Def Poetry & Spoken Word
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Def Poetry & Spoken Word
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Award-Winning Poet, Scholar,Activist
Caroline Randall Williams is a catalyst. She makes change possible by bringing art and joy into the room in such a way that the grit of real challenge and limits…
Spoken Word Poet and Winner of America's Got Talent (Season 15)
Winner of Season 15 of America’s Got Talent, Brandon Leake is a spoken word poet and an artistic visionary.
Winner of National Underground Poetry Slam Champion
Rudy Francisco was born and raised in San Diego, California. At the age of 21, Rudy completed his B.A in Psychology and decided to continue his education by pursuing a…
Award-Winning Poet & National Book Award Finalist
Claudia Rankine is one of the nation’s most interesting and powerful voices on race in America today. Her work spans various genres, including visual arts and the essay, and draws…
Award-Winning Spoken Word, Hip-Hop, Activist, Motivational and Keynote Speaker
Theo E. J. Wilson , also known by his poet handle, “Lucifury,” is a modern Renaissance Man. His natural knack for artistic expression had him dabbling in, and even mastering…
Artist, Poet, Writer and Activist
Alexis Caputo is a Florida & New York based Performance Artist, Poet, Writer and Activist. Caputo’s artistic portfolio began in performance studies and educational theater. A chief influence emerged, as…
Award-Winning Poet and Professor of English at the University of Hawai‘i
Dr. Craig Santos Perez, award-winning poet and professor of English at the University of Hawai?i, Manoa. In his words, “My work is deeply influenced by Chamorro aesthetics in particular, and…
Poet, Poetry Editor at The Offing Magazine, and 2018 recipient of a Ruth Lilly & Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Fellowship
Paul Tran is the recipient of a Ruth Lilly & Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Fellowship from Poetry Magazine & Poetry Foundation and a "Discovery"/Boston Review Poetry Prize from the 92 Street…
Poet and Essayist
Ocean Vuong is the author of the debut novel, On Earth We're Briefly Gorgeous (Penguin, 2019). He is also the author of the critically acclaimed poetry collection, Night Sky with…
Acclaimed Poet & Arts Educator
Dr. Joshua Bennett has recited his original work at events such as.
Activist and a Minister of Native Hawaiian and Pacific Island cultural tradition
Kalani Souza is a gifted storyteller, singer, songwriter, musician, performer, poet, philosopher, priest, political satirist, and peacemaker. A Hawaiian practitioner and cross-cultural facilitator, he has experience in promoting social justice…
Poet and Activist
Andrea Gibson is a world renown spoken word poet who first began on of the most celebrated and successful poetry careers in the field in 1999. Gibson then leaped to…
National Poetry Slam Champion
At 23 years old, George Yamazawa, Jr. is the youngest poet in the nation to become a National Poetry Slam Finalist and Southern Fried Champion. A 2nd generation Japanese-American and…
Author, Speaker, Lawyer and Storyteller
Gyasi Ross is first and foremost a father, an uncle, and a big brother. Professionally, he is an essayist and writer, poet, speaker and lawyer. ow to help my folks.”
Grammy Award-Winning Singer-Songwriter, Actress and Poet
Jill Scott is a three-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, New York Times best-selling poet, and critically acclaimed actress. Named People Magazine’s “Top TV Breakout Star of 2010,” Jill has been featured…
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Poet Acclaimed Memoirist
Tracy K. Smith is the author of the critically acclaimed memoir Ordinary Light (Knopf, 2015), a finalist for the 2015 National Book Award in Nonfiction and selected as a Notable…
Critically Acclaimed Chicago Playwright and Solo Performance Artist
Rohina Malik is a critically acclaimed Chicago playwright and solo performance artist. She was born and raised in London, England, and moved to Chicago when she was 15 years old. …
Award-Winning Teacher | Acclaimed Spoken Word Poet and staff writer at The Atlantic
Clint Smith is a staff writer at The Atlantic.
College Spoken Word Artist & Author
Elizabeth Acevedo was born as the youngest child of Dominican immigrants.
