Harmony Holiday selects poems that shed the skin of nostalgia, testing the boundaries of cruelty as they push toward clarity. She introduces Robert Hass accepting moments of error (“A Story About the Body”), Ai recognizing the humanity of the evil-doer (“Salome”), and Allen Ginsberg acknowledging his mother’s scars as he grieves (“Kaddish”). Holiday closes with her poem “Tale of the Sudden Sweetness of the Dictator,” which refuses sentimentality by telling a story in sharp detail.

Listen to the full recordings of Hass, Ai, and Ginsberg reading for the Poetry Center on Voca:

Robert Hass (September 12, 1984)
Ai (March 6, 1985)
Allen Ginsberg (April 30, 1969)

Check out Holiday’s Substack Black Music and Black Muses.

Full transcripts of every episode are available on Buzzsprout. Look for the transcript tab under each episode.

Voca is now fully captioned, with interactive transcripts and captions available for all readings! Read more about the project here, or try out this new feature by visiting Voca.

In our fiftieth episode, Nicole Sealey chooses poems that speak to the lasting power of big ideas offered generously to one’s community. She shares Toi Derricotte forecasting the spirit of Cave Canem (“I say hello, oracle, kind mother...”), Cornelius Eady responding to racism with defiant love (“Gratitude”), and Patricia Smith reminding us that poetry is a life-affirming art (“Building Nicole’s Mama”). Sealey closes with her piece “The First Person Who Will Live to Be One Hundred and Fifty Years Old Has Already Been Born,” a poem that measures time in the span of open arms.

Find the full recordings of Derricotte, Eady, and Smith reading for the Poetry Center on Voca:

Toi Derricotte (February 19, 1992)
Cornelius Eady (November 6, 1991)
Patricia Smith (November 10, 2004)

You can also enjoy a recording of Sealey reading at the Poetry Center in 2023 and participating in a virtual reading in 2021.

Participate in the 2025 #SealeyChallenge, a community challenge to read one book of poetry a day for the month of August. There's no official sign-up to participate and everyone is welcome to join in! Find reading ideas and other information here and use/find the hashtag #SealeyChallenge on your social channels to follow along and learn more.

Full transcripts of every episode are available on Buzzsprout. Look for the transcript tab under each episode.

Voca is now fully captioned, with interactive transcripts and captions available for all readings! Read more about the project here, or try out this new feature by visiting Voca.

Kwame Dawes introduces poems that interrogate loss and violence, transforming them in the flame of irony, elegy, and empathy. He discusses Lucille Clifton distilling “pure moments of tremendous poetry” (“lu 1958”), Michael S. Harper offering a haunting conclusion that serves as both memorial and gift (“We Assume: On the Death of our Son, Reuben Masai Harper”), and Terrance Hayes treading the line where outrage meets compassion (“Carolina Lullaby,” “A Poem That Does Nothing,” “The Poet Ai as Dylann Roof”). Dawes closes with an unpublished poem, “The House of Two Women,” which engages with the turbulent present of American life.

Find the full recordings of Clifton, Harper, and Hayes reading from the Poetry Center on Voca:

Lucille Clifton (November 1, 2007)
Michael S. Harper (April 4, 1973)
Terrance Hayes (February 4, 2016)

Full transcripts of every episode are available on Buzzsprout. Look for the transcript tab under each episode.

Voca is now fully captioned, with interactive transcripts and captions available for all readings! Read more about the project here, or try out this new feature by visiting Voca.