Dedicated to All Poets

By Janet JRodriguez

What you say is loud and clear
and I can’t help but bear
your voice, your attitude, and motion
I get it – I heard you and your pain and I know it
what ever place or time you wrote it
it became a master piece
and I thank you for it
for spilling your emotions on a page
spitting out what you were probably holding in
for explaining international suffrage
for taking time on rehearsing to perform for being
for being honest and professional
respect is handed to you like air
everyone should applaud
all you gotta do is bow
and do us a favor and write another one.

West Seattle

by Marcellus Brown

Do you feel the danger growing around you?
The fear of your family living without you?
Boys in blue that will always doubt you.

If you could only catch yourself
Go back and end up on the top shelf
Where all we worry about is life not wealth

Yay said, “Ain’t nothing on the news but the blues”.
So when it comes down to it, are you ready to choose?
‘Cause when it comes to my life, I’m not ready to lose.

Untitled

by Marcellus Brown

I watch where I step on the pavement,
‘Cause I can’t afford another one of my mom’s back payments.
I keep my soul lit.
‘Cause when it’s dark, I just can’t seem to get a grip.
I could grab the universe, and just tear and rip.
And start the world over,
So it will no longer get colder.

Giving these hoes the cold shoulder.
‘Cause women can take your time, your money, and your mind.
But beware this life can leave you blind
Untamed to the all- seeing lie.

But why are these women hoes?
If they go through similar tolls.
With life lessons full of holes.
The solution is not in the poles.

I’m really glad you chose
To stay beautiful through the suffering
And I hope you always remain hovering.

Game

by Marcellus Brown

I am the game
The reason why you can’t get a job
Your friends are the reason why my pockets seem to throb
I am the voice in your head saying , “now you need to rob”
The reason why you spend all your money on crack
When you got a three year old crying in the back
Now tell me that ain’t whack.

I DARE YOU TO TRY AND END ME!
MY PEOPLE WILL JUST WASH YOU OUT, AND I HAVE PLENTY!
‘Cause getting greenbacks is what my team is about
So go ahead and shove that yay up your snout

I am the reason why our hearts are so damn dark
The reason your grandpa’s heart just couldn’t start
I am the reason why your only option is jail or death
I am the game and there ain’t no ref.

So you either get with it or get lost
You might as well play it
‘Cause in the end there’s always a cost.

Real Life

By Marcellus Brown

This is not a movie, this is real life.
This is where the kids turn the world into a new life.

This is not a movie, this is real life.
Where the cops are now the enemy.
Where the government is no longer a friend of me.

And if I die today, my death won’t be the end of me.

Untitled

by Janet JRodriguez

You are the light to my dark shadows
if it wasn’t for you
I’d be rotting in the gutters
you are the alpha and omega
my savior
and I respect you
you are the truth that blinds my sight
never ending care from your side
born into your grace
I adore your name
you’re my water and bread of the day
you the power that moves me inside and out
you the words that I wish I can preach
you are the beginning and end of my life story

Untitled

by Janet JRodriguez

Grapes dry into raisins
caterpillars transform into butterflies
the desert feeds off the sun
every pen needs ink
not every mind is alike
remember the times you were thirsty and wanted more
remember the times you had your time to shine but never gloat
stars surround the moon
at night
waves are alive
hairs are static
you’re bright without a light
walk onto a bridge
jump off
and take your own flight

Untitled

by Janet JRodriguez

Your eyes sparkle. No – they shine
looks like the sun chose you today
so why don’t you touch it, feel the outrage of the burn or the exciting thrill of danger
you seek the keep out zone but yet you come back to the yes trespass
he watches over you so the crows don’t eat you
all you want is the world but what you don’t know, is that it’s already OWNED.

