You Have Already Found Your Poetic Voice with poet and teacher Jahman Hill

James Navé here. It's my pleasure to welcome spoken-word poet, actor, and teacher Jahman Hill www.jahmanhill.com to the Twice 5 Miles microphone speaking on the idea that You've Already Found Your Poetic Voice, which is the title of this show. I first met Jahman when he signed up to compete in one of the LEAF Poetry Slams I've been hosting at the LEAF Festival every May and October for the past 25 years. Of course, when a new performance poet shows up, I always hope the poet will be a dazzling stage performer. More often than not, at the LEAF Festival, this proves to be true. Jahman's performance chops quickly became apparent when he stepped up to the mic for the first time. I suspect you know what I mean. You've probably been at a venue when a performer stepped on stage, and within one minute, you knew you were in for a terrific experience. When Jahman walked onstage, you could see he had a dancer's physical control over his body movements. When he started performing his first poem, he understood subtext, emotional connection, and voice projection. In addition, he had crafted his content with the poetic structure designed to unfold with ease, as if he were having a conversation with ac close friend. Beyond Jahamn's onstage skills, he loves teaching. In this interview, Jahman and I unpack his great stories around teaching young students how to connect with their creative urges. Next, we touch on some of the pressures Covid-19 has imposed upon the teaching profession and upon his students. Finally, because Jahman and I have been vaccinated for Covid-19, we talk a bit about our philosophies around why we think a vaccination approach is the best way to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. Rest assured, you'll hear no heavy-handed opinions, only thoughtful reflections on our motivations. I hope you enjoy listening to the show as much as I enjoyed talking to Jahman about poetry, life, and what will happen next.