Next Man Up, Poetry in Motion

Wesley Knight 0:00
This is a KU NV studios original program. The content of this program does not reflect the views or opinions of 91.5 jazz and more the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, or the Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education. Here we go. Here we go. Move it. Move it. Move it.

Donavan LeDean 0:22
I next man up peace

Donavan LeDean 0:41
and love world and welcome to the show. I am your host. Donna Billy Dean, actor, author and inspirational rhythmic poet, you now tune in to next man up, poetry in motion, where the mission is to promote good mental health for everyone. This poetry show will motivate, educate and inspire you with spoken word, through cultural expression. We have a special guest in the building today, Liz Prince, aka Liz loves we Yes, who is a model, poet and cannabis advocate from Washington State, now residing in Las Vegas, Nevada. Her artistic and creative work, from the modeling cannabis shoots to her poetry performances on stage celebrate self expression, confidence and connection. Her poetry writing journey began as a young child that started out just for fun, then later on expressing love, and now is transcended into a form of healing and connection. She has released her book entitled whispers from the sun. She also serves as treasurer for the pufffessionals, a nonprofit focused on community cleanups, feeding the homeless and cannabis education across the Vegas valley. Liz queen, hey, thank you for being here. Thank you for having me so you are blazing right now and in high demand being involved in these big events across the valley. Describe to our listeners the kind of thrills, action, excitement that goes on at these cannabis photo shoots that you're modeling in. Kind of experience have you had?

Liz Prince 2:12
Yeah, so I love cannabis. I love the cannabis community. I love modeling. So many shoots are a mix of both worlds, the cannabis and the modeling. It's always a creative environment, a mix of good energy, creativity, collaboration, and it just brings a lot of ideas to life. Sometimes I'm incorporating cannabis in the visuals. Sometimes I'm not, sometimes I'm doing cars, sometimes I'm doing something that's just for the esthetic, something super creative. But either way, it's always creativity. Yeah, it's always expression. It always includes

Donavan LeDean 2:45
a blend. Though, had the pleasure of seeing you perform poetry live at the Taverna castera located here in downtown Las Vegas at the latter part of last year, yeah, and your performance had conveyed an energy that was warm, tranquil, sensual, yet commanded attention to where the space became intimate. You had couples holding hands, and everyone took in every word you deliver to them. What has your experiences been like when stepping foot onto stage

Liz Prince 3:16
performing poetry? Well, I definitely still get a little nervous. I practiced a lot before in my garage, I maybe read to the stuffed animals on the bed, you know, just so I feel a little more grounded when I get up there. But for me, it's not just about reading the poetry. I want to create an experience for everyone. A lot of times, I have my dad or my friend Tyler playing the guitar behind me, just to add a little more oomph to it. I have other ideas of mine to make my poetry performances more creative in the future, and I can't wait to to execute them, because I'm always looking for new ways to elevate my my act. I don't want to be that one who just stands there and reads. I want to I want an experience for everyone, but once I get past the nerves, I really just love being on stage and being able to connect with people. And like you said, people were holding hands. It shocked me how many people got quiet just to listen to me after listening to a lot of music before I went up there. You know music captivating for sure.

Donavan LeDean 4:06
Yeah, you served as treasurer for the professionals, and you go out relentlessly along with volunteers to feed the homeless. Your mission to feed the homeless is meaningful to me, because at age of 19, that's when I first suffered. That was my first as far as experience suffering homelessness, and it was been I've been suffering. I was suffering in and out of homelessness for about 15 and never quite really covered emotionally. What is driving you to show up month after month to help those who are less fortunate? Wow. So the professionals

