Beyond Baroque presents an evening of diatonic feels in rhyming verse & auxiliary prose. Inspired by Rhys Langston’s first track in Grapefruit Radio (published by Black Market Poetry), this powerhouse line-up features three poets based in Los Angeles; multi-media artist Rhys Langston, drummer/spoken-word poet A.K. Toney & the magic of Tori Gesualdo. Enjoy the poetry followed by a stellar performance with The Cesar Hernandez Quintet!

Doors open 7:30 p.m. Performances begin at 8:00 p.m.

About the artists:

A.K. Toney is a Griot, writer, and educator. He currently is a Literacy Coordinator, Artist teacher and owner of Reading Is Poetry. Although Toney has yet to publish a full volume of poetry, he is currently working on his first book and album chronicling his life as a poet in the Leimert Park Village area in Los Angeles, CA. As a Griot Toney has learned the art of storytelling while playing percussion instruments. He often deeply emerges himself into rhythms of African Oral Tradition and Jazz from a modern urban perspective. A.K. follows the role of the Griot singing and playing the message, loving, and respecting the people.

Rhys Langston is a musician, visual artist, and writer born, raised, and based in Los Angeles, California. Publications such as the NY Times, the LA Times, AFROPUNK, LA Weekly, STEREOGUM, and SPIN have praised his multimedia efforts. Notable projects include 2020’s dissertation and musical album Language Arts Unit: a Rap Textbook and 2022’s Grapefruit Radio, which melded his outré rap, visual art, and absurdist prose. Ever composing and plotting between disciplines, he remains the poet laureate of his living room and has a higher vertical leap than your favorite rapper.

Tori Gesualdo is a Los Angeles based poet and bookseller. Her poems are an effort at catharsis and recollection of her personal responsibility to her own healing and the healing of the collective. She can be found at Stories in Echo Park, coaxing your friends to read anti-capitalist literature.

The Cesar Hernandez Quintet is a jazz band from Los Angeles, led by trumpet player Cesar Hernandez.

This event is Free & In-Person at Beyond Baroque. Masks are required while inside our center.

Event attendees are expected to behave in a respectful and considerate manner while in our space. Beyond Baroque reserves the right to remove individuals from our events, virtual or otherwise, if they are not respecting the space, fellow attendees, or performers.

Please RSVP if you are planning to attend this event. We accept walk-ins, but priority will be given to people that have registered. Limited seating is available; we recommend arriving early.