Sitting with Chris James Journey (Poet, Playwright, Director, Host, Educator). We discuss spinning a globe and coming to Atlanta, letting the youth tell their stories, the importance of doing research, educators failing to connect with students, making poetry cool, the value of entrepreneurship, dealing with people’s emotions, and the bad never ove…

Sitting with Joel Byars (Comedian, Host, Podcaster, Teacher ). We discuss gauging your audience’s response, pulling out the rare words, using social media as a tool, chasing the highs, the fuel of feedback, dream jobs if you hate money, good hosting habits, setting roots in Atlanta, carrying our history with us, your entertainment and your circle b…

Sitting with myself as I discuss America’s waist trainer popping off, taking pictures of everything, an entrepreneur having an apprentice, new Taters4Art mascots, National Poetry Slam in Decatur, refusing to trade dreams for light bulbs, and wanting to hear from you.

Sitting with Kim Joyce (Singer, Songwriter, Musician). We discuss quitting the day job, life with dreadlocks, singing in church, love and basketball and music, how Atlanta makes you see differently, learning your ‘why’ and accepting it, the duty you have to create and inspire, finding a place where you can be authentic, the power of co-creation, th…

Sitting with Nfared (Poet, Actor, and Host). We discuss being a masterpiece and a work of art at the same time, seeing Cocktails everywhere, starting out with poems about cougars, scaring teachers with your vivid imagination, deciding which to personal stories to share, getting comfortable with getting nervous, wanting to grow up to be on-screen Co…

Sitting with James and James, LLC founders, Jared and Mesi James. We discuss the tight space of New York, recognizing the business potential in your art, the limits of higher education, witnessing the growth of your event planning, how working for the babies is received by them, focusing on projects while working on several, keeping innovation in y…

Sitting with DJ Opdiggy (Turntable Ambassador). We discuss love for monkeys, being allowed to paint on your school walls, looking at the pictures, feeling souls in vinyl, respect in collaboration, being a fan of artists as an artist, changing the rules of art, healthcare reform for mosh pits, being gripped by live performances, envelope pushing, be…

Sitting with TJ Nicole (Spoken Word Poet, Author, Visual Artist). We discuss having different accents in the city of ‘lanta, wild flight attendant stories, how you write when the risk of death is near, why airplanes are really bookstores, creating art as gifts, legitimate puppet fears, reading when you can’t read, figuring out you’re an artist when…

Sitting with Marcus Taylor (Poet, Author, Educator). We discuss the Facebook grapevine, democracy at its finest, how hood dreams can come true, diversity at GSU, blackface in different countries, being black outside of the U.S., going from religious studies to snap music, cars dying in the middle of nowhere, sharpening skills with battle poems, the…

Sitting with Queen Amina (Singer, Songwriter, Producer) and Spooks McGhie (Rapper, Producer). We discuss husbae and wifey crossover collaborations, fake wedding proposals at Chick-Fil-A, second-guessing your work, how confidence resulting in progress, naming beats after pregnant cravings, the psychology behind the art, planning being fine if His ey…

Sitting with Lee Kendrick (Filmmaker). We discuss the original home of Mardi Gras, daring to pack up and move for your dreams, learning a variety of methods you can capture images, rebounding when the vision doesn’t pan out, trickiness of expanding the scenes of smaller cities, the ATL film industry vs. LA, seeing the world is bigger than home, dec…

Sitting with Christine Job (Truth Seeker, World Traveller, Poet, Singer On-the-Low). We discuss the aftermath of SeekerFest, organizing events with lasting impacts, growing up as the oddball, the jerks that kids can be, trading your unborn sister for a kitten, becoming aware of your creativity, not keeping education sectional, trusting the chaos, r…

Sitting with Kottavei (Visual Artist, Painter, Poet, Author, Educator, Designer, etc.). We discuss getting wanderlusty, avoiding trinket cities, hugging rich folks, encouraging students with higher expectations, Amber Rose and the ‘Slut Walk,’ choosing which wolf to feed, scavenging art supplies off the street, unifying your art forms, getting idea…

Sitting with Jamie England Cooper (Interior Designer and Founder of Kiwi Vintage and Green Home Market). We discuss shifting from The Columbus to ATL, no more ears ringing at Masquerade, gentrification and the yuppie apocalypse, being confused by the Downtown ATL ferris wheel, running over drunk people, translating art education into an art profess…

Sitting with Jason Pure (Singer/Songwriter). We discuss Creepy Woody, commuting in Atlanta, being booed at Apache Cafe, importance of audience-connection, how a team’s work can make your dreams work, critics chipping away at you, carrying the good feelings with you, evolution of your work, digging into what makes your soul shiver, experiencing musi…

Sitting with Chase Van Leeuwen (Hip Hop Artist and Sound Engineer). We discuss not being able to read, meeting at a sidewalk cypher, to-pay or not-to-pay at open mics, creating outlets for others back home, freelance service vs. employed service, European drinking genes, delivering art-babies, using our real names, why I blame Obama, past-life phil…

Wrapping up my conversation with Vee Jovan and Erica McKnight. We discuss youth artists giving us life, getting tingles from poets, the inspirational trap, making people cry, listening to that little voice, the Taters4Art origin story, being the first one killed in a scary movie, the world being your skateboard, and what EyeSeeBeauty Magazine and T…

Sitting with Vee Jovan (Hairstylist & EyeSeeBeauty Magazine Editor) and Erica McKnight (Spoken Word Poet & Founder of The Matrices Agency). We discuss sharpshooting, mentoring kids, migrating to ATL, vision board parties, maximizing your relationships, “reckless Erica,” inspiring youth to inspire yourself, keeping your daughter(s) off the pole, and…