Standing in the Need of Prayer

American poet, activist, editor and author, Nikki Giovanni has written numerous poetry collections and has been honored with multiple awards, including 20 honorary degrees from national colleges and universities. Her poems are authentic representations of the lives of blacks in America. She was also editor of Fisk University’s literary magazine. She lives in Virginia, where she is a University Distinguished Professor at Virginia Tech. her list of publications and other outstanding accomplishments can be found at nikki-giovanni.com Jericho Brown is the recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study at Harvard, and the National Endowment for the Arts, and he is the winner of the Whiting Award. Brown’s first book, Please (New Issues 2008), won the American Book Award. His second book, The New Testament (Copper Canyon 2014), won the Anisfield-Wolf Book Award. His third collection The Tradition (Copper Canyon 2019) won the Paterson Poetry Prize and was a finalist for the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle Award. His poems have appeared in The Bennington Review, Buzzfeed, Fence, jubilat, The New Republic, The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Paris Review, TIME magazine, and several volumes of The Best American Poetry. He is the director of the Creative Writing Program and a professor at Emory University. Learn more at jerichobrown.com. Jordan Dxtr Spits Holmes was reared in Prince George’s county Maryland, a suburb of Washington D.C. His curious mind led him to become a jack of all trades as a scientist/engineer, musician, spoken word artist, and entrepreneur. Holmes relocated to Chicago in 2014 after graduating from Virginia Tech where he got his degree as a Materials Science Engineer and met his mentor Dr. Nikki Giovanni.
He began the pursuit of his music career as Dxtr Spits, a witty, impactful, and energized lyricist. Holmes is the Founder and CEO of Onli Packs, an apparel and backpack brand that utilizes art from local artists. He prioritizes community reinvestment and creates community support initiatives utilizing his company and brands. His versatility and hustle has landed him attention locally and nationally including NPR, the Chicago Tribune, Vocalo Radio, VoyageChicago and These Days News. See more of his work at dxtrspits.com Emily Thornton Calvo has painted since she could hold a brush. After two cancer diagnoses in 2010 and 2012, she made painting and poetry a priority. Since then, she has exhibited in Chicago at the ZhouB Art Center’s noteworthy Lexicon show, August House Gallery, Harold Washington Library, Women Made Gallery, John G. Shedd Aquarium, and the Civic Center in Fontenay Le Comte, France.
As a Chicago poet, she released her collection of poems and paintings Lending Color to the Otherwise Absurd with support from her city. Highlights of her featured readings include the Art Institute of Chicago through the Poetry Foundation, Harold Washington Library, and the Uptown Poetry Slam. She also taught in The Poetry Center of Chicago’s Hands on Stanza program and was an organizer in the poetry slam movement for more than two decades. For more information, visit emilycalvo.com.