Liz Prince 4:41
are so important to me. As the treasurer of the professionals, what really drives me is making a difference in the community. I love it. It feels so good. I bring my kids with me out there. My daughter now every time she sees a homeless person on the street corner, she wants me to give them some food. So half the time, we're taking our lunches and giving them to people out the door, even aside from the professionals. But feeding the homeless, cleaning the community, it really just fills my heart. I am almost on a high for the rest of the day without the blood after doing and then working alongside a bunch of strong women that are also involved in the cannabis community makes it even more fun to me. Being a part of a nonprofit in the cannabis community is special because I'm proud of what we're building. You know, we're doing cannabis education in a healthy way. We're helping people in need. We're passing out backpacks to kids for school. You know, we're setting up tables on street corners and feeding less fortunate neighborhoods. And people are homeless because just because you have a home doesn't mean you have money for food. So I'm proud of what we're doing. We're always taking donations. We are a 501, 3c, the professionals. Inc, so, you know, we take food, we take clothes, we take money, donations, we take partnerships, we take sponsors, we take everything we just want to grow and help the community. Well, I'm gonna

Donavan LeDean 5:55
say that I applaud you. And you know humanity and is a better place with as far as your mission, and you know, we applaud you. Yeah, no, I really love it. And where can they find more about you, your book, your organization, and what you have going on

Liz Prince 6:09
within about Yeah, so my book is called whispers from the sun. It's available on Amazon. You can get it on paperback, or you can get it digitally, if you want to keep up with the nonprofit, the professionals. We have a website, www, dot the professionals, inc.org, that's spelled P, U, F, F, E, S, S, i, o, n, a, l, Z, puff. Okay. We also have an Instagram the professionals, or me personally. Liz loves weed. Liz loves poems. On Instagram, I'm always active, sharing content and trying to connect, collaborate, all that fun stuff.

Donavan LeDean 6:41
Before we end the interview, we're going to try something a little different for the show. We're going to do a dual

Liz Prince 6:47
poetry read. Okay, so this one is called the urge. I feel something inside me, an urge, a want, a need. Do I give in? Do I stay strong? I feel the urge growing, I feel the pain taking over. Maybe if I give in, I'll feel some relief. But if I stay strong, what will that mean? What will that do? Will I continue to hurt? Will I continue to need, or will I fight through everything? Will I succeed?

Donavan LeDean 7:29
I have this fear, this fear of feeling. Am I supposed to feel?

Liz Prince 7:36
Is it supposed to hurt? Because this urge keeps growing, I feel myself getting weaker. I feel myself giving in. Do I fight to stay strong? Do I fight to win? Should I stay strong for me? Should I stay strong for you? Or do I give in to this demon like most do? I must fight. I must stay strong. I must believe in God, and remember this is the devil doing me

Donavan LeDean 8:08
wrong, just from delivery and eye contact. Thank you. All right. All right. There it is. All right. This poem is dedicated to mental health. It's entitled, moon on the horizon. Man, I had enough looking at these urban skies, polluted, congested, fed up with these urban vibes. Make this temporary. It was enchanting for a short time. Yet I just need to leave the city limits for a night ride. I'm good. I'm good man. Just need time to meditate. I see the moon. Let me ride out for the sake of a better fate. Let me ride out just need that ultimate rule sensation cruising 80 down a lonely historic highway, straight through, no hesitation. I'm feeling good now the windows down, the cool night breeze invading. I'm calm now, the answer's clear. Now, just as clear as the night sky, a cruise up the hill, can almost touch the moon stars. I'm tantalized, tantalized by the moon's exuberance. Its energy got the countryside lit. It sits on the horizon, escaping me. I'm riding through a vision of soft painting, like the paint brush, providing smooth light strokes, applying cool night colors, applying it delicately with no rush. It's detrimental to the soul to ride back on this night, chasing the moon on the horizon. Soon the romantic backdrop be nullified, the mood ruined by Twilight. But now Nourse, see there's intimacy between me and Mother Earth as I ride along her grooves occurs the stars, highlights of beauty. This plays a worth. Let me get back to the city man. Let me get back to the hustle, the admissions, the grind. It's not a farewell to catch you later. The moon on the horizon. We'll do this another time. All right, phenomenal session. Liz Prince, her debut book entitled whispers from the sun is now available on Amazon. Liz, thank you for your time. Thank you so much. The poets that'll be featured on our playlist today are ashenah Burke, Luna shymoro, the unknown, Otis Sheldon, Alex Sebastian. Liz Prince Stephon, Pedway, Chelsea Murray, Donna Valley, Dean, Jess Flo Jeannie, you Dean and Zachary Gutierrez. Now let's get on with the show. This is next man up. Poetry in motion. Here we go. Here we go. Next man up.

