And the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry Goes to …

National Poetry Month has been a time for spoken words, limericks and pindaric odes. With only a couple of days left to celebrate the month of versifiers, I’d like to share another poem from the Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn-based writer, Gregory Pardlo. What makes Pardlo so special? He is the winner of the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for poetry for his book Digest. 

The Maneater Manifesto

Featured poet of the week: Laura Swearingen-Steadwell

Spoken word poetry has always stayed near and dear to my heart. So when I came across @AllDefPoetry on Instagram I figured that it would be fitting to continue National Poetry Month and share some of their featured poets with you. 




For more spoken word performances, subscribe to All Def Poetry on YouTube at http://bit.ly/alldefpoetry.

Are you a spoken word performer? Share your lines with us in the comment box or send your recording to TCsViews@gmail.com. 

Guest Poet: Anthony Villegas, The Set of Rules

Anthony Villegas is the founder and editor of the luxury and lifestyle blog, Of Mice & Menswear. After returning from a short hiatus, the emotions of life inspired Villegas to pour out his feelings in a poem titled, The Set of Rules. "It does carry some seriousness to it, as it is a poem written with serious thought," Villegas wrote in the introduction of his first poem hosted on his blog.

The Set of Rules questions the ifs, whys and whats of life. It hones in on complexities life serves most of us on a daily basis, which all balances out once we agree to follow all of the unspoken rules of life. 

Daily Poem: If the World Was Crazy

April is National Poetry Month. So, why not celebrate with a poem a day?

Today's poem is by Shel Silverstein - If The World Was Crazy, is from Silverstein's book of poems, Where the Sidewalk Ends. ... Read by TC

More poetry posts...

National Poetry Month: Ode to My Shell

April is not just the month reserved for showers that brings May flowers, it's National Poetry Month. In honor of Poetry Month, I'll share my favorite sonnets, haiku, and rhymes. First up is a poem that my son wrote four years ago, he was 13. I share this one almost every year because this is when I realized my son was gifted with an artistic gene.

We Missed It: Black Poetry Day

Today, Oct. 17, 2014, is Black Poetry Day. I had no idea there was a day devoted to Black poets. 

Even though I found out about Black Poetry Day through my Zite news aggregator app around 6 o’clock this morning, it wasn’t a trending topic on any of my social media news feeds. 

I even tweeted: 

It’s #BlackPoetryDay! Who is your favorite Black poet? 

But no one responded. 

St. Louis Police Officer Speaks Out Through Poetry

Race continues to be the main topic of conversation in the U.S, social media and everyday conversation on weekly, daily news shows and newspapers. Actually race talks never really went away but in the last month and a half racial tension has exploded since the killing of Mike Brown in Ferguson, Mo. by a Ferguson police officer.

(From Dissonant Winston Smith)

 It's important to note that some people have a sensitive, nurturing side to them...even the police officers whose lives are being threatened throughout Missouri. To get the point across of how the situation in Ferguson, Mo. has taken a toll on these officers an anonymous police officer launched a blog to share his/her feelings on the matter.

Dissonant Winston Smith posted a heartfelt poem on what he/she feels like. What's so disgusting are the comments that follows. Clearly, those who left negative threatening responses didn't sit back and take in the words on the screen.

If you read the poem carefully you'll see that being a police officer is not easy. If you read the poem carefully you'll know that all police officers aren't corrupt. If you read the poem carefully you should be able to feel sympathy. You will see that his/her spirit and sense of self is held captive because he's afraid of what lurks around the corner.

It's time to take a couple of steps back and think of our actions, the words that spews from our lips, the criticism that hits social media. I'm sick of it...aren't you?

I'm Sick of...

I’m sick of being called a murderer.

I’m sick of “peaceful” protesters threatening to kill me.

I’m sick of being told I’m not trustworthy.

I’m sick of listening to inconsistent accounts of the same story.

I’m sick of adrenaline dumps.

I’m sick of being stuck in condition red all of the time.

I’m sick of not sleeping.

I’m sick of having to watch my back when I go get dinner.

I’m sick of nightmares about my gun not working.

Click here for the entire poem...

Guest Post: The Beginning

Earlier this year I introduced you to Aria Kier, a rising sophomore working toward a degree in creative writing at Fairleigh Dickinson University. The 19-year-old young lady had a bad case of writer's block. To resolve, I opened up my laptop and said, "You can't leave until you write something. Now write!"

Aria needed to be in her own space, with her own thoughts to write. So instead, she shared one of her poems she was most proud of from her collection. My Refund, Please?

Since that day, Aria's writer's block slowly started to crumble. She started to write again. This makes me happy, because as I mentioned before, "It saddens me to see a young, talented artists slacking off from their passion."

Aria's newest piece, which recently appeared on her blog Vision of My Words, gets in touch with her sensual side. It's a side that some of us neglect because we are either too shy, embarrassed or we believe that sensuality is down right dirty.

WARNING: If you haven't read a romance novel, do not read any further. If you think that 50 Shades of Grey was too explicit, don't read any further. If you forgot what it was like to be touched with lusting hands and would like to remember then read on...

Maya Angelou: A Phenomenal Being

How Dr. Maya Angelou’s words made their way into my world.

I’ve seen her several times on television, heard her recite lines of her poetry, read about her activism, and I know of most of her accomplishments. I am very familiar with her book, I Know Why the Caged Birds Sing, but I've never read it and the reason why is not important. What is important to me is how Dr. Angelou shared her story of going after her dream, her dream of being a San Francisco streetcar conductor.

Guest Post: My Refund, Please?

It amazes me how many people have talent and let it fall to the waste side, especially our youth who are rising into adulthood. Whenever I see a young, talented artist slacking off from their passion I do my best to push them back into where they shine best. 

Aria Kier is a rising sophomore who is currently working toward a degree in creative writing at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She's a talented artist who has a knack of expressing her thoughts into compelling poetry. When I found out that she stopped writing on her blog, Visions of My Words, I told her that she can't leave until she gives me something. On this particular day Aria had writers block so instead she shared one of her most inspirational pieces. Enjoy.

Spoken Word Special: Dan's Love Story

Daniel Cruz

Music moves me. Art moves me. Words move me.

I recently found one way to support my addiction for the arts. Every Wednesday night, from 8 o'clock p.m. to 12 a.m., a group of singers, musicians and poets share their talent at Trend Coffee & Tea House open mic night in Montclair, N.J.

On Nov. 27. 2013, Dan, a young Montclair local, took the stage at Trend's open mic and shared a moving, inspirational poem.

Introducing Daniel Cruz ...

Know an emerging artist you'd like to see featured on Art of Cultures... E-mail your submissions to TCsViews@gmail.com or Tweet me @TCsViews