The 2013 Saint Paul Almanac won a Midwest Book Award in the “Culture” category last night. The award was accepted with pride by Kimberly Nightingale, the publisher and executive director of the Saint Paul Almanac, at a ceremony attended by many authors, publishers and friends. Last year, the 2012 Saint Paul Almanac won the “Travel” category at the Midwest Book Awards.
The last thing this world needs is another rapper. With anyone who can gain access to a MacBook Pro and GarageBand releasing their half-assed basement raps, I think we can all agree that we can do without another rapper. Fans deserve much more. They deserve artists: people with a healthy respect for the art form of creating music; people who have studied the likes of James Brown, Miles Davis, Prince, Nina Simone, the Funkadelics—not just another person who can flip on the switch of a vocoder. They deserve someone like Dominique “Ceewhy” Suttles.
This presentation of the popular and eclectic series is hosted by Mizna, the Twin Cities’ own nationally-recognized Arab literary arts organization, who will bring a diverse group of established and emerging writers and performers to the Lowertown Reading Jam stage. With that Homeland Security dictum “if you see something, say something” ringing in their ears, Mizna’s group of Arab American and Muslim writers will give voice to their own experience of diverse homelands. The evening will be hosted by performance artist and Mizna rep Moheb Soliman, who will present his own work along with other amazing artists of spoken word, performance, and straight-up poetry coming out of Mizna’s Silaat writing workshop series. All ages, no cover, donations accepted. Food and beverages for sale.
27-year-young Margeaux Davis has a sweet, friendly spirit—and this girl can groove! Described as “Jazzy… Hip Hop Soul—Etta James meets J. Dilla”, Margeaux won Best Female R&B Vocal 2010 at Minneapolis’ world-renowned First Avenue, and was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal in both 2011 and 2012. She recently finished the production Rag Time at Park Square Theater in 2012, with director Gary Gisselman and is currently wrapping up her EP titled, “Won’t Do It Again”, at Grand Melody Music with producers Andre Dennis and Andre Reynolds.
Cristopher Gibson is a writer and performance poet from Perry, OK, currently residing in Saint Paul, MN. Gibson is active in the spoken word and slam communities in the Twin Cities, and conducts writing and performance workshops at various colleges as well as more informal coffee meetings. He also plays in the local punk, hip hop, and occasional dubstep scenes. He is releasing his first book through Beard Poetry entitled, Dysfunctional: Portraits of a Small Town along with a spoken word CD.
“Inspired Works” is a theme. Regular participants are invited to bring in a poem written by another author, perhaps someone they experienced during National Poetry Month, a mentor, a great! The event takes place from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Golden Thyme Coffee Café at 921 Selby Avenue (corner of North Milton Street) in Saint Paul, MN 55104. All ages are welcome, and there is no cover charge. Every first Thursday, a writing workshop will be held an hour before the open mic begins, from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.
The 2013 Saint Paul Almanac is a finalist in three Midwest Book Awards categories—Travel, Reference and Culture! The Almanac was the winner in the Travel category of the Midwest Book Awards in 2012. 2013 winners will be announced at the Midwest Book Awards Celebration on May 8 at the Bloomington Center for the Arts.
We at the Saint Paul Almanac were more than a little excited about the Minnesota Book Awards this year. Our very own community editor, board member and co-editor for the 2014 edition, Patricia Kirkpatrick won the award for poetry. Her book Odessa, published by Milkweed Editions, is a moving piece of work. It chronicles the painstaking reclamation of herself during a time that included some of the less than usual hardships that can knock one down in life. The book is an open heart, an invitation to be human and graceful just as we know Patricia to be.
TruArtSpeaks has been an active organization in the Twin Cities since 2006. TruArtSpeaks utilizes elements of hip-hop, spoken word, and the arts, to encourage literacy and develop leadership in the communities we serve, supporting a generation of vibrant young voices as they make their claim on the world. The (K.)N.E.W. MN Youth Poetry Slam Series is a program that seeks to identify six youth poets between the ages of 13-19 to represent Minnesota in the annual international Brave New Voices Youth Poetry Slam Festival. Come meet them!
Poetry, happiness and memory emerged as the dominant themes at lunch on March 20th with Minnesota Poet Laureate Joyce Sutphen at the Humanities Center in St. Paul, part of the Lunch and Learn series. Sutphen’s talk was playfully labeled with alternative titles: “Got Poetry?,” Poetry in Your Pocket,” “Poetry Out Loud,” and “Poetry for Lunch.” In the end, these were really just chapters in a free-ranging discussion that touched on why it’s important to get poetry, to understand it and keep it close at hand, like a poem in your pocket, something you can remember and recite.
Marcus started playing music at the age of 12 in a Lutheran church choir beside his loving mother Victoria. He is currently the percussionist in the award winning Xavier Marquis band. He was previously the bassist and vocalist in the bands We Are Awesome, Ron Band, and Dolphins of Tomorrow. Born Marcus Glay Kar in Liberian West Africa and raised in South Minneapolis, Marcus grew up with a wide range of music exposure, developing a great wide appreciation of music. Some of his influences include (but not limited to) Roky Erickson, A Tribe Called Quest, Eric B. & Rakim, Jimi Hendrix, Otis Redding and of course, Prince.
Chicago native Marie Chanté learned early on that stories are powerful and whether heard or unheard, everyone has one. As a child, her voice was sometimes hushed, but she knew writing would save her life. As an adult she stands on the stronger side of vulnerability and shares her joy of storytelling with all who will listen, through Spoken Word Poetry. She now lives in the Twin Cities with her three sons.
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