Chorus // A Literary Mixtape

An anthology of poetry by young people, edited by superstar poet and author ofThe Dead Emcee Scrollsand, said the shotgun to the head, Saul Williams.

CHORUSis the anthem of a new generation of poets unified by the desire to transcend the identity politics of the day and begin to be seen as one. One hundred voices woven through testimony and new testament. It is the cry of the unheard. The occupation of the page itself. It embodies the “speak-up” spirit of the moment, the confidence propagated through hip-hop, and the defiant “WTF?” of the now. It is the voice that comes after the rebellious voice that once cried, “I want my MTV!” branded back to where punk was, slammed up and beyond it. A combination of trash, heart, and craft. An anthology in rant.

Saul Williams is an acclaimed poet, musician, and actor. The filmSlam, which he cowrote and starred in, won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival (1998), and the Camera d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival. He has contributed toTheNew York Times, voiced Jean-Michel Basquiat inDowntown 81, and cut records with Rick Rubin and Trent Reznor. He has spoken at more than 200 universities where his poetry has been added to the curriculum of dozens of creative writing programs, and has taught poetry/performance workshops around the world. He recently starred in the Broadway musicalHoller If Ya Hear Me. His books includeS/HE,said the shotgun to the head., andThe Dead Emcee Scrolls.He lives in New York. Visit his website at SaulWilliams.com.

Poet, actor, journalist,Dufflyn Lammershas brought her unique style of “page-to-stage” poetry to universities from Smith College to UC Irvine, and is a fixture on the poetry and literary scene. She worked as Arts & Entertainment journalist forThe Georgia Guardianand Morris News Service (from 1995 to 2000). Lammers was the host and Slam Master of the Los Feliz Poetry Slam at the Formosa Caf in Hollywood and competed in the National Poetry Slam from 2000 through 2004. She has appeared inRussell Simmons Def Poetry Jamon HBO, in the filmBellyfrom Artisan Films, and on ABC Television’sEye on L.A. She is the voice of theBaja Fresh“Spoken Word Radio” campaign and has appeared in episodes ofCriminal Minds,Entourage, and more. She is anthologized inSlam: The Competitive Art of Performance Poetry(Manic D Press). Lammers lives in Los Angeles and is working on her first book–a memoir. For more go to: Dufflyn.com.

Poet and lyricist from East New York, Brooklyn,Aja Monet–at the age of 19–became the youngest individual to ever win the legendary Nuyorican Poet’s Cafe Grand Slam champion title (2007). Monet received a BA from Sarah Lawrence College and an MFA in Creative Writing from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Aja Monet’s poems have appeared inThe New York Timesand in numerous international television and radio programs. Her first book,The Black Unicorn Sings, was independently published with Penmanship books. She is currently living in Paris and is working on a book of science fiction. To see her work, visit: AjaMonet.com.

• Publisher:MTV Books; Original edition (September 4, 2012)
• Language:English
• Paperback:208 pages
• ISBN-10:9781451649833
• ISBN-13:978-1451649833
• Item Weight:6.4 ounces
• Dimensions:5.31 x 0.7 x 8.25 inches