Donavan LeDean 10:42
Thanks. Is hard. I'm trying to find a way. Try to come and say, couldn't do it just today. It.

Donavan LeDean 11:08
Go in with a fresh mind and a pure heart. Mistakes were made. Go in with a fresh start. The emphasis is today. The uncertainty is tomorrow. I live another day that's success. Time is borrowed. Carnage is on a regular another family has seen grief. Mics were cut off still the Tennessee three were able to speak from the crying girl and dying boy slain by assault styles too many bullets to avoid. Pray for them as they attempt to fight for a law made for all, as they attempt to prevent another body to fall. History in the making, yet in the midst of infamy, they're setting aside politics for human safety, making enemies Your vote can avoid the way your timing, Your vote can avoid that. Maybe it wouldn't what it got to be unprecedented as we witness the headlines of an indictment, as the rich make more money on merch, posing as victims, inciting another riots never quiet. The problem is online war. Foreigners are crowded US borders like refugees after Roe v Wade reversed more women are escaping rare things like refugees, more protest industries like help us please, and dire need of open minds and clear views so that one day universal health care making headlines on CNN news.

Donavan LeDean 12:18
Exhale, PRAY, WAIT for it. Peace never came. Now beware of a man force bound to take the Republic. God bless us, as we fight for peace on earth, as mankind kills one another to gain more turf, for drugs, for crops, for money, for clout. Urgent message, human to human, heart to heart, change your route for a fresh start. Breathe.

Donavan LeDean 12:50
Next man up, the wellness goddess herself. Miss lashina Burke, before we let you go, I would like you to share a poem for us. You ready?

Asheena Burke 13:05
I am ready. All right. Queen tall to her Goddess Pose, she arises with the vibrational frequency of the sun. Spiritual prose, the body is the servant of the mind, cultivating the richness of the soil. Ritual worship of universal light and sacred intentions ignite with the celestial Angel singing in her ear. Moon magic caresses the essence of the heavenly visions manifesting into fruition, affirming the great I Am. I Am Love, I am light, I am abundant, health, wealth and prosperity. I am activated. She is acclimating her superpowers to the 3d realm of basic interpretations, and she prays for you in her sacred tongue, dripped in melanated Star Dust, she must keep her thoughts clean to live the dream heaven on earth, aligning with yimia and Hadassah, bathing in sweet oil, softening the wounds of The Heart, paradigm shifting. You are so magnificent, your smile says So relax and receive the spiritual awareness that breathes. Goddess Pose, break free of the construct and think independently of your circumstances. Dance into your freedom. Goddess Pose, Goddess prose. Goddess knows how to heal the perpetual stagnation of her people. She's already been to hell, burned in the Deep Abyss, transmuted that energy into righteousness, and she glides into her virtuosity, stolen in the night by the bright lights, He winks pretty sweet nothings. In her ear, tethering her to a false sense of reality. Indulge in the libation. Sip slowly, squeeze a little Limon into your water. Alkalinity divinity is within the sea moss. Replenish your beauty with a green smoothie, and dive deep into the sea salt. Bathe into the power of restoration to favor shrinking the open pores of deceit, manipulation, statistical abuse. You are the muse. Saturate your consciousness into established intentions of CO creating your destiny, Goddess position, leader of women, and release the shackles that imprison your mind and oppression, religious, dogmatic mindsets, keeping us all into a state of lack thereof. Reach for the purpose above you are a life changer. Shine the light of awareness of where you need to grow, where you need to go, what you need to know. The possibilities are infinite, control the flow of your thought energy and all that you desire will be Goddess Pose, compel me into right action, release the past and become present. The pain stimulates the disciplinary transactions between Yahweh and you to create what is deep inside, suffocated by man made traditions that have nothing to do with raising your awareness. Take hold of your position. You are a goddess on a mission. Goddess Pose powerful.

