The Poet

Boogie is direct descendant of the rich literary and music heritage that flows through Ohio. From Rita Dove, Abiodun Oyewole, P-Funk, and the stylings of Roger Troutman and Zapp, he is a mixture of the old, new, and future as evidenced by the diversity of his accomplishments. He started writing in fifth grade, when his English teacher promised to keep a haiku that he wrote on her wall as long as she was teaching. Later, after doing his thing as an emcee, he reverted back to poetry in 1995 when he placed third in the National Poetry Slam as an individual and anchored the second place team from Cleveland. No one knew he had just begun to perform his poetry, and including the Nationals, had not performed more than seven times in his entire life. Boogie began reeking havoc on the poetry scene by becoming the first male to win the National Poetry Slam individual championship. He then went on the win 4 times on the nationally syndicated show "Showtime at the Apollo." He retired from that legendary stage never losing. Graduating to music he co-penned and recorded a duet with Lionel Richie entitled "To the Rhythm" and laid down a historical account of hip hop on the album "Buffalo Gals: Back to Skool." He has sat on panels at the Rock-n-Roll Hall of Fame to Harvard and has published 4 books of poetry which have been used in curriculums from middle school to the university level. Having shared the stage with the likes of Robert Lockwood Jr., Common, Musiq and Savion Glover he has solidified his place as a treasure that is diverse at he is talented. Boogie is on his way to becoming a legend. He made his movie debut in Hip Hop for Life, an independent film by Velocity Productions, which was featured at the Sundance, Acapulco, and Hollywood Film Festivals. He also ventured into theater with his one man play p.i.m2.p. - Persecuted Inside My Masochistic Psyche, which has received rave reviews everywhere it's been seen. Check for his sightings around the world, the next of which will be the release of his album "The Poet" on Lionel Richie's record label Liontracks. Also look for his latest title Relationship Cookbook to be released in the Spring of 2006. The old adage is still true, sooner or later "Da Boogie Man is going to get you."