Crystal.Artists for Obama! - ProfilesArchive

About Me

Born in the 70s, raised in the 80s, a child of the south and hip-hop generation, Crystal writes with her soul wide open. Her roots and self-knowledge define her writing. Surrounded by a loud and large family full of strong independent women, she learned at an early age that words were powerful and having your own voice was essential.As a student activist and actress living in Los Angeles, her spirit grew weary of speaking for others and using others words to express emotion. She searched for a place where she could hear her own voice. Crystal found refuge in the spoken word community. Everything in her â€“ frustration, pain, heartbreak, knowledge, love â€“ all poured out on stage in her own words.Crystal has performed on several world famous stages including the Comedy Store, Da Poetry Lounge, and the Pan-African Film Festival. She was the 2004 Los Feliz Grand Slam Champion & the 2006 Hollywood Grand Slam Champion (only the second female to do it). She was also a member of the 2005 Hollywood Slam Team, which placed third at the 2005 National Poetry Slam in Albuquerque, NM. Crystal has shared the stage with several artists, including opening for rapper/actor Mos Def. She was a member of the international poetry collective, Colors of the Diaspora, which was comprised of female artists from the U.S. and South Africa. In June 2005, Crystal traveled to South Africa and performed in the premiere of the original multi-lingual theater piece, Colors of the Diaspora, at the internationally acclaimed Market Theater in Johannesburg and the Grahamstown National Arts Festival. The piece was written and produced by the women of the collective. In addition to spoken word, Crystal is Editor-In-Chief of LOUDmouth, a feminist magazine. She is also a talented actress and has starred in several plays including For Colored Girlsâ€¦ and Flyin' West.Crystal is featured in I Am A Woman, a documentary focused on the creative process of Colors of the Diaspora. I Am A Woman appeared on the South African Broadcast Channel continuously in the fall 2005. Crystal also appears in Spit, a documentary which focuses spokenword and its power to change lives and give hope. SP!T premiered at the Pan African Film Festival in February 2006.

Myspace Layouts - Myspace Editor

Generate your own contact table!

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 7/24/2006
Band Members:
Influences: my family, the south, Blackness, being a woman, all the world's isms, edgar allan poe, movements, love, children, and all the usual suspects
Sounds Like: peace, light, darkness, fear, faith with alot of soul
Type of Label: None

My Blog

4.24.06 part II

they will eulogize u with illusions of grandeur not i i will remember you honestly i will remember you neglectful/funny/flawed human beautiful i am your reflection like you i love hard/sometimes far a...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Mon, 21 Apr 2008 01:05:00 PST

4.24.06 part I

lately i cannot sleep i do not write for fear that my dreams/poems may be about u i'm too strong to cry at work i didn't love u enuff to be tired from grieving over u i swallow my tears that come easi...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Tue, 15 Apr 2008 01:53:00 PST

Home

The ability to absorb emotion can be bittersweet. Sometimes when I embrace the past it cuts to the marrow. So I, like most, run. When I’m brave, I write. When I’m...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Thu, 10 Apr 2008 01:36:00 PST

because...

i’m gonna start writing again, what i wanna write about in lowercase letters because my life is new. because i moved to a new neighborhood and i don’t miss carson. because i fe...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:47:00 PST

Think Impossible

In 2004 I wrote an article for Front & Center about former U.S. Senator Carol Moseley Braun's departure from the 2004 Democratic Presidential race. I'll never forget in a debate in New Hamps...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Thu, 07 Feb 2008 02:19:00 PST

This Time

Over the last two years my life has changed dramatically. I moved twice within a year, found my life partner, and became an Auntie for the forth time. I lost my father and discovered my co...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Sun, 03 Feb 2008 02:02:00 PST

New Challenge...Editor-In-Chief

I'm trying to think of the words to express how excited I am about this new job... But all I can say is that... I'm excited!! Writing for LOUDmouth has always been a challenge but it pushed me t...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Sat, 10 Nov 2007 02:45:00 PST

sometimes others say it better

Mother's Day Proclamationby Julie Ward Howe (1870)Arise, then, women of this day!Arise, all women who have hearts,Whether our baptism be of water or of tears!Say firmly:"We will not have great questio...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Fri, 11 May 2007 02:19:00 PST

new piece

You stand for nothing Fall into whatever is hotDefend all that is Black, Hip-HopYet misogynistic while holding your daughter, mother, or sister's handBump feminist fistsWhile fucking men openly commit...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Wed, 07 Mar 2007 09:55:00 PST

i am my mother's daughter (new piece in progress)

i am my mother's daugher carrying the monotiness veil of generations of we're suppose to be strongso we know not what else to bemimicking the images of Grandmalike Mother Haleopening her doors so crac...
Posted by Crystal.Artists for Obama! on Fri, 15 Dec 2006 04:57:00 PST