Donavan LeDean 16:35
You heard it right here. Miss Lana Burke, queen, thank you for your time. Thank you, peace and blessings, before we let you go, I would like for you to share a poem for us. You ready? Yes, I am ready. Queen, talk to him.

Chelsea Maraee 16:54
My name is Chelsea Murray. I like roses, not because they're delicate or anything, but because you can bleed when you touch them, the petals are soft and the thorns are honest, a contradiction with roots that refuse to apologize. Just like me, my favorite color is pink. I'm from LA for sirens harmonize with swaying palm trees, and I'm usually always the woman who speaks when people demand silence. I was taught to swallow my pain, my communion on a Sunday morning that like coffee in any form. Actually, I daydream a lot. I daydream about wanting to walk freely at night, barefoot on gravel or lying down in an open field where stars burn like stubborn lanterns and nobody asks if my body is safe. I want the river to claim me, its cold mouth opening at my knees, its tilted tongue pressing against my calves, its weeds combing my ankles like fingers. Sometimes I just want to slip into the water like the person I once dreamed of being. Sometimes my whole life just feels like an act of letting go. I have a son, and I love him so much, but most of the time I parent strictly from instinct or sometimes from the ache of wanting to call my own mama up and ask her, am I doing this right? So I sit with grief often between bedtime routines and morning rushes, I'm still learning how to be a mother without the safety net of being somebody's child. I'm tired, and not the kind of tired that sleep fixes. I mean bone deep, history, heavy, inheritance, level tired. I'm tired of watching myself through other people's eyes, checking my posture, my words, my face, and asking myself silently, is it safe to be myself here? I'm tired of mistakes sticking to me longer than they stick to anybody else, knowing I could do everything right and still be questioned. I hate leaving my house. I love some house. I love something oldies and dread ordering my food at a drive through window and I stay shouting poems in my four walls of a home. I've got a lot of bad habits, and I think my worst one is loving men who can care less about me, measuring myself in replies and how long my name lingers on his tongue, or whether I'm needed or merely convenient, I'm still learning how to live in this body like it belongs to me. I'm learning how to teach my heart how to unclench his fist. And loving myself these days feels like learning a new language, but maybe loving myself right now doesn't look like confidence, it might look a little like patience, because some days I still look in the mirror and see everything I've been through before, seeing who I am and I'm not my worst day. I'm not what hurt me. I'm becoming so if you see me taking my time, I'm just learning. My name again and loving myself in pieces instead of all at once. And I think out of all things I've done in life, I think this one is the hardest. My name is Chelsea Murray, and I'm still here.

Donavan LeDean 20:14
Next man up. Before you go, I would like for you to share Paul for us. Ready? I'm ready. I'm ready.

The Unknown Odist 20:29
Life don't come with a manual just scandals and sandals on paths that burn like candles. We gamble with fate like Vegas. Nights fight our reflections like shadows with rights in just wisdom from old heads that never chewed slow. I grew though through potholes and plot holes and folks that got goals but stopped cold when dreams felt like frostbite. I tossed light and dark spaces and sparked stages with truth, because life ain't a sprint, it's a loop, a fruit that ripens with bruises, a fuse lit by losses that when if you use it

Donavan LeDean 21:06
in this life, next man up, presents, Luna queen, tall tour, here we go. Here we go. Next man up,