Untitled

By Janet JRodriguez

You have always been there for me
I know you have good intentions
I know you’ve always wanted the most best for me
you’re the farmer he once saw plant the seed
and now that the seed has grown
you wonder why it’s a rose with many thorns
so beautiful yet so rough
while you were away the rose was left unprotected
the wind was too harsh, the sun burned out, the water couldn’t give enough
your arrival brought the sunlight
and that’s how it’s beautiful yet so rough

Untitled

by Janet JRodriguez

What’s so great about you “America”
that so many people risk their lives, family, and friends to arrive to these states
they come searching for that American Dream
but you reject them and want to cause them pain
all they want is a home
that liberty you speak of
you forget about Justice For All when you see the color of their skin
your white, blue, and red - why do you discriminate?
brown is golden, black is beautiful
americaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa I don’t see the greatness in your name.

Feelings

by April Wilburn

Same damn thang
Same damn shame
I’ll go through this again and again
I like the pain, the strain
It’s insane
Sharp as a knife
A radiant shine
A vexed feeling from deep inside
Empty heart with no vision
Within an illusion
A fantasy
Weakness of gravity
Essence
Emotion
Driving me senseless
Worthless, vacant
My heart can’t shake it
Always running
Blank and bare
Emotions ain’t fair.
They wear and tear.

Seatown

by April Wilburn

Seattle sun rarely shines
Trickling rain drops running rapid down my face
Pain colder than the rain, bringing shame to my name
Nothing’s the same
But I thought fame would change the game
Trees that came to please
That green put my mind at ease
Got me on my knees
Oooh Mary you’re such a tease…
Sticky with a sparkle
Smoke surrounding my lungs
Satisfying sensation
Tasteful tingle trapping my stress
Strangling that secondary life
The sunless salvation
My mouth is dry
I can’t speak
My words are trapped and won’t dare to leak
Cookie cravings and snack attacks
Munchies is where my mind is at
Tasteful substance leaves me in a pool of drool
Eyes low, reflexes slow

Never Gonna Stop

by April Wilburn

That dream, I chase that
The money, I want that
Love, I see it
Danger, we’ll stop it
Someday, someway
Never too high to reach the sky, cloud nine
Fall down once; get up again twice as strong
Wanna see me fail?
Keep me in your wishes…
Come to your senses
I’m not going anywhere!
Like that ketchup stain on your favorite blouse
That throb when you have a migraine
Yeah that’s me!
Wishes, I make ‘em
Chances, I take ‘em
Mistakes, they happen
Regrets, I have some
Ima Beast
Ima big girl
They call me danger
I’m the flame to the Bic in your pocket
They call me drama
I’m the empty page with a cloudy mind set
They call me trouble, running the streets at night
Probably at the park finna spark, spark, spark that Mary Jane
They call me bitch, can’t handle the real
Curse you out in the blink of an eye
No doubt
They call me monster
Take the only thing you’ve got right from under you, without a clue
They call me crazy
Quick tempered, hot headed, mind blowing
But they should just keep it simple and call me April.

The Indirect Expression

By: Joseph Wade

The vent. The end. We sin.
They lose, we win. Christ within.
Please give me some answers
So I can take the knowledge and run faster than a panther.

And don’t forget the wisdom, when I’m marching with my niggas,
We all spit bars that have meanings and are RISEN.
Shut this shit down they no longer in commission.
The game just got locked like submissions.
My ambition is to kill all competition.
NOW LISTEN

A nigga quick tempered, remember when I spit you get the chills like it was late December
I’m a pro not a beginner. Honestly, you wish you could copy my flows like a printer.
The difference between water and blood: ONES THINNER.

I improve with this writing like indirect lighting
It’s a blessing, do wrong, learn your lesson
I’m all about the pros not the cons
Man we really in a session.
You can call this the indirect expression.

