The Welfare Poets

THE WELFARE POETS was formed in the Spring of 1990 with the purpose of using culture as a tool of resistance, and in the summer of 2000, the group released their first independent album "Project Blues." In May of 2005 the collective put out their second album "Rhymes For Treason." The collective just released the CD compilation against the death penalty, “Cruel and Unusual Punishment," and is currently working on their fourth album.
DOWLOAD OUR INFORMATIONAL PACKET:
WFP Information Packet 2008.pdf
Past Appearances

Some of the Colleges and Universities:
Boricua College; Brown University; Buffalo State University; Central Connecticut State; Columbia University; Cornell University, CUNY – BMCC, City College Hunter, Queens College; Dartmouth University; D’youville College; Eastern Connecticut State University, Harvard University, Haverford College, Hostos, Hunter; Ithaca College, Johnson and Wales; Marymount Manhattan College; Middlebury College; Montclair State; Mt. Holyoke; New York University; New Jersey Institute of Technology; Pratt University; Princeton University; Rutgers University; Smith College; Stevenson College; Stonybrook University; Swathmore; SUNY Albany; SUNY Binghamton SUNY Buffalo, SUNY New Paltz; SUNY Old Westbury; SUNY Purchase; Syracuse University; Union College; UC Berkeley; University of Illinois (Champagne); University of Maryland; U Mass. at Amherst; University of Pennsylvania; University of St. Thomas (Houston); Vassar; Wesleyan and Yale

Some of the Cafe's/Clubs/Community Centers:
The Beal Bodtch Cafe; Bowery Poetry Club; Brecht Forum; Bronx Academy of Art and Dance; Brooklyn Moon Cafe, Café Creole; Cafe Zapata (Berlin, Germany); Flying Sauvage (Berlin, Germany); Café Largo; Cafe Teatro Batey Urbano (Chicago); CBGB; Como Cocoa Café; Cooper Union Great Hall; The Cotton Club; The Culture Project Theater (45 Bleecker); Frank’s Place; Joloff's Café; Julia De Burgos Cultural Center; Lincoln Center (Summer Festival); Plan B Bar (Brixton, London); Nia Bar (Brixton, London); Jamm (speaker'c Corner (Brixton, London); The Rainbow pub (Birmingham, England); Lot 51; The Newsroom Bar; Nuyorican Poets Café; The Nuyorican Café in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico; Remy Lounge; Rockwells Bar, Sista’s Place; The Bourboun Street Club in Amsterdam (Holland); The Puffin Room; Sounds of Brazil (SOBs); Strictly Roots Café; Segundo Ruiz Belviz Cultural Center (Chicago);The Temple Bar (Cali); The Harold Washington Cultural Center (Chicago, Ill.); Taller Puertoriqueno (Philadelphia) and The Living Project (Waterloo,Iowa)

Some of the Special Events:
The 30th Anniversary of the Attica Uprising, MLK Center, NYC 1997; Protest against 100 years of US colonialism in Puerto Rico at the U.N (July 25th 1998);Critical Resistance Conference, University of California at Berkley (September 1998); 130th Anniversary of El Grito De Lares – San Francisco, California (September 1998); 1st performance in Puerto Rico at the Nuyorican Café (May 2001); Viequethon – opposing the Navy’s continued occupation of Vieques, Puerto Rico (May 2001); Rally against war in Iraq at the U.N (Feb 15th 2003) with more than 200,000 protesters; the 40th Anniversary of Malcolm X’s death – February 2005 at the Abyssinian Church, NY; Malcolm X Jazz Festival, Oakland, California, May 2005; the World Youth and Student Festival, Caracas, Venezuela August 2005; The Point Center in the Bronx hosted President Hugo Chavez of Venezuela, November 2005; Socialism Conference 2006: NYC at Columbia University; International African Arts festival, July 2006 and 60th Birthday Celebration for Pam Africa of the Move Organization, November 18th 2006.
DOWLOAD OUR INFORMATIONAL PACKET:
WFP Information Packet 2008.pdf
"Cruel and Unusual Punishment" was released in February of 2007. It was influenced by the need to combat and dismantle the inhumane death penalty system. The death penalty is both racist and classist in its intention and application. The album was inspired by Hasan Shakur, who was unjustly executed by the state of Texas on August 31st, 2006.

Artists featured on Cruel and Unusual Punishment: The Welfare Poets - Rayzer, The Legendary MIC and Jamaki-Bowith music from Djibril and Jamaki (Harlem, BX and BK); Abiodun (of the Legendary Last Poets- NYC); HiCOUP (NJ); Blitz (Ghana/NYC); Hasan Salaam (NJ); Chosan (Sierra Leone/London/NYC); Son of Nun (Baltimore); A-Alikes (NYC); Tru-N-Livin (NJ); Warclub (Cali/Phili); Jav'lin (Amsterdam); InI Mighty Lockdown (New Rochelle); Hec -1 (NYC/Chi); Rebel Diaz - Rodstarz and Lah Tere (Chi/NYC); Wordplay (Cincinatti); JuggaBlak (Mount Vernon); LemBoogie (Mount Vernon); Block McCloud (Brooklyn); Bolos (Brooklyn); Truth Universal (New Orleans) and Wise Intelligent (of Poor Righteous Teachers - NJ).
Go to www.myspace.com/deathpenaltycd for more information.

DOWNLOAD THE ENTIRE ALBUM IN MP3 FORMAT for $9.99!!!!!!! THESE ALBUM DOWNLOADS MUST BE PURCHASED INDIVIDUALLY AND ARE SEPARATE FROM THE STORE CART.
This is an MP3 Download of the entire album - all 19 songs!
It must be purchased individually and is separate from the Store Cart.
OTHER ALBUMS FROM THE WELFARE POETS YOU CAN DOWNLOAD IN MP3 FORMAT!!!!!!!
"Rhymes For Treason" was released in May of 2005. After "Project Blues," the Welfare Poets membership and sound grew, giving more diversity to the type of music performed and venues they could be featured at. From Hip Hop to Jazz, to many Afro-Caribbean musical forms, the new album, Rhymes For Treason, will definitely offer something for all music lovers who want to uplift the oppressed and yearn revolution.
This is an MP3 Download of the album!
It must be purchased individually and is separate from the Store Cart.

"Project Blues" was released in June of 2000. There were only 5 band members at that point, and the album fused various styles of music from a blues/jazz feeling to Caribbean flavors. It is relentless poetry/rhyming coming from the inner city of New York. Project Blues contains 15 powerful tracks, each uniquely painting pictures connecting local struggles and hardships to a global movement towards the liberation of all humanity.
This is an MP3 Download of the album.
It must be purchased individually and is separate from the Store Cart.
YOU CAN ALSO PURCHASE ALL FULL PACKAGED CDs:
The fully packaged "Cruel and Unusual Punishment" CD (with US Shipping): $15
The fully packaged "Cruel and Unusual Punishment" CD (with International Shipping): $18
The fully packaged "Rhymes for Treason" CD (with US Shipping): $15
The fully packaged "Rhymes for Treason" CD (with International Shipping): $18
WFP Information Packet 2008.pdf