This is a special episode dedicated the art of spoken word poetry. One of our listeners wrote to us mentioning the name of Rudy Francisco and from there we fell down the rabbit hole of spoken word and slam poetry. We talk to Rudy and two other greats of the art, Bianca Phipps and Neil Hilborn. They are going to perform one work each and we will round it out with a conversation with Sam Van Cook. Sam is a founder of Button Poetry that represents and publishes so many of these great artists. Trust us, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

Books mentioned in this week's episode:

• Helium by Rudy Francisco
• Excuse Me While I Kiss the Sky by Rudy Francisco
• Crown Noble by Bianca Phipps
• The Future by Neil Hilborn
• About Time by Neil Hilborn
• Mill, Railways and General Castings by Sam Van Cook

Watch their poems online:

• Hide and Seek by Rudy Francisco
• Almosts by Bianca Phipps
• OCD by Neil Hilborn

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