Akila Worksongs

Baba Israel Born in New York, Baba Israel is an internationally respected poet, emcee, theatre artist, beatboxer, director, producer, and author. He has toured extensively across the United States, Europe, South America, Australia, and Asia, performing with artists such as Outkast, The Roots, Vernon Reid, Rahzel, Afrika Bambaataa, and Bill Cosby. As a teacher, he has worked in a wide range of disciplines and with several cutting-edge arts organizations, including Urban Word, BAM, Arts Horizons, New World Theatre, among others. As a director, Israel’s work includes Project 2050 (New World Theatre), Maxwell Golden (UK) and Sharpening Sawds (UK). He is also Co-founder and Co-Artistic Director of Playback NYC Theatre Company which aims to bring theater to under-represented communities.

In April 2009, announced that he has accepted the position as Artistic Director and CEO of Contact Theater. Contact is a pioneering theater in Manchester, England and one of the most successful theaters for young people in that country. It has a world-wide reputation for producing exciting new work and nurturing young diverse audiences. He will move summer 2009 and maintain his career as a performance artist.

More artist info at www.babaisrael.com.

Brown Girls BurlesqueBROWN GIRLS BURLESQUE (BGB) presents "GRIND HIGH" at the Kumble Theater for the Performing Arts at Long Island University (LIU), Brooklyn Campus. Event is Saturday May 16, 2009 at 8:00 pm. Tickets available at www.kumbletheater.tix.com.

NOTE: Brown = all women of color. BGB is a collective of women of color dedicated to creating their own reflection in the art form of burlesque. BGB takes their rightful place on the stage to celebrate their cultures and their sexuality with fierceness, artistry and humor. And in case you really need clarification, all self-identified women of African/Black/Caribbean, Arab, Asian & Pacific Islander, Latina/o, and Native/Indigenous descent.

Check out www.browngirlsburlesque.com.

Cheo Tyehimba Cheo Tyehimba, an award-winning journalist and author, is a former staff writer for Time Inc. and reporter for Entertainment Weekly magazine. He holds a master's degree in Creative Writing from the City College of New York and has written for many publications, including People, The Washington Post, O, The Oprah Magazine, Vibe, and ESSENCE Magazine.

His latest work is Like Loving Backward. Universal in their scope and inspired by the work of Black Arts Movement-era novelist and poet Henry Dumas, the tales are somewhat inner-city fabulist and out-of-bounds. Uncommonly original, here are several emotionally resonant and slightly supernatural stories about how black men learn to love.

In Like Loving Backward, all of these characters inhabit landscapes where strange and often dangerous occurrences are commonplace. Whether in love or learning to love, these men are always slightly estranged from themselves and the world they live in, and yet, their motivations reveal deep feelings most readers will want to share.

Learn more at www.likelovingbackward.com.

Byron Hurt Byron Hurt is a documentary filmmaker, writer, activist, and lecturer. His first film was I AM A MAN:  Black Masculinity in America (2002). In 2006, Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes premiered at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival and was later broadcast nationally on PBS, drawing more than 1.3 million viewers. The Chicago Tribune named it “one of the best documentary films in 2007.” In 2008, Hurt released Barack & Curtis, which exploded in the blogosphere as a part of The Masculinity Project.

Byron’s writings have been published in Michael Eric Dyson’s Know What I Mean: Reflections on Hip-Hop, The Black Male Handbook (edited by Kevin Powell), and other books. He has appeared in The New York Times; The Washington Post; O, The Oprah Magazine; Vibe; Ms.; Mother Jones; Variety; NPR, CNN, Access Hollywood, MTV, BET, ABC News World Tonight, and The Michael Baisden Show, among countless other outlets.

For even more info, visit www.bhurt.com.

Camille Yarbrough Camille Yarbrough (also known as Nana Camille Yarbrough or Naanana Camille Yarbrough) is a performance artist, author, and cultural activist. Her career has spanned over three decades and she has come to be highly revered for her multi-faceted world of creative expression. In pop culture throughout the world, Yarbrough is popularly known as the “ol' school” gifted singer whose song and vocals were sampled by techno-musician Fatboy Slim.His monster 1999 hit, Praise You, is sampled from Yarbrough's original hit Take Yo Praise. His version of the song exploded commercially and her vocals could be heard everywhere, from feature films to hit television shows (Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Sex in the City) to Mercedes Benz commercials, and many other platforms.

Despite this fame, Yarbrough is most proud of her work as a modern-day griot (storyteller). Her mission in life is to tell the life-sustaining stories of African people throughout the Diaspora. As a legendary educator, soul singer, actress, dancer, television host, and lecturer, Yarbrough continues to do just that. With similar passion and vigor that fuels her peer group - from the late Nina Simone to The Last Poets, and others - Naanana Camille remains a force that intends to keep up growing stronger everyday.