Professor of Art, UCSB - Award-Winning Filmmaker, Author, Artist & Spoken Word
Kip Fulbeck is a pioneering artist, spoken word performer, author, and filmmaker exploring multiracial identity. He has been featured on CNN, MTV, The Today Show, and PBS, and has performed…
Co-Founder, Def Jam Records
Acknowledged as the Godfather of Hip-Hop, Russell Simmons is the visionary behind Def Jam, the legendary label that launched the careers of such artists as Run DMC, the Beastie Boys,…
Spoken Word, Hip Hop, MC, Performance & Recording Artist
Queen GodIs is an international (Poet, MC, Artistic Director & Performance Art Therapist) whose work serves a host of communities seeking transformation through art. With a holistic approach to content…
Award-winning Author and Pulitzer Prize-Winning Poet
Pulitzer Prize-winner Natasha Trethewey served two terms as the 19th Poet Laureate of the United States (2012-2014). In his citation, Librarian of Congress James Billington wrote, “Her poems dig beneath…
Spoken Word Poet
Dwayne Morgan began his career as a spoken word artist in 1993. In 1994, while still in high school, he founded Up From The Roots entertainment, to promote the positive…
Award-Winning Writer, Composer & Performer
Daniel Beaty is an award-winning actor, singer, writer, and composer. Recently he had an extended off-Broadway run of his acclaimed solo play Through The Night produced by Daryl Roth. For…
Award-Winning Spoken Word Artist, Actor, Singer and Musician
Saul Williams, rapper, singer-songwriter, musician, poet, writer, and actor. He is known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop, and for his lead roles in the 1998 film…
Rapper and Slam Poet from San Francisco; Featured on Season 6 of "Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry"
George Watsky is a rapper, writer and performer from San Francisco now living in Los Angeles. A versatile lyricist who switches between silly and serious, technically complex and simply heartfelt,…
Author, The Color Purple
Alice Walker is an internationally celebrated writer, poet and activist whose books include seven novels, four collections of short stories, four children’s books, and volumes of essays and poetry. She…
Award-Winning Author
Omar Tyree, is a New York Times best-selling author, journalist, lecturer, poet, screenwriter, songwriter, playwrite, host, blogger, publishing consultant and literacy advocate, who has won a 2001 NAACP Image Award…
Attorney and Nationally Recognized Poet and Spoken Word Artist. His work has been featured on HBO, All Def Poetry, TEDx, and Upworty
Before transitioning to a career in law, Geoff Trenchard was a nationally recognized poet and spoken word artist. His work has been featured on HBO, All Def Poetry, TEDx, and…
Actor, Musician, Writer & Activist
In describing Henry Rollins, the tendency is to try to squeeze as many labels as possible into a single sentence. “Rollins is many things,” says the Washington Post, “diatribist, confessor,…
Pulitzer Prize-Winning Beat Poet, Conservationist, Scholar and Environmental Activist
Pulitzer Prize Winner Gary Snyder, a Zen Buddhist, mountaineer, environment activist and founding member of the beat generation, has written 16 collections of poetry and prose, including “No Nature, Mountains…
Hasidic Author, Jewish Slam Poet, Torah Geek and Occasional Screenwriter
Matthue Roth is a novelist and performance poet who lives in Brooklyn. He has filmed for HBO’s Def Poetry Jam and Rock the Vote, performed with Deepak Chopra and Carlos…
Poet, Professor & Activist
Sonia Sanchez is an African-American poet most often associated with the Black Arts Movement. She has authored over a dozen books of poetry, as well as plays and children's books.…
Queer Performance Artist, Activist, Filmmaker, Lecturer and Sex Educator
Ignacio G Rivera is a Two-Spirit, Black-Boricua Taíno, queer performance artist, activist, filmmaker, lecturer and sex educator who prefers the gender neutral pronoun “they.” Ignacio has been sharing spoken word,…
Bestselling Author, Poet & Poet Laureate of Los Angeles (2014 - 2016)
Luis J. Rodriguez believes a writer can change the world. Through the power of words, this acclaimed poet, novelist, children’s book author and journalist saw his way out of poverty…
Award-Winning Poet, Activist, Transformational Leader & Founder of The Body Is Not An Apology
Sonya Renee Taylor is the Founder and Radical Executive Officer of The Body is Not An Apology, an international movement and organization committed to radical self-love and body empowerment as…
Renowned Actress, Poet, Playwright, Educator and Advocate
Liza Jessie Peterson is a renowned actress, poet, playwright, educator and advocate. Liza has written several plays including her most recent one woman play The Peculiar Patriot, which embarked on…
An Evening With Def Poetry
The acclaimed late-night series RUSSELL SIMMONS PRESENTS DEF POETRY. Poets to be selected from the following: Suheir, Black Ice, Poetri, Stacey Ann Chin, Lemon, Beau Sia, Mayda and the best…
Poet, Singer and Actor
Flaco Navaja is a singer, poet, actor, who is born and raised in the Bronx. He sings in both Spanish and English and has toured with various groups across the…
Poet, Vocalist, Songwriter and Professor
Gina Loring is a poet, vocalist, songwriter and professor. She has guest lectured at countless colleges and universities nationwide. As guest artist of the American Embassy, she has traveled to…
Award Winning Actress, Poet, and Playwright
Helena D. Lewis is an award winning actress, poet, and playwright. Her one-person show, “Call Me Crazy: Diary of A Mad Social Worker,” chronicles her work in the social service…
Author, Educator and Community Activist
Dr. Mona Lake Jones, author, educator and community activist. Jones, who has served as Poet Curator and Poet Laureate for the City of Seattle and Martin Luther King County, travels…
Poet, and Actor. Seen on Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam on HBO
Dufflyn Lammers performed her poem SINGLE LIFE on Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam on HBO. She also appeared in the DVD release of BELLY from Artisan Films, and on ABC…
Emcee, Activist & Co-Owner of Blacksmith Music Label
Talib Kweli, known around the world for his art and activism, A famed social activist, Kweli promotes equality and awareness through his rapping and spoken word. Kweli has tried to…
Author of Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs and NYT Magazine Ethicist
Chuck Klosterman is the bestselling author of eight books of nonfiction (including Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs; But What If We’re Wrong?; and Chuck Klosterman X) and two novels (Downtown…
Writer, Actor and Poet. Palestinian American playwright and director best known for the plays Tennis in Nablus (2010) and Truth Serum Blues (2005)
Born in Beirut to Palestinian parents and raised in Chicago, Ismail Khalidi is a playwright, poet and activist, as well as an actor, educator and journalist on occasion. Khalidi holds…