 You are the poet laureate of San Antonio. How does that feel? It feels amazing and awkward You know because I mean I've stepped into the role. Yes, but I feel like the month leading up to it Everybody's like what you're gonna do what you can do do something do something do something and I was like, okay Okay, I'm emotional. I'm sad. I'm I have to stay at home. And so I had to you know, really quickly Get get into some space where I was clearing out my spirit so that I could make room to help Other people create because you can't help others if you don't help yourself, you know, so I have I had to you know, just Really spend some time doing some reflection and praying a lot of praying Yeah, I've been doing so much of that lately and just really asking for answers because I feel like people want if You're in a place of influence if you you know If you're a public figure people want you to have some kind of answer for them and there we don't have the answers We really don't we don't we're just as lost as everybody else in a sense But just trying to when I speak be mindful of the things that I'm saying and the advice that I'm giving So that I could direct people so I did something called invite to write essay where I Made a page for adults and for children and for the whole month of National Poetry Month I put up a prompt today Where they could write to and gave them themes and stuff to emphasize I was reading some stuff that people would write trying to give them some feedback, but not critique it And just people were coming to me telling me, you know online coming to me saying, you know My children are writing and I'm writing and I haven't done this in a while And I feel awkward or I'm gonna do this for the first time and I'm like good I felt so excited that I could be a part of their experience That's awesome So there I ask What what is the definition of poetry to you? well, it's about expressing your feelings in form in meter in inverse and Poetry is the exploration of ideals and concepts that may not be something physically tangible But is like, you know our thoughts and our Philosophies of life and things of that and just trying to find a way to put it into forms or even free verse Which in itself to me is a form and some people don't think of it as valid music is also poetry hip-hop is poetry I mean it can it can manifest in a lot of different ways in the written form But just thinking of I think it's more about your your meter and your cadence how you paste it out Yeah, because there's a flow to it, you know, well, so let's talk about I mean that was that was beautiful. Thank you and yeah, I I think Yeah poetry means means what it means to everyone and that that is right on the money and that's what you live for and I think you can't we all have to have our own individual Experiences with it because it hits us different poetry may come to you at a completely different time that it comes to me but when it comes to you in the form that is For lack of a better term edible for you like something you can digest then it'll hit you in a very profound way you have to Hear hear it from certain writers or be in a certain place in your life and open to receive it Because if you're in your place in your life, you're not open to receive the artistic Even with music is like if you're not in a place do you get it? It can just be background noise teeth. I'm sorry Yes, I've been introduced to the other might now It could just be background noise or it can it the lyrics and the music can come to the forefront and really start to move you So absolutely you have to be You have to be ready Ready for it. Yeah, and that means a lot of things but you can just be open should be open so so This book let's talk about your book. Sure so On Valentine's Day this year flower song press released my book. It's called she lives in music and It is available on their website. It is available on Amazon and They're the website. I'm sorry. It's flower song press calm And you know if you catch me out and about I can get you a copy as well because I got some of my trunk Got some at my house, you know stuff like that Very good. Yeah, everyone buy this book and Donate to the telethon. Yeah, it's more important that you do that my book will be here It's not going anywhere, but we definitely have families in need and people in need You know people that are just some and somewhat displaced or at a disadvantage right now And we need to take care of each other as a community Would you like to read part a portion of your book or yeah? I'll definitely do I like to do a poem and a song if I got time for it even if I don't do a whole song We got time. We got time. Let's rock. Let's ride. Can I stand up? Sure. Yeah, or as y'all wanted to You can hold the mic. I don't like holding mics, but I will So y'all I I know y'all probably like what's going on with this girl A couple of things I haven't been on stage in A while and a while for some people may be like a year But for me, it's like a month and a half, you know, I don't remember the last time I've ever gone this long Without hitting a stage to do something in some capacity. It's my service. It's my my way of expressing my love So I'm gonna I'm excited to be back and this is a really big weekend because it's mother's day weekend So shout out to all the mamas Raising raising children and even if you've raised your children. Good job So It's also Today there was a verses battle on instagram that's probably still going on or wrapping up jill scott versus erica badoo And they are my mothers in music. Um I wouldn't be the artist that I am today if I didn't have their influence So, um, I have to dedicate this performance this evening to jill scott and erica So I issued a challenge online called the my tongue is challenge and it was asking the community world community global community to write a poem um Using the hashtag my tongue is and that's a sentence starter and it could just be one to three lines Some people wrote entire poems. I finally finished my entire poem for the my tongue is challenge And you make a digital poster you can use an app like canva to create it So this is my first time ever reading this poem out in public and Here we go debut debut new if you're from san antonio. That's how we start you know what to say My tongue is a box cutter In a bodega breaking down cardboard stereotypes My tongue is a bald ego perched before flight that just spotted a serpent in the sand My tongue much like your tongue has the power to bless and curse this land than Earthquake trimmer reverberating through tectonic plates sending shivers through sierra tinge soil and concrete alike It interlocks with la tierra forcibly to cause a cessation of mantle My tongue lights the candle to prophesy and provoke Proclamations irrigates water into thirsty reservations turning them into reservoirs Summons manner to in starvation. I feel hungry mouths with heavenly bread I speak proclamations to break the silence for those who have bled From domestic violence and human trafficking in the shadows of deprivation I speak to the innermost part to the heart where desires and thoughts take root I speak for the protection of the future generations to protect our youth My tongue is a tambourine of testimonies quivering utterances of truth Let an oil drum leak from these lips and anoint the air waves with hope The same hope that I have been given is spilling out upon me In my entire being my guts reek with the glory that's been bestowed upon me No dilution of faith no pollution of grace a filtration system of wisdom rinsing souls and understanding But never ringing them out to dry I only fear the one who sent me his angelic hosts are by my side They sound the trumpet and the harvest is nigh We will reap what we have sown with our words after they have matured on the vine My lips are ripe for the picking just like your ears are ripe for the listening There is nothing sweeter than the lava leaping from my lips tonight Piping hot scorched with burning coals and inked with the scrolls of life May they unfold unrestricted and uninhibited Irradiate your eyes With light Thank you very much