Center for Black Literature The Center for Black Literature is housed at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York and its mission is to expand, broaden, and enrich the public’s knowledge and aesthetic appreciation of the value of black literature. Through a series of programs that build an audience for the reading, discussion, and critical analysis of contemporary black literature and that serve as a forum for the research and study of black literature, the Center convenes and supports various literary programs and events such as author signings, writing workshops, panel discussions, conferences, and symposia.

Learn more at www.mec.cuny.edu/blacklitcenter.

Center for Law and Social Justice The Center for Law and Social Justice at Medgar Evers College of the City University of New York (Brooklyn) is a community-based education, research, and legal organization.

It provides quality advocacy, training and expert legal services in a personal manner to people of African descent and the disenfranchised.

For even more information, please visit www.clsj.org.

JLove Calderon JLove Calderon is an educator, activist, and author of three books: We Got Issues! A Young Women’s Guide to Bold, Courageous and Empowered Life with Rha Goddess; That White Girl; and Conscious Women Rock the Page! Using Hip-Hop Fiction to Incite Social Change with Black Artemis, E-Fierce, and Marcella Runell Hall. She is an outspoken advocate for youth empowerment, hip hop activism, and improved relationships within a society that “has yet to heal from the wounds of racism and sexism.” On the topics of social justice, transformative leadership for the 21st century, and white privilege, she is unparalleled.

JLove graduated Cum Laude from San Diego State University with a degree in Africana Studies and received her Master’s in Education from Long Island University. She lives in New York with her husband, Hector Calderon, and their two sons.

Visit the website at www.jlovecalderon.com.

Kevin PowellKevin Powell is widely considered one of America's most important voices in these early years of the 21st century. Legendary feminist Gloria Steinem proclaims, "as a charismatic speaker, leader, and a very good writer, Kevin Powell has the courage...to be fully human, and this will bring the deepest revolution of all." Famed scholar and social critic Dr. Michael Eric Dyson has called Powell "a mighty wind of fresh air."

Learn more at www.kevinpowell.net.

Mo Beasley Mo Beasley has over 20 years experience in the performing and literary arts fields, race matters, and sexuality awareness. He is co-author of the critically acclaimed play and book No Good Nigga Bluez. As workshop facilitator and lecturer, Beasley counts Children’s Aid Society, Global Kids, NYU, Howard University, Penn State, and The Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, as a few of his satisfied clients.

An award-winning poet and actor, Mo has performed with greats such as Sonia Sanchez and Abiodun Oyewole (The Last Poets). He has also been featured at the legendary Blue Note, Nuyorican Poet’s Café, Minton’s Playhouse, The New York and Philadelphia International Fringe Festivals, and the Bowery Poetry Club, among other distinguished venues. Select media includes The Hallmark Channel, BETJ, XM Radio, Air America Radio, and NPR Radio. In 2006, The Daily News selected Mo as one of "50 Unsung New York Heroes."

For even more info, visit www.mobeasley.com.

New Jersey Performing Arts CenterThe New Jersey Performing Arts Center has garnered national attention in its first eleven seasons, serving as a model for programming, audience diversity, education initiatives, and the catalytic role it has played in returning nightlife and economic activity to NJ's largest urban community.

On its Opening Night in 1997, NJPAC became the sixth largest performing arts center in the U.S. (based on annual operating budget).

More info is at www.njpac.com.

April R. Silver April R. Silver is a social entrepreneur, activist, writer, and editor of Be a Father to Your Child: Real Talk from Black Men on Family, Love, and Fatherhood. A former television host on BETJ, Silver heads AKILA WORKSONGS, a communications agency. The company has represented or worked with clients including Mos Def, Kevin Powell, The Ford Foundation, Sonia Sanchez, Sister Souljah, and many others.

Silver graduated from Howard University where she was a nationally respected student activist. She helped lead the historic protest of 1989 and was later elected to student government. There, she served as founding president of The Cultural Initiative and co-produced the nation's first hip hop conference (which birthed the hip hop education movement). Later, Silver became a public school English teacher.

The native New Yorker has also founded (or played key roles in) various grassroots organizations - all focusing on social and media justice issues.

April has been honored with many awards and has been covered by CNN, BET, NY1, ESSENCE Magazine, Time Magazine, Newsweek, The Washington Post, Ebony, Ms., to name a few. Her writings have appeared in the New York Daily News, allhiphop.com, davey.com, and other outlets.

For more info, visit www.aprilsilver.com.