The Poet Speaks Podcast

Poetry in Utter Space (ft. Lillian Allen, Gary Barwin, and Gregory Betts)

In this Season 10 finale of The Poet Speaks Podcast, host Amanda Eke sits with Muttertongue — Lillian Allen, Gary Barwin, and Gregory Betts — to explore poetry as sound, collaboration, and living archive. Their latest project, What Is a Word in Utter Space, is a sonic poetry LP that bends language beyond the page, inviting listeners into a layered soundscape where voice, rhythm, and experimentation converge. Together, we discuss the making of the album, the power of collective creation, and how poetry can exist as frequency, memory, and resistance. This conversation moves through questions of utterance and listening, art as collaboration, and what it means to create poetry that refuses stillness. More than an interview, this episode is an experience — a closing reflection on a season rooted in culture, testimony, and imagination. Season 10 has been a journey of voices, histories, and futures. We close with resonance. 📀 What Is a Word in Utter Space — available via Siren Recordings: https://sirenrecordings.com/shop CHECK OUT AMANDA'S NEW TV SHOW: The Poet Speaks with Amanda Eke! Now airing on the Archaeology Channel, PBS and Roku! SUBSCRIBE AND STREAM HERE: https://heritagetac.org/programs/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke-i28z2vn9bsc?category_id=65263 PBS: https://www.pbs.org/show/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke/?source=social Be sure to check out The Poet Speaks Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepoetspeakspodcast/ And listen to,The Poet Speaks Podcast, on the go on ALL STREAMING PLATFORMS WORLDWIDE! Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1cM1rdF... Did you know The Poet Speaks is also Amanda's touring global workshop?   She teaches people all about how to make, create and the history of Spoken Word and Indigenous oral traditions! To make a booking for The Poet Speaks Workshop with your organization, apply for mentorships with Amanda, book interviews, as well as writing consultations, please use this link: https://www.amandaeke.com/services Music by: Buzu Buzu https://www.instagram.com/bbuzu/

Poet-Pilgrim (ft. Uche Nduka)

Check out Amanda's conversation with Uche Nduka! Uche Nduka is a Nigerian American poet-pilgrim, collagist, and essayist presently living in New York City. He is the author of 15 volumes of poems of which the latest are BAINBRIDGE ISLAND NOTEBOOK(Roof Books, 2023) and TO UMBER(The Bodily Press,2025). A NYSCA/NYFA Artist Fellow in Poetry, his writing has been translated into Italian, Finnish, Turkish, Arabic, Dutch, German, Serbo-Croat, Romanian. His essays on music, poetry, mortality, politics, and travel have appeared in various online and print outlets. He teaches at the New School's Eugene Lang College and Queens College-CUNY. Uche's Links: https://uchenduka.com/ CHECK OUT AMANDA'S NEW TV SHOW: The Poet Speaks with Amanda Eke! Now airing on the Archaeology Channel, PBS and Roku! SUBSCRIBE AND STREAM HERE: https://heritagetac.org/programs/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke-i28z2vn9bsc?category_id=65263 PBS: https://www.pbs.org/show/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke/?source=social Be sure to check out The Poet Speaks Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepoetspeakspodcast/ And listen to,The Poet Speaks Podcast, on the go on ALL STREAMING PLATFORMS WORLDWIDE! Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1cM1rdF... Did you know The Poet Speaks is also Amanda's touring global workshop?   She teaches people all about how to make, create and the history of Spoken Word and Indigenous oral traditions! To make a booking for The Poet Speaks Workshop with your organization, apply for mentorships with Amanda, book interviews, as well as writing consultations, please use this link: https://www.amandaeke.com/services Music by: Buzu Buzu https://www.instagram.com/bbuzu/

Poetry is Expression (ft. Tiriq Rashad)

Check out Amanda's conversation with Tiriq Rashad! A proud native of Atlantic City and Pleasantville, or “Atlantic-Ville” as he affectionately calls it, Tiriq Rashad draws deeply from his roots to craft a narrative style steeped in resilience, authenticity, and empathy. With a master’s degree in social work and a calling to heal through words, he has built a body of work that speaks to the soul while confronting life’s most difficult truths. His previous literary works, including his memoir A Diamond In God’s Dirt and his debut poetry collection, shine through our shade: an evolution of self-love, have garnered praise from readers and critics alike, including legendary poet Nikki Giovanni, who lauded his ability to capture both the universal human experience and the nuanced struggles of African American life. His forthcoming album, Kiss My Art, is a soul-baring exploration of grief, healing, identity, and creative liberation. Rashad’s mastery of spoken word is complemented by lush arrangements of jazz and hip-hop, creating an immersive soundscape for his storytelling. From the album’s opening moments—anchored by the tender voicemail from his late mother—to the closing affirmation of strength in “Still Here,” every track is crafted to reveal resilience in the face of life’s storms. It is not just an album; it is a living memoir set to music, a testament to the courage it takes to feel, reflect, and grow. Tiriq's Links: https://tiriqrashad.com/ CHECK OUT AMANDA'S NEW TV SHOW: The Poet Speaks with Amanda Eke! Now airing on the Archaeology Channel, PBS and Roku! SUBSCRIBE AND STREAM HERE: https://heritagetac.org/programs/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke-i28z2vn9bsc?category_id=65263 PBS: https://www.pbs.org/show/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke/?source=social Be sure to check out The Poet Speaks Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepoetspeakspodcast/ And listen to,The Poet Speaks Podcast, on the go on ALL STREAMING PLATFORMS WORLDWIDE! Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1cM1rdF... Did you know The Poet Speaks is also Amanda's touring global workshop?   She teaches people all about how to make, create and the history of Spoken Word and Indigenous oral traditions! To make a booking for The Poet Speaks Workshop with your organization, apply for mentorships with Amanda, book interviews, as well as writing consultations, please use this link: https://www.amandaeke.com/services Music by: Buzu Buzu https://www.instagram.com/bbuzu/

