Renaissance man, Michael Wayne Turner III, is an award winning writer, poet, spoken word artist, actor, and educator. Taking on the starring role in Chinaka Hodge's Chasing Mehserle, Turner plays Watts a young man who doesn't feel safe in the world, hasn't gone past his Oakland stoop since the Rodney King beating and is obsessed with the Bart officer who killed Oscar Grant, Johannes Mehserle. The play is reminiscent of many of the anxieties felt
Read more 2
The purity of Jennifer Johns’ voice is never lost within her music. This singer and artist is Oakland born and raised and that Bay Area swagger is present as she performs. Her music is influenced by the African diaspora, hip hop and soul. More than just an entertainer her music speaks to social justice causes and she uses her talent to bring awareness to the issues closest to her heart. It is this commitment to
Read more 43
Writer, poet, performer and activist Joshua Merchant is known for his powerful and emotional writing. He has been forcing crowds to sit up and pay attention since youth, being named the 2011 Youth Speaks champion and Berkeley’s youngest representative for the Individual World Poetry Slam. Joshua now works with Youth Speaks and has performed poetry for The Bigger Project in the fight against Type 2 diabetes as well as the Off/Page project for the short
Read more 9