Waves Breaking
Finally, after a long break, Waves Breaking returns with this interview with Kamden Ishmael Hilliard. Kam generously shares their time with me to discuss their debut book of poems, , out last year with Nightboat Books. We go in deep to discuss their thoughts around the sentence, modes of speech, writing poems within this current era of late-stage capitalism, and teaching students. Kamden Ishmael Hilliard was born in La Jolla, CA; their fam settled on O'ahu, Hawai'i. Kamden holds a BA in American Studies from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and an MFA in Poetry from the Iowa Writers'...
info_outline Interview with YanyiWaves Breaking
Photo of Yanyi, taken by him In this episode I spoke with Yanyi about his new book, Dream of the Divided Field, and his newsletter, . Yanyi is the author of (One World Random House, 1 March 2022) and (Yale University Press 2019), winner of the . His work has been featured in or at NPR’s All Things Considered, New York Public Library, Granta, and New England Review, and he is the recipient of fellowships from Asian American Writers’ Workshop and Poets House. He holds an MFA in Poetry from New York University and was most recently poetry editor at . Currently, he teaches creative writing...
info_outline Interview with Sarah Nnenna Loveth NwaforWaves Breaking
In this interview, I spoke with Sarah Nnenna Loveth Nwafor about their latest publication Already Knew You Were Coming. We discuss Igbo cosmology and time, vengeance poetry, their process in writing this chapbook, and more. Sarah Nnenna Loveth Nwafor (They/Them) is a queer Igbo-American Poet, Educator, and Facilitator who descends of a powerful ancestry. They believe that storytelling is magick, and they speak to practice traditions of Igbo orature. When they witness, their forebears are pleased. Sarah has been writing for a minute and is learning something new about their voice each year, but...
info_outline Interview with Cody-Rose ClevidenceWaves Breaking
In this episode, I spoke with Cody-Rose Clevidence about their latest publication, Aux Arc / Trypt Ich, out with Nightboat Books. We dug into language, exploring motif, grief, love—all that good stuff. Cody-Rose Clevidence is the author of BEAST FEAST (2014) and Flung/Throne (2018), both from Ahsahta Press, Listen My Friend This is the Dream I Dreamed Last Night from The Song Cave and Aux Arc / Trypt Ich as well as several handsome chapbooks (flowers and cream, NION, garden door press, Auric). They live in the Arkansas Ozarks with...
info_outline Interview with féi hernandezWaves Breaking
In this episode, I spoke with féi hernandez about , their poetry collection released in 2020. We also spoke about their incredible skills as an illustrator, and féi recommends some fantastic reads. féi hernandez (b.1993 Chihuahua, Mexico) is a trans, Inglewood- raised, formerly undocumented immigrant artist, writer, healer. They have been published in POETRY, Pank Magazine, Oxford Review of Books, Frontier Poetry, The Breakbeat Poets Vol. 4: LatiNext, amongst others. They are a Define American Fellow for 2021 and are currently the Board President of Gender Justice Los Angeles. féi is the...
info_outline Interview with Larkin ChristieWaves Breaking
In this episode, I spoke with Larkin Christie about their book gather all your supple creatures. Larkin Christie is a queer poet living on unceded Pocumtuc land in what is currently known as Western Massachusetts. Their second collection, gather all your supple creatures, is out now. Their creative work draws on experiences as an educator, organizer, and dancer. Larkin's Larkin's Go buy ! Quotes, workshop, and media mentioned in this episode: , workshop , band From Larkin: "I just did some research and the quote is actually by Shelly...
info_outline Interview with KBWaves Breaking
In this episode, I spoke with KB about their zine “A New Relationship to Pain,” their relationship to poetry, the pandemic, working as a poet and educator, and more.
info_outline Interview with Rainie OetWaves Breaking
In this episode I spoke with Rainie Oet about their recent publication Glorious Veils of Diane. Content warning: We talk a lot about blood and some about self-harming Rainie Oet is a nonbinary writer and game designer, former Editor-in-Chief of Salt Hill Journal, and the author of Glorious Veils of Diane (Carnegie Mellon University Press, 2021), as well as two other books: Porcupine in Freefall and Inside Ball Lightning. They have an MFA in Poetry from Syracuse University, where they were awarded the Shirley Jackson Prize in Fiction. Rainie's ...
info_outline Interview with Anaïs Duplan and imogen xtian smithWaves Breaking
In this episode, I dive deep into one poem with its authors, Anaïs Duplan and imogen xtian smith. Tune in for our conversation about of art, love, and utopias. Anaïs Duplan is a trans* poet, curator, and artist. He is the author of a book of essays, (Black Ocean, 2020), a full-length poetry collection, Take This Stallion (Brooklyn Arts Press, 2016), and a chapbook, Mount Carmel and the Blood of Parnassus (Monster House Press, 2017). He has taught poetry at the University of Iowa, Columbia University, Sarah Lawrence College, and St. Joseph’s College. His...
info_outline Interview with noor ibn najamWaves Breaking
In this episode I spoke with noor ibn najam about her recent work and writing process. they also discussed showing work to friends and skill-sharing. Sorry that the intro and outro audio is a little wonky this time around, but my interview with noor is still good. noor is a poet who teases, challenges, breaks, and creates language. she's received fellowships from Callaloo and The Watering Hole and is a recent resident of the Vermont Studio Center. her poems have been published and anthologized with DIAGRAM, ANMLY, The Academy of American Poets, the Rumpus, Bettering American Poetry, and...
info_outlineIn this episode, I spoke with poet kiki nicole about their manuscript, Autobiography of the boi Venus which not published (yet!), their embroidery work, film work, and current interests.
kiki nicole is a Black, Queer, and Non-binary multimedia artist and poet based in Charlotte, North Carolina.. They’ve received invitations to fellowships such as Pink Door Writing Retreat, The Watering Hole, and Winter Tangerine. kiki nicole is currently a reader for Muzzle Magazine. They work to explore a Black, queer, femme & genderless universe that un/bodies, un/genders, & re/news, kiki hopes to lend a voice for the void in which Black femmes not only exist in plain view, but thrive.
Media, artists, books, etc mentioned in this episode:
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Winter Tangerine’s fellowship program
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Tyrell Blacquemoss (TBN), who runs Cause Reign
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ariella tai’s "she's not going to get more dead"
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the first + the last, a experimental film/video and new media arts project for Black femmes, women, and non-men that kiki and ariella co-curate
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Katherine McKittrick's Demonic Grounds: Black Women and the Cartographies of Struggle
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“Stitches in Time” quilt exhibition, was not at the museum
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M. Norbese Philips's Zong!
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Gríma Wormtongue from The Lord of the Rings
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Shakespeare’s Macbeth
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Toni Morrison’s Beloved
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Octavia Butler's Parable of the Sower, Parable of the Talents, and Kindred
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Naked and Afraid reality series
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Xandria Phillips's HULL
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adrienne marie brown's Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good (Emergent Strategy)
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Big Thief’s "Not"
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noname’s “Song 33”
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kiki's syllabus “Into a New Year.” kiki notes “This is a syllabus of mine that I think ties a lot into what I was trying to convey near the end about preparing for a new world.”
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kiki’s pdf library “blk thots~” to decolonize your bookshelves!
The sound of waves breaking is Sylvester's “You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real).”
This episode was edited and social media managed by Mitchel Davidovitz.
Stay safe, everyone!!