Nikki Giovanni

Nikki Giovanni

Essence magazine has called Nikki Giovanni “One of the most searning voices of the 1960’s Black Power movement”. Creating intimate, edgy and unapologetic works, she has long been known as the, “princess of black poetry”. Twenty years before the appearance of rap music, she made innovative recordings of her poems backed by some of the nation’s most well-known gospel choirs. Giovanni has been named Woman of the Year by Mademoiselle, Ebony and Ladies’ Home Journal.  She has authored more than fourteen volumes of poetry, as well as several essays. She is a recipient of the NAACP Image Award for Literature, the Langston Hughes Award for Distinguished Contributions to the Arts and Letter and numerous honorary degrees.