About the performers
LOVE The Poet
LOVE the poet began her artistic journey by testing the waters of the underground performance arts community in the Baltimore Metropolitan area. She started out as one of many poets who signed up for ‘open mic’ at spoken word poetry events in order to gain a few minutes of time onstage, and quickly distinguished herself as a talent to be reckoned with. She became a recognizable figure on the DMV (D.C./Maryland/Virginia) performance arts scene and much sought after performer.
LOVE soon became a featured performer at the very same open mic events she once frequented as a hopeful poet looking for an audience to share her work with. She became a much beloved fixture at the area’s premier spoken word events, and gained popularity with area media. Her tremendous, transcendent energy and stage presence soon led her to perform at some of the most noted venues in the area like The Theater Project and Center Stage, performing with live bands, dancers, vocalists, and other noted area performance poets and hip hop artists.
LOVE, who also hosts numerous monthly and quarterly events of her own, has received many awards and accolades from the performance arts community and media like Baltimore’s City Paper, has recorded three full-length CDs: “LOVE’s Journey: It Begins”, “LOVE’s Journey: The Middle Passage”, and “The Chrysalis: The Rebirth of Michelle Antoinette” and one DVD, “LOVE’s Journey… LIVE!”.
LOVE has become equally popular and prominent on the national performance arts scene, the literary scene, and in the field of creative writing/education. She has appeared on CNN as a speaker at the Jena 6 rally in Washington, D.C., has performed at college campuses nationwide and is also a member of The Punany Poets, a nationally touring erotic poetry performance troupe that has been featured on HBO’s late night series Real Sex. LOVE is also an active member of the Maryland Speaker’s Bureau, the founder of justlovepoetryink, LLC which facilitates her “Live Lyrics” creative writing workshops across the state of Maryland, and an active member of Poetry for the People Baltimore.
LOVE continues to center her spoken word career on social enlightenment, community outreach, and entertainment. She explains it this way: “…you struggle with the idea of ‘do you want to be famous’, ‘do you want to be rich’…I want the world to hear my work…I want to touch as many people as I can…and if that results in fame and money, then good…but I want people to enjoy my work and hear me and know that this is what I do and that I don’t just do it for me.” (Original biography appears atwww.lovethepoet.com/live/)
Yolo Akili
Yolo Akili is an award winning author, performance artist, Iyengar toga teacher and social justice advocate. He is the founder of Akili inc, a healing arts organization dedicated to producing interactive educational experiences that enlighten, entertain and heal. His career and work emphasis has been on gender & sexuality social issues, LGBTQ rights, HIV & AIDS and spiritual wellness.
He is a graduate of Georgia State University, where he earned his B.A in Women’s & African American Studies. He is a licensed 200 level Iyengar Yoga teacher (RYT), with Yoga Alliance having studied and graduated from Yoga of India Yoga School, in Sandy Springs Georgia. He has been awarded the Creative Leadership Award by the Feminist Women’s Health Center , A ZAMI award and the “Unity In Community Award” from Unity in Christ Fellowship Church.
As a performance artist, he is the author of the poetry chapbook “Poems in the Key Of Green” and the spoken word album “Purple Galaxy”. He has been a featured performer at the National HIV prevention Conference, The State of Black Gay America Summit, The Southeastern Students Against Sweatshops Conference, Harlem Pride, MAGNET San Francisco, Agnes Scott College, Morehouse College and much more. His performance art videos have been featured at numerous colleges and universities as talking points for forums on gender,race and sexuality.
His writings and articles have appeared in numerous venues including the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Voice Male, Left Turn, The GA Voice, David, and Aquarius magazine.
He has also worked in the field of HIV & AIDS service, working with AID Atlanta’s Deeper Love Project, where he facilitated “Many Men Many Voices”Interventions and organized community events for black gay men. He worked with National AIDS & Education Services, where he was apart of the creative team that helped to establish “Da C.R.I.B.B” an HIV Prevention Community center for young black gay men. At “Da C.R.I.B.B” Yolo conducted HIV & AIDS Testing and facilitated CRCS (Comprehensive Risk Counseling Services), and independently designed wellness workshops such as “Upgrade You: A Workshop on Loving, Appreciating and Celebrating Your Self” for young black gay men.
Through his gender & sexuality activism, he has been an organizer with United 4 Safety (LGBTQ Domestic Violence Organization), Spark! Reproductive Justice and the Atlanta Queer Literary Festival. He worked as the Regional training coordinator for Men Stopping Violence where he organized the mentor program, taught men’s education classes (commonly called batterer’s intervention courses) trained and educated organizations and individuals on gender based violence and was the lead architect and designer of “Mercury” An online training for men on gender based violence.
Yolo currently manages the operations of Akili inc, in New York, providing provocative trainings, consulting, education, yoga classes and spiritual consultations to groups and individuals across the world. (Original biography appears atwww.yoloakili.com/about/)
Join us at Sidetrack Video Bar for a showstopping afternoon with performances by
LOVE the poet and YOLO Akili
Event: Saturday, July 2, 2011
Location: Sidetrack
3349 N. Halsted Street, Chicago, IL
Time: 1:00pm-4:00pm
Donation: $6.00
LOVE the poet in Action
Yolo Akili in Action
LOVE the poet
Yolo Akili
Michael-Christopher
Michael-Christopher
will be on-hand to sell and sign copies of his sexy new photographic coffee table masterpiece
MAN: BLACK
Leyla Farah
Leyla Farah
is the founder and owner of Cause+Effect, a PR and media firm focused on the LGBT community
and and author of the new book,
BLACK, GIFTED AND GAY
featuring profiles on Tracy Chapman, Lee Daniels, Angel Davis, Maurice Jamal, Meshell Ndegeocello, Patrik-Ian Polk, RuPaul, Sheryl Swoopes, Wanda Sykes, Alice Walker, Emil Wilbekin and more!
Get your copy at the Esteem Awards!
