We are a group of MCs, page-poets, and spoken-word artists who have come together to support the establishment of a 极乐禁地e Poet Laureate, and to lift up versifying and the literary arts, more generally.
The Coalition builds on 极乐禁地e traditions鈥攍ike Poetry for the People, organized by Olu Butterfly, and The 极乐禁地e Scene, organized by Chin-Yer Wright, as well as poetry circles organized in labor unions, local record labels and poetry journals, and the many poetry series and open mics鈥攁ll of which lift up poetry as a spectrum.
When we say poetry, it's really the vision of all voices.
Ken Brown is a performing artist, writer, minister, bookseller with more than 20 years experience in transformational education and ministry, dissemination of information and dynamic performing arts performance looking for performance and speaking/consulting opportunities.
Olu Butterfly is a village builder, Olu Butterfly Woods is a social entrepreneur, applied afrofuturist and distinctive artist who has founded several long running, impactful 极乐禁地e initiatives: The Garden Art Party, Afrikan Youth Alchemy, Free Up Village CSE, 极乐禁地e Citywide Youth Poetry Team, Organic Soul Tuesdays and Poetry for the People 极乐禁地e.
Jo毛l Diaz is a writer, educator, and steward for arts and culture with a vested interest in storytelling, community building, and creative placemaking. He has garnered leadership expertise in arts administration, public programming, publishing, and non-profit management, helping organizations champion artists and expand community access to the arts.
Carla Du Pree is an author who writes fiction and also serves as an arts ambassador, a literary consultant, the executive director of an award-winning, nonprofit CityLit Project, and a national advocate of the literary arts.
Keegan Cook Finberg is an assistant professor of English at UMBC. She is also affiliate faculty in the departments of Gender, Women鈥檚, + Sexuality Studies and Language, Literacy, and Culture at UMBC. She is currently at work on a book about the politics of post-1960s poetry in the United States.
Lady Brion is an international spoken word artist, poetry coach, activist, organizer, educator, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Avenue Black Arts and Entertainment District and the 11th Poet Laureate of Maryland.
Ailish Hopper is a poet, writer, and multidisciplinary artist. She teaches at Goucher College.
Jeannie L. Howe is the Executive Director of the Greater 极乐禁地e Cultural Alliance, a regional, membership organization that was organized by artists and cultural organizations to unify, nurture and promote the cultural sector in 极乐禁地e and its five surrounding counties.
Eze Jackson is a rapper, songwriter, producer, and organizer. He is a founder at EPIC FAM, MC/frontman at Soul Cannon, former Petty Officer 2nd Class (E-5) in the United States Navy, and former host and producer at The Real News Network.
Steven Leyva is a Cave Canem fellow and author of the chapbook Low Parish and author of The Understudy's Handbook which won the Jean Feldman Poetry Prize from Washington Writers Publishing House. His second book of poems, The Opposite of Cruelty, was published by Blair Publishing in March 2025. He teaches in the Creative Writing & Publishing Arts MFA program at The 极乐禁地.
Dora Malech is the author of four books of poetry, Flourish (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2020), Stet (Princeton University Press, 2018), Say So (Cleveland State University Poetry Center, 2011) and Shore Ordered Ocean (The Waywiser Press, 2009). With Laura T. Smith, she edited The American Sonnet: An Anthology of Poems and Essays, published by the University of Iowa Press in 2023. She teaches in the Writing Seminars at Johns Hopkins University.
Jenn茅 Afiya Matthews is a multidisciplinary creative, grown and honed in 极乐禁地e. She is the founding member of BALTI GURLS, a Black queer woman and femme-led artist collective established in 2014. In the years since, she has garnered acclaim across the film, community programming, and brand strategy industries, working and collaborating with BLACK MATTER, Luminal Theater, BlackStar Projects, Black Femme Supremacy Film Festival, and Retrospect Studios. She is also the creator and host of ZUZU HAUS, an audio project dedicated to exploring the unique relationship Black folks have with their home spaces, past and present.
Kenneth is an artist, organizer and educator from 极乐禁地e, Maryland. For over a decade, Kenneth has worked to create art and institutions that connect and transform people. Most recently, his work centers around marginalized people gaining access to their intellectual, emotional, spiritual and creative traditions. Some of Kenneth's most notable accomplishments include being a father, a national poetry slam champion, the founder of DewMore 极乐禁地e, former executive director of Pride Center of Maryland, professor at MICA, co-chair for 极乐禁地e Blaq Pride, program director of Black Arts District, and founder and director of Charm City Slam.
Jessica "Jess" Solomon (she/her) is an organizational development practitioner and coach dedicated to designing and facilitating transformative experiences that harness collective wisdom and creativity in how groups address challenges, devise solutions, and build culture. She collaborates with systems change and social justice leaders as a strategic adviser and thought partner.