In other news…

I am playing with sound. Anybody who knows me knew that it would eventually come to this.

Sound and music have always been a part (in, around, all up and through) of everything I do. Over the past few years I have been really inspired by some of the creative musicians and sound artists that I have been meeting, listening to, sitting with,, reconnecting with,  and learning from. Their encouragement and inspiration has moved to play with sound and engage in what Douglas Kearney called “generative failure.”  In his talk at AWP in Kansas City, Kearney said this is the approach that he uses when he has a lot of respect for a creative act, but still (in his own estimation) lacks the skill to be good at said creative act – he continues knowing he will “fail’ in an effort to move himself closer to something that he can feel better about creatively.

That is kind of where I am…I am not sure when I will share what I have been playing around with, but for sure, it will fall short of what I hear and envision in my head.

The post Gratitude and New Noise first appeared on Fred L. Joiner.

I turned 51 on April14th  and amazing publisher Birds LLC serendipitously was able to deliver books to some folks who pre-ordered on my birthday.

The book was debuted at AWP Baltimore and we sold all the copies we brought. That was a good feeling.

It is hard for me to put into words how thankful I am to have this book out in the world. It has been a long time coming battling self-doubt, studying, working on my craft, living, studying, doubting myself some more.

It would be in impossible to thank everyone that has made this book a reality, but if you are reading this, please know that, you are in that number and i am thankful.

I don’t have a whole lot else to say…we are working book launch event, which i think is scheduled for June 4th at Shadowbox Studio (2200 Dominion St, Durham, NC 27704) and if all goes well there will be some special guests. I also hope to getting some things on the calendar for bookstores and stuff. So stay tuned.

In the meantime, please considering ordering a copy of my book,
The Mirror in Our Music here.

I know the link still says Pre-Order, but it is available and shipping now..

Hope to see you soon.

In Gratitude…

The post Gratitude… first appeared on Fred L. Joiner.

Here is an interview I did with Redbud Writing Project’s Arshia Simkin
click here to read it.

Pre-order link coming soon….

The post Long time… I know, but… first appeared on Fred L. Joiner.

I am 3 weeks into The Studio Museum in Harlem’s Museum Education Practicum and I am having a ball. There are so many smart and accomplished people in this class, I am really happy to be a part of it and I hope that it spawns some opportunity for collaboration and future projects together.

Because of a project that I am currently working on, I started thinking about the people who are not in this class and who might benefit from hearing about what we are doing. So I decided to try to do some brain dumps or some kind of summary after my class.

Today the readings were all about the term “post-black.” I think it is almost impossible to talk about The Studio and not at least mention this term. The Week #3 readings were very interesting, they were the following:
1. “Is there a ‘post-black’ art?” by Cathy Byrd
2. Introduction to Freestyle by Thelma Golden
3. “The Multiplicity of Multiplicities–Post-Black Art and its Intricacies” by Nana Adusei-Poku

I remember when i first heard this term amongst my poet and writing comrades we were like, “WTF is a post-black.” My first inclination is that is was another way to call Black artists the N-word and if not it would be used that way. The other thing that happened too is that i feel like there was a lot of backlash at the suggestion of a period “after” black. One of my mentors turn the whole discussion on its head and said, “Nah, the real discussion we should be having is is “post-whiteness.” After our last 4 years it is clear that we as a country and a world need to think about the reality that the construct of whiteness has wrought an continues to impact in our world and what kind of world is possible “post-whiteness.”

Some the important topics that came up in the small groups I was in were:

1. Commodification: All art is commodified, that is why they call it the “art market.” That said we discussed because Black artists represent such a segment of said market, establishing a term like “post-black” that could be (or be used as) a package marketing term to tell the “art market” that this artwork will not make you feel guilty, you can view without having to think about that old, pesky Race, or Racism, or Blackness.
2. Tensions: To be Black and creating is filled with tensions because black life at large is filled with tensions. Even Black artists that art not creating expressed “Black” work feel the pressure of being who they are in the world.
3. Process (& Material): In our discussions about the artists in the videos we were asked to watch (Senga Nengudi, Jack Whitten, and Kevin Beasley), it was so instructive to see the artists talk about a piece of work and walk us through its creation and the ideas and craft that go into the work.
4. Our instructor also asked us to consider the term post-black and more specifically how the term made us feel and how we thought the term functions/(ed).

There was much more but I think this captures the main elements….

Stay Tuned. I will fill you in on #1 & #2 later. See you next time…

The post Lessons from “the Studio” #3 first appeared on Fred L. Joiner.

I know my website needs a little updating. I am getting to it, please bear with me. In the meantime check a few links of me reading or talking about my work

While it is an honor to have any organization support or feature your work, this reading in particular was a distinct honor to be a part of because of what this organization means to African American Poetry in particular, and American Letters in general.

This program is in support of the newly published Furious Flower anthology, Furious Flower: seeding the future of african american poetry edited by Dr. Joanne Gabbin and Lauren Alleyne. My presentation starts at 49:03, but you will miss a poetry blessing if you don’t listen to the who thing.

This is a piece I did with the Sciences Po School of Journalism in Paris , France. Thank you to Pariesa Young for reaching out to me after finding my poem Currency.

The following link is a link to the business and economy program Marketplace, it airs on NPR. Thank you to Maria Hollenhorst for finding my poem Austerity on the Academy of American Poets website. I know some writers are used to a certain type of acclaim and recognition, but for me as a poet who does not have my own collection out in the world YET, it is an honor to have my poem on this website. It is hard to put in words.

Click here to check out the segment on Marketplace.

Last but not least, is a reading I participated in with some other amazing writers to celebrate the publication of the Carolina African American Writers’ Collective’s new anthology All the Songs We Sing edited by Lenard D. Moore with an introduction by NC Poet Laureate Jaki Shelton Green.
It was such an honor to not only be included in this anthology but also to be welcomed into the fellowship of the Carolina African American Writers’ Collective, so needless to say that my gratitude abounds. Thanks to Lenard D. Moore for welcoming me into the fold.

The post Yeah, I know… first appeared on Fred L. Joiner.