Sharing works that delight, provoke, inspire and rouse, the twice monthly Poetic Tuesdays series runs from May through August, turning lunchtime into an oasis of creative expression. Lighting up the Gardens with a fabulously curated line-up of poets and musicians, Poetic Tuesdays offer a vivifying midday breather for neighborhood groups, students, office workers on break and even out-of-towners looking for respite from The City’s hustle and bustle.

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This month's featured artists include Dazié Rustin Grego-Sykes, Christell, Victoria Roach, Jessica Ke'mani Hairston, Troy Rockett, and Tossie Long.

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Featured Artists

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Christell Victoria Roach is an Emmy-nominated poet and performer from Miami, Florida. As a descendant of Miami’s first Black Pioneers, she writes about Blackness, the Blues, and many different types of love. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing at the University of Miami after graduating from Emory University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Creative Writing & African American Studies. She writes poetry that embraces and expands the Southern gothic to the tropics. Her recent work has been published by the Academy of American Poets,  POETRY Magazine,  Obsidian Literary Journal , Scalawag Magazine, The Miami Rail, and SWIMM Magazine. She is currently working on her first book of poetry entitled, “Bluesing."  

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Dazié Rustin Grego-Sykes, an accomplished poet and performer from Oakland, captivates audiences with his unique blend of spoken word, solo performances, and community engagement. Holding a B.A. in Experimental Performance and an M.F.A. in Interdisciplinary Arts and Writing, Dazié explores identity, race, queerness, and social justice through his distinctive voice. Look for his book “Black Faggotry” (Nomadic Press) and his debut Spoken-Word Album “Make Me Black” which can be found on his website www.DazieGrego.com or any major streaming platform.

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Jessica Ke’mani( pronounced Keh-Mani) is an Oakland born poet. They are studying creative writing at Northeastern University at Mills College in Oakland. Ke’mani is the author of the new poetry chapbook, Power of Our Wombs, released by Nomadic Press Publishing in February of 2023. Ke’mani is an avid lover of jazz, hip hop, (dance and music) as well as stand up comedy and makeup, and is currently liberating their palette to increase their health. Ke’mani deeply believes that art is both therapy, activism, a spiritual gift and necessary resistance within a society that both feeds and bolsters narcissism a swell the myth of exploitative productivity. In the future, Jessica Ke’mani looks forward to obtaining an MFA, working as a freelance writer, serving kids and vulnerable populations, and sharing their poetry for an audience.

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Troy Rockett (he/they) is an interdisciplinary artist and theatremaker based in Oakland, California. Troy works across the mediums of poetry, performance, and digital media. He has a Master’s in English Literature and Creative Writing, and is a LAMBDA Literary Fellow, a VONA Voices Fellow, an Astraea Lesbian Writer's Fund recipient, and a 2021 Titan Award winner with Theatre Bay Area.

He is interested in intersectional art and new contemporary works. Troy received training as an arts professional through NYU Tisch School of Art, Queer Women of Color Media Arts Project (QWOCMAP), 3Girls Theatre Company, Theatre Bay Area, and The Center for Cultural Power. These cultural spaces and institutions provided extensive training in storytelling, practice, and production, and has helped shape his artistic vision.

Previous performance roles include TV series Dyke Central, lead roles in plays WAAFRIKA 123, The Gay Divorce Play, and The Displaced, and ensemble roles in The Box, Leaving the Blues, and PrEP Play, Or Blue Parachute; as well as appearances in independent short films.

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Generational San Franciscan Tossie Long (she/her) is a multi-hyphenate Grammy nominated performing artist, producer and director that speaks to the intersections of music, culture and sociopolitical edges spanning from rock and roll vocals to afrofuturist immersive productions. Nicknamed "Bone Rattler '' Tossie is a practitioner of ceremonial music from around the world with a focus on diasporic cosmology. An ethnomusicologist; Tossie has voyaged to Ayiti, Cuba, Benin and New Orleans tracing the migration of Vodou for a holistic investigation of the music in its cultural contexts. Tossie is currently working on Red Clay Sound Haus (RCSH) an immersive sound-centric project with 4 thematic directives, Land Love Labor Legacy which explores Black sound; body, architecture and desire. Tossie does not perform for the sake of performing, but to push her perceived limits.

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About the Curator

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Nia McAllister is an award-winning poet, writer, and environmental justice advocate working at the intersection of art, activism, and public engagement. As Senior Public Programs Manager at the Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD) in San Francisco, Nia creates participatory spaces for creative expression and literary dialogue. Nia’s writing and poetry have been featured on Poets of Color Podcast, Bay Poets | KALW Public Media, and published in Doek! Literary Magazine, Radicle Magazine, Meridians Journal and Painting the Streets: Oakland Uprising in the Time of Rebellion (Nomadic Press, 2022). She is a recipient of the 2023 San Francisco Foundation/Nomadic Press Literary Awards. Learn more about Nia’s work at niamcallister.com

Co-Presented by: Yerba Buena Gardens Festival

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This program is in-person at Jessie Square located directly across the street from the Yerba Buena Gardens and is part of Yerba Buena Gardens Festival's Poetic Tuesday series. For the full program schedule, visit www.ybgfestival.org.

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