Luna 21:15
they told us Hell is a place where you go to burn in the flames, that hell is a home where evil lives, where sinners go to suffer forever, a burning place, a pit of fire. It smells like decay and smoke. But right here on Earth, I've seen monsters that take on human form. I'll tell you the real hell. It's the negative thoughts, the thoughts living in the mind, the lies we tell ourselves, the one that whispers when the room goes quiet, the one that waits until the world goes to sleep. They crawl through your memories, digging up moments you wished were buried. They remind you of every mistake, every embarrassment, every insecurity, or even every word you wish you said or didn't say like a broken record, scratching against your skull. You know those knots. They tell you you're not enough or you're too much. You should have been better, smarter, stronger, different, and the worst part, you believe them. You carry them around like an invisible parasite feeding on your piece, slowly, quietly, they eat away at you, not all at once, oh, no, just a little piece at a time, until one day, you wake up and you see the war is an outside it's inside. That's why they say, listen to your heart. The mind can create hell, but it can also create peace, because thoughts are seeds plant fear and darkness grows and compassion, the mind becomes a garden. So if we live in our minds most of the time, maybe the real question isn't, where is hell? The real question is, what are we growing in a place we call home? Peace or fire.

Speaker 5 23:39
Here we go. Here we go next, man up Palindrome, one at sea.

Speaker 6 23:48
Can I achieve hope all by myself when I'm far off, almost lost in causing waves, in causing waves, almost lost when I'm far off all by myself? Can I achieve

Donavan LeDean 24:12
hope? Next man up. Presents, shymoro, Queen tautua, here we go. Here we go. Next man up.

Speaker 7 24:22
This next pawn is called my current step one, step two, step three, step four, five steps, six, steps, seven, steps eight. I know there's more. I'm a bender, artist part, and I still have a big door. There are many things I can be now that I'm actually free. I love to draw, dance, laugh and be silly. I can stand here and do comedy. I can sit there and draw with my family. No matter where I step into I try to bring a smile, because I can be there for a while, or maybe just one a quick mile. I'm leaving my steps here and there being someone who can. Years, there are memories and times, cheers and cries no matter where I step into a smile big and I know that I try next man up

Speaker 8 25:12
in the absence of the sun, I dream of hope, but my eyes tell stories of a wounded heart. Throughout my trials and tribulations, I have sought a better way to understand myself, to wrap my mind around this life and make it mine. I am in search of serenity's Gender touch, but these karmic entanglements keep me chasing the darkness that lives within combat comes with the price tag, and I must give in to complete the mission. In the end, I win again, because nothing can hold me down. I am here with reason and purpose to encapsulate and translate the multi dimensional arrays of the human experience the light will shine through me guide my way back home.

Donavan LeDean 26:12
Before we go, I would like to conclude with a power message. It's a message about love. Love is free. It's a simple feeling and energy that many of us overlook for many reasons, yet our reasons lack substance driven by material things or manufactured desires. Some people are wealthy possess possessing many things, yet is still unhappy because they lack the most important value in life, love. Take time away from the negative energy, the voices that disperse negativity and immerse yourself within an environment that puts importance on the simple things, such as family gatherings, riding your bike along the shoreline or go out into the nightlife to listen to some love poetry at an intimate location, to rekindle what was once there and what is most important in your life, love. Thanks for tuning in to next man up. Poetry in motion. I am your host, donnavilly. D, to see my inspirational and poetry reels. You can go to YouTube at Donna Valley. D, also, you can find my poetry books, children's books and coloring books on Amazon under my name, Donovan Lee. D for actor or poets bookings. You can contact me, DV media, one zero@gmail.com Special, thanks to my guest, Liz Prince for stopping by discussing community involvement, poetry and mental health. I am Donna Billy Dean, actor, author and inspirational rhythmic poet until next time. Peace. Dave You,

Donavan LeDean 28:04
thrive one you.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai