58 min
Women’s History Month Celebrates Nikki Giovanni, Poet Extraordinaire Frankly Speaking with Tyra G
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- Personal Journals
In her own words,
“We had music growing up, 78RPM’s that evolved into 45RPM’s and, always, the radio. The radio in my day, Black and white, played everything. Gospel Spirituals, even some opera when Leontyne Price came along. You could listen to R & B late at night or you could go to the other station and listen to popular music. There was also jazz if the wind was right. I feel so sorry for the kids who only hear one kind of music. Where do your dreams come from?
My dream was not to publish or to even be a writer: my dream was to discover something no one else had thought of. I guess that’s why I’m a poet. We put things together in ways no one else does.”
She did not go unappreciated as revealed in a few recognitions below.
Seven NAACP Image Awards: for Love Poems; Blues: For All the Changes; Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea; Acolytes; Hip Hop Speaks to Children; 100 Best African American Poems; Bicycles.
Named one of Oprah Winfrey’s 25 Living Legends
Phi Beta Kappa
State Historical markers in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Lincoln Heights, Ohio
The Tennessee Governor's Award in the Arts
Tennessee Governor's Award In the Humanities
Virginia Governor's Award for the Arts
Woman of the Year, Ebony Magazine
Woman of the Year, Ladies Home Journal
Woman of the Year, Mademoiselle Magazine
This show is a replay of an NPR On Being with Krista Tippett Nikki Giovanni interview. You will love her authenticity, her humor, and her resolve. Grab your favorite beverage, put your feet up, and exhale. Then, click below.
In her own words,
“We had music growing up, 78RPM’s that evolved into 45RPM’s and, always, the radio. The radio in my day, Black and white, played everything. Gospel Spirituals, even some opera when Leontyne Price came along. You could listen to R & B late at night or you could go to the other station and listen to popular music. There was also jazz if the wind was right. I feel so sorry for the kids who only hear one kind of music. Where do your dreams come from?
My dream was not to publish or to even be a writer: my dream was to discover something no one else had thought of. I guess that’s why I’m a poet. We put things together in ways no one else does.”
She did not go unappreciated as revealed in a few recognitions below.
Seven NAACP Image Awards: for Love Poems; Blues: For All the Changes; Quilting the Black-Eyed Pea; Acolytes; Hip Hop Speaks to Children; 100 Best African American Poems; Bicycles.
Named one of Oprah Winfrey’s 25 Living Legends
Phi Beta Kappa
State Historical markers in Knoxville, Tennessee, and Lincoln Heights, Ohio
The Tennessee Governor's Award in the Arts
Tennessee Governor's Award In the Humanities
Virginia Governor's Award for the Arts
Woman of the Year, Ebony Magazine
Woman of the Year, Ladies Home Journal
Woman of the Year, Mademoiselle Magazine
This show is a replay of an NPR On Being with Krista Tippett Nikki Giovanni interview. You will love her authenticity, her humor, and her resolve. Grab your favorite beverage, put your feet up, and exhale. Then, click below.
58 min