This Me

By Joseph Wade


Can’t breathe as I grow like a seed.
The streets. The beast. Just got unleashed.
As I creep I stay underneath like hell.
Break the hex, fuck the spell.
Too many bars like a jail. Time to crack the shell.
Anger is danger it makes me wanna yell.
My words are like a preacher.
If you would just listen I could teach ya’
I hold my head as I sit on the bleachers.
Thinking about why I waste my time blowing reefer.
Or why I don’t listen to anyone.
Nothing’s enough so my mentality is FUCK every one.

My Life

by Joseph Wade


Feeling my life is going to crumble, as if I was the running back that just gave up the fumble.
I tumbled. But man I’m so HUMBLE. The city of rain like a FUCKING jungle.
It’s storming, you can hear the rumble.
But no fear, the end is near, dashing like a deer.

What do I see?? Violence and nonsense, niggas from different hoods trying to represent.
If I was the president, I would not be hesitant to stop the negative one way or another.
If we keep our heads up and get along we could go much further.

Praying for my mother, missing my brother.
So many struggles so I’m steady trying to hustle.
Chopping it up with my nigga B-SAV, he always sayin ,“what’s good JD, why you sound so SAD?”
I reply, “I’m scared for my Dad, he got heart problems, he is always bothered.
He is stressed out, he says ‘Life is getting much harder’”
Can’t erase the pain like a permanent marker.

Striding for the finish line so I stay with the PEN to the PAD writing rhymes.
Can’t live life twice, feeling sick, face pale as rice.
On stage, thinking why I always wanted to rock the MIC.
R.I.P to my nigga Mike. When my music spreads people will dance and nod their heads


F.G.O.D TILL THE FUCKING END

They tell me why?

I Tell Them I’m The Water Bottle Because I drank them In,

Then I piss them out,

I don’t let them get in my torso



I’m taking over just like U.S.A. did,

My color is green,

but that plantation we had was so great,

That white we have,

Were serving U.S.A all Day,

That red is on the piso

I guess they made mistakes,



I’m Mad they shot that brown

but how about that honky that was in that Theater Crowd?,



I’m tired of this crap

I’m going to Mexico, but I’m going to come back,



My dad said school is where it’s at,

I told him I’m going to get school pregnant so I can have a blast,



So think that.
Watch the news and see that.
Go tell your friends about that.
When you see me tell That


i’ll put you on the clock and make you Tic Toc
i’ll give you some tacos
so eat That
And you say don’t like us , but your wife ate that.
We’re back and going to give them the best of all That
Watch me walk away, so hear that breeze

but when it hits your faces, don’t blame me.

Time

by Rumaldo Hernandez


Time this, Time That,

Tic, Toc, Tic, Toc,

That’s all I Hear when its Hanged on the Wall,

But when the alarm goes Off you know there’s something Wrong,



Those Kids, Those Dads, Those Moms,

Their Cousins,

Jail, Dead, Alive or Starving,

Was that back in Time?

FUCK THAT it's still Going On



TIME doesn’t think that’s why we make Mistakes,

And the world orbits because you know we are alive,

So while you Sit Down, Sleep, Watch TV,

Then the alarm goes off

Remember there’s something Wrong,



But don’t cry because of Time,

You might wish it was 2 minutes before that Time



Its life ……..

it goes on like a string

when you reach the end and it rips,

Blame it on Time,



While you see your Body in a casket and your family is Crying,

Almost crying Blood,

Blame it on time,



While its 4 months after your Death and your sister tells your brother,

Remember when he crashed that car and they laugh,

its all Because of Time,



When your cousins talk and say, “damn he was Hella Fucked up that Day”,

They laugh but cry,

Remember, it’s All Because of Time,



Or when your Mom and Dad talk about that li’l Ruma that turned into a man

that died because of an accident All Because of Time,



They cry,

Cry so much that my sister had to grab the mop just to clean it up,

But this is not true

I’m Alive,

my life is a chain that’s Heavy Duty and won’t rip because of time.

