On Friday, March 10th, at the historic Villa Victoria Center For The Arts in Boston's South End we will celebrate a twelve years of East Meets Words! East Meets Words is the longest running Asian / Pacific Islander open mic series in the East Coast and this month we would have hosted 156 open mics! Features ranging from Bao Phi, Jess X. Chen, Franny Choi, Magnetic North, Taiyo Na, Beau Sia, and Kelly Tsai, to local community youth from ATASK YEP and Grub Street and budding artists and activists just starting to find their voice. This Anniversary Showcase will have stories and performances from many folks from our community!
Our headline feature of East Meets Words is George Yamazawa. Born and raised in Durham, North Carolina, G Yamazawa is a National Poetry Slam Champion, Southern Fried Champion, and Kundiman Fellow. He has been a featured performer at the Sundance Film Festival, Bonnaroo Music Festival and the White House Initiative for AAPI. Currently residing in LA and working on his debut album!
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He is a Team Backpack Mission Underground Top 12 Finalist, and nominated for Best New Hip Hop Artist by the 2016 Carolina Music Awards. Winner of Kollaboration DC 2012, Audience Choice Award Recipient of the Inaugural Kollaboration Star and 2013 Kundiman Fellow, G has been featured at the Sundance Film Festival, Bonnaroo Music Festival, TV One's Season 3 of Verses and Flow, the Pentagon, and the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
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We strive to foster a space of inclusivity and respect, and in doing so, we seek to give a platform to people from marginalized identities and/or communities to speak their truths. We ask everyone to leave (in no particular order): ableism, ageism, classism, fatphobia, homophobia, misogyny, racism, transphobia, and all oppressive language, attitudes, and actions at the door. We ask that we hold ourselves and one another accountable to creating a culture in which we treat each other with consent and respect. This looks like and is not limited to respecting people's physical and emotional boundaries and receiving explicit verbal consent before touching someone or crossing other personal boundaries. If you observe a breach of code of conduct during the event, please notify a EMW personnel and/or contact this number to reach a EMW Bookstore at (857) 600 1244.Clear your calendar - It's going down! You're invited to take part in the festivities. Come one, come all, bring a guest, and hang loose. This is going to be epic!