Definitely Poetry Hosted by Majora Carter. Artist include Earthdriver, Staceyann Chin, Jennifer Johns, Artbattles & Urban Word NYC June 20, 2009

Join urban green pioneer Majora Carter and friends in celebration of our planet with innovative and powerful spoken word artists, musicians, and visual artists.

From 2001 to 2008 Majora Carter was Executive Director of the non-profit she founded, Sustainable South Bronx, where she pioneered green-collar job training and placement systems in one of the most environmentally and economically challenged parts of the United States. This MacArthur "genius" is now president of her own economic consulting firm, a co-host on Sundance Channel's The Green, and host of a new special public radio series called, The Promised Land. Carter has a previous history with City Parks Foundation, having worked on the clean-up efforts of the Bronx River.

Earthdriver started in 1998 in New York City as a band exploring a new and hybrid approach to music. Instrumentalists and vocalists, painters and poets, dancers, and propagandists, all were invited into a common space to share in a free expression of sound and ideas. Their members have traveled far and wide, performing live, on television and radio, and in music festivals around the world, always with an unswerving passion that echoed through each and every venue.

Staceyann Chin is a fulltime artist. A resident of New York City and a Jamaican national, she has been an “out poet and political activist” since 1998. From the rousing cheers of the Nuyorican Poets' Cafe to one-woman shows Off-Broadway to poetry workshops in Denmark and London to co-writer and performer in the Tony nominated Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam on Broadway, Chin credits the long list of "things she has done" to her grandmother's hard-working history and the pain of her mother's absence.

Innovative, driven, compassionate, and powerful are all words that have been used to describe Oakland, California born singer/songwriter and spoken word artist Jennifer Johns. Now, with the release of her debut album Heavyelectromagneticsoularpoeticjunglehop, the listening public is getting the chance to build an opinion too.

Artbattles is a live, competitive art show for up-and-coming artists. It was created to provide a platform for young “unknowns” to be discovered and sell their work. Artbattles illustrates both the struggle and competitive nature of New York City’s art scene today and stands as a testimony to the strength of the creative spirit.

Founded on the belief that teenagers can and must speak for themselves, Urban Word NYC has been at the forefront of the youth spoken word poetry and hip hop movements in New York City since 1999. Since then, Urban Word has served thousands of teens with free writing and performance opportunities, local and national poetry slams, as well as college fairs, open mics and festivals. Their performance at Central Park SummerStage features members of the 2009 Urban Word NYC Teen Poetry Slam Team, as well as members of previous years’ teams. This will be their final performance before they leave to compete at the national teen slam in Chicago.

Official Website: http://www.summerstage.org