That image in my head

by Rumaldo Hernandez

The brother that we lost is gone,
But until we all die, we will all be together
Hopefully it's soon, you are always on my mind,
In the last minute I’ve thought about you at least 10 times


When I think about it I don’t walk away from it Every time

that image is in my head like if it was on a Flash Drive,
it always comes and goes,

but now I know how it feels when someone goes,
Them little children,

Moms and Dads,

I know how you feel when someone goes


People ask me Why I write about Jaime the one that died,
I swear to God I hope he’s by my side

when I Read it out Loud or when I just write,
I Don’t run away from my feelings or leave it in the beginning of my life,
But I speak it out loud to relate to people and get in their Mind,
Once said, I am that Heavy duty chain that was on my Pitbulls leash back in ’09,


So when you ask me again I’m going to answer I’m at Jaime’s Park

because that’s just what my lil’ Nephew said,
So when someone dies I hope he or her is on your mind

just so you can say Rumaldo was Right,


I promise you that you’re going to cry,
I guess I told you right,
You’re not heavy duty when it comes to losing someone in your life

Untitled

by Carlos Ocampo

If only she fully understood
That our debut / wasn’t something you just bump into
Don’t misconstrue
My field of view / is that our pas de duex is over due
But you do you
While I pursue this girl in a coupe
Outta my league but why not try something new?
Glad I didn’t lose it to you
This way my heart is hard to break into
Higher learning after chuggin’ some brew
‘Cos hoes don’t get any love
Most of them don’t even carry a glove
They don’t even put up a fight
Every night is their night
It’s like we live black and white
But at far sight there is a bright light
To emancipate us from the rite
I’m just being polite
It’s a human right
To share my sound bite

Untitled

By Carlos Ocampo

What’s good about a soul if it’s not included with intelligence?
They have men in suits to represent them
Given to you subliminally and criminally
The youth repent them
The cops defend ‘em
Soon we’ll take back the power
Don’t wish it during happy hour
Brainpower is firepower
Get empowered before the encounter
Enlighten yourself with some sour, and don’t let them think you’re a coward
‘Cos you’re not
Don’t rebel if you’re scared of tick tock
We all need money, gotta eat while it’s hot
Drug money to them is like a mock
But it’s all part of their mad plot
But if they were gravity, check my space walk
You can see what they draw with chalk
The kids want peace
Why is the president accompanied by secret police?
Is it because he knows the truth is being spread in the streets?
The number of people waking up has increased

Untitled

by Calros Ocampo

Three eyes, three eyes
With it I can see what she’ll reply, she’ll reply
They make it seem like this is all a part of nature
Well then watch me defy
Momma said just do some labor
“Fuck the bullshit”, is what I reply
She wishes I can succeed with a major
Something I can’t abide by
Adults tryna give me lectures
Because I have red eyes
Now mix it with some jager
My vision is tie dye
Kinda weird how our existence isn’t free
We’re locked up and you’re the master key
Based on others opinions is how you prefer to be
To get set free
The number of your eyes must be three

Real Life

by Emiley Thone

this is not a movie, this is real life
this is when people have to fight because they know what’s right
this is not a movie
this is real life
this is what happens when the boys in the blue don’t stay true
people yelling because of police brutality,
this is reality

Money and Pain

by Jimmy Nguyen

Money & Pain Is what you gain thru dis GAME.

Rather spend mo’ time on des streets an’ deal.

Ppl dyin at the tip of dis GAME.

You can ball so hard. So quick, sellin sack 2 sack. Back 2 back money comin.

Thangs R goin tha way I Dreamed it to be.

Ppl wanna stop me from wat I gained. Now they wanna see the cream.

In dis game. Fuk da fame, no shame. Nobody to blame.

Destiny

by Jimmy Nguyen

I ain’t no Servant. I serve my Self.

Delightful, exquisite, sticky blue dream.

Associates want to devour me

‘cause I got dat ambition an’ desire

blissness with currency

Ain’t no mystery. Back into dis repetition wit dis DESTINY.