POEMS FOR EARTH (ft. Fatima-Ayan Malika Hirsi)

Check out Amanda's conversation with Fatima-Ayan Malika Hirsi! Fatima's work strives to instigate action in service to world-building, social change, and collaboration. Her poems live in Obsidian: Literature & Arts in the African Diaspora, MAYDAY, Torch, Rise Up Review, and other portals. She is a fellow of the Pink Door Writing Retreat, the Anaphora Arts Writing Residency, In Surreal Life, and the Abode Virtual Summer Retreat. She is the author of the chapbooks EVERYTHING GOOD IS DYING and Moon Woman. Her first full-length poetry collection, DREAMS FOR EARTH, is forthcoming from Deep Vellum in 2025. Fatima's Links: https://fatimaayanmalikahirsi.com/ CHECK OUT AMANDA'S NEW TV SHOW: The Poet Speaks with Amanda Eke! Now airing on the Archaeology Channel, PBS and Roku! SUBSCRIBE AND STREAM HERE: https://heritagetac.org/programs/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke-i28z2vn9bsc?category_id=65263 PBS: https://www.pbs.org/show/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke/?source=social Be sure to check out The Poet Speaks Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepoetspeakspodcast/ And listen to,The Poet Speaks Podcast, on the go on ALL STREAMING PLATFORMS WORLDWIDE! Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1cM1rdF... Did you know The Poet Speaks is also Amanda's touring global workshop?   She teaches people all about how to make, create and the history of Spoken Word and Indigenous oral traditions! To make a booking for The Poet Speaks Workshop with your organization, apply for mentorships with Amanda, book interviews, as well as writing consultations, please use this link: https://www.amandaeke.com/services Music by: Buzu Buzu https://www.instagram.com/bbuzu/

A Writer's Poet (ft. Erica Miriam Fabri)

Check out Amanda's conversation with Erica Miriam Fabri! Erica Miriam Fabri is a Brooklyn-based poet. Her first book, Dialect of a Skirt, published by Hanging Loose Press (2010), was a finalist for the 2011 Paterson Poetry Prize and included on the list for: The Best Books of 2010 at About.com; and the bestseller lists for Small Press Distribution and the Poetry Foundation. Her second book, Morphology, (2025) was the winner of the Write Bloody Publishing Jack McCarthy book award. Her work has been published in numerous literary journals, magazines, and anthologies and she has worked on projects as a writer, editor, and performance director for The New York Knicks, Urban Word NYC, HBO, and Nickelodeon Television. Her poetry has been featured in multi-media formats for short films and television commercial programming.   She has been awarded a writer’s residency at the Omega Institute and has been a featured and/or visiting poet and performer for numerous art festivals and outreach programs including drug rehabilitation centers, prisons and hospitals. She teaches Performance Poetry and Fiction at Pace University, as well as Essay Writing at College of Staten Island for the City University of New York (CUNY).  Erica's Links: ericafabri.com CHECK OUT AMANDA'S NEW TV SHOW: The Poet Speaks with Amanda Eke! Now airing on the Archaeology Channel, PBS and Roku! SUBSCRIBE AND STREAM HERE: https://heritagetac.org/programs/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke-i28z2vn9bsc?category_id=65263 PBS: https://www.pbs.org/show/the-poet-speaks-with-amanda-eke/?source=social Be sure to check out The Poet Speaks Podcast on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thepoetspeakspodcast/ And listen to,The Poet Speaks Podcast, on the go on ALL STREAMING PLATFORMS WORLDWIDE! Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast... Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/1cM1rdF... Did you know The Poet Speaks is also Amanda's touring global workshop?   She teaches people all about how to make, create and the history of Spoken Word and Indigenous oral traditions! To make a booking for The Poet Speaks Workshop with your organization, apply for mentorships with Amanda, book interviews, as well as writing consultations, please use this link: https://www.amandaeke.com/services Music by: Buzu Buzu https://www.instagram.com/bbuzu/