The Poets

162. Aerik Francis (Phaentompoet)

Aerik Francis, the current Poet Laureate for Adams County, rejoins the show to discuss his recently released collection BODYPOLITIC and a wide range of topics. Aerik Francis is a poet & teaching artist based in Denver, Colorado, USA. Francis is currently serving as poet laureate of Adams County, Colorado (2025-2027). Francis is the author of three poetry chapbooks: BODYPOLITIC (Abode Press, March 2026 ), MISEDUCATION (New Delta Review, May 2023), and BODYELECTRONIC (Trouble Department, April 2022 [out of print]). Francis has received poetry fellowship support from SAFTA, the Chrysalis Institute, CantoMundo, Letras Latinas, and The Watering Hole. They are also a poetry reader for Underblong poetry journal. Francis has poetry published widely, links of which may be found at linktr.ee/aerik [http://linktr.ee/aerik] as well as their website phaentompoet.com [http://phaentompoet.com] . Find Aerik on social media @phaentompoet. Aerik said photo credit is most likely Stone (@persephone_stone [https://www.instagram.com/persephone_stone/]/@thewriterstone [https://www.instagram.com/thewriterstone/])

161. Tomi Wakefield

A divorced rat bastard in my mid thirties. An on and off again poet, healing through poetry. New to Denver. New to being openly queer. New to loving myself in ways I've always needed.

160. Maxwell Gold

Maxwell I. Gold is a Jewish-American author and poet with an extensive body of work comprising over 350 poems and nine poetry collections since 2017. His work has appeared in numerous literary journals, magazines, and anthologies. Maxwell’s work has earned nominations for two Bram Stoker Awards, the Eric Hoffer Award, the Pushcart Prize, the Rhysling Award and others. Find him and his work at www.thewellsoftheweird.com [http://www.thewellsoftheweird.com/]. Maxwell's book Neurotica is available for purchase here. [https://shortwavepublishing.com/catalog/neurotica-a-poetry-collection-by-maxwell-i-gold/] Find Maxwell on Instagram, Bluesky, and Threads @cybergodwrites [https://www.instagram.com/cybergodwrites]

159. Silas Vazquez

Silas Vazquez (any pronouns) is an actor, singer, improviser, and poet. You may have seen him in Titanic (UNC), Urinetown (UNC), Sweeney Todd (StageDoor Theatre), Ride the Cyclone (Vintage Theatre), Woodlands And Wyverns (Audacious Immersive Theatre), or as part of the Mercury Slam Poetry Team at Chicharra Poetry Festival (Albuquerque, NM) or Bigfoot Poetry Festival (Portland, OR). You usually can find her on some stage somewhere, opening old wounds and making some new ones. Instagram is @silasisbusy [https://www.instagram.com/silasisbusy/]

158. The Coven Collective Discusses "Pieces of a Beautiful Something"

The Poets will be back to our regularly scheduled programming (i.e. individual poet features) after this. The album discussed in the episode is available on Bandcamp [https://covenrecording.bandcamp.com/album/pieces-of-a-beautiful-something?search_item_id%3D966690450%26amp%3Bamp%3Bsearch_item_type%3Da%26amp%3Bamp%3Bsearch_match_part%3D%253F%26amp%3Bamp%3Bsearch_page_id%3D5389601072%26amp%3Bamp%3Bsearch_page_no%3D0%26amp%3Bamp%3Bsearch_rank%3D1=] and on streaming platforms. On another slightly different episode of The Poets, I'm joined by BG and the first iteration of the Coven Collective to discuss an album of spoken word and music that recently was released. BG, Lady Julianne, Nikolai Riddle, and Jabe Pazoo all appear on the mic to discuss their contributions to the album, along with a conversation about broader themes like changing landscapes of art, AI usage, and what the hell to do about billionaires and narcissists.