surrounded by Black culture, but not necessarily Black people.”

Don’t miss this poem from Junious ‘Jay’ Ward, performing at Rustbelt 2019

Get Jay’s book, Composition.

Ollie Schminkey – The Scab to Peel Back

Performed at the Button Studio

“My cousin Henry sends me a photo of my father, and I time-travel. I glitch on his smile, how I held his body.”

Don’t miss this poem from Ollie Schminkey, performing at the Button Studio

Get Ollie’s book, Dead Dad Jokes.

Rubi Morgan – Half-Black Girl

Performed at WoWPS 2020 in Dallas, TX

“I need to mention that I love my father and I would never change him, but he will always be the first black man that I have never felt black enough for.”

Don’t miss this poem from Rubi Morgan, performing at WoWPS 2020 in Dallas, TX

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Rudy Francisco – The Heart The Fist

Performed by Rudy Francisco

“We learn that the heart is the same size as the fist, but we keep forgetting they don’t have the same functions.”

Don’t miss this poem from Rudy Francisco, performing by Rudy Francisco

Get Rudy’s book, Helium.

Catherine Weiss – The Joke and The Noise

Performed their poem “The Joke and The Noise”

“When the bleak chaotic void peers into my soul, I have no idea I have the ability to look back.”

Don’t miss this poem from Catherine Weiss, performing their poem “The Joke and The Noise”

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