Overview
Spoken Word Apex is a transformative poetry concert featuring Taalam Acey, Theresa tha SONGBIRD, K-Love, 13 of Nazareth and Ed Mabrey, hosted by Narubi Selah. They’ll be joined by DJ Doughboy and visual performance artist Iyaba Ibo Mandingo.
Taalam Acey, with his 17 albums and eight books, is considered the “Godfather” of Spoken Word’s digital age. Acey has been featured at the Essence Music Festival and the Black Congressional Caucus. He has won awards in the US, UK and Germany, and his work has been covered on BET, the Documentary Channel, TV One and two Sundance Award-winning films.
Theresa tha SONGBIRD is a musical, lyrical and theatrical alchemist. She has appeared on the Emmy Award-winning Tamron Hall, the Trumpet Awards, a GRAMMY®-nominated album and performed for thousands at the LA Clippers stadium.
K-Love is one of the most viral poets of our time. Few other Spoken Word artists have garnered her level of social media celebrity, internet influence and live emotional impact.
Narubi Selah has written and co-directed plays as well as starred in a number of off-Broadway productions. She was the first NJ Poetry Slam grand champion and her work has been featured on HBO’s Def Poetry Jam, New Jersey Network (NJN) and at the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans.
13 of Nazareth is “your favorite poet’s favorite poet.” Few in Spoken Word are regarded so highly by their peers. He has produced eight Spoken Word CDs and currently hosts the world famous Busboys and Poets in Shirlington, VA.
Ed Mabrey is an Emmy-nominated actor and the most winningest poet in the history of poetry slam, earning several world championships and hundreds of other slam wins. Mabrey has been featured on ABC, FOX, HBO, CNN and TV One.
DJ Doughboy has toured Africa, Europe and Mexico (with some of the most popular names in the music industry) and been featured on BET, MTV and Showtime. He also holds a B.S. in Television and Radio Broadcasting Communications from Fairleigh Dickinson University and spins for 50 million listeners on Music Choice.
Iyaba Ibo Mandingo is not only an accomplished painter, he is also a poet, playwright and actor who studied fine arts at Southern Connecticut State University. His art has taken him throughout Africa and the West Indies, among other destinations.