Born and raised in Los Angeles, Jovonny “JDWorldWide” Devicente is a poet, hip-hop artist and activist.
Over the years he has performed all over the Los Angeles area, including the famous performing arts theatre, Da Poetry Lounge, Los Angeles City Hall, and the internet radio program Speak and B Heard.
He wrote, directed, and starred in the documentary Police State (currently in post production). In the documentary he speaks with various people throughout Los Angeles about their social views, and interviews the creator of the Zeitgeist Film Series, Peter Joseph.
Now that Jovonny’s relocated to Sacramento, you can find him performing his music and poetry at various local venues including Old Ironsides, Queen Sheeba and Scriptorium Saturday.
His efforts as a conscious artist and thinker have not gone unnoticed, especially in the hip-hop community. His Twitter account @jdworldwide has landed follows from Public Enemy’s Professor Griff and Digital Underground.
Jovonny’s work focuses on conspiracy, philosophy, spirituality and global social issues.
He performed music and poetry at Scriptorium on Saturday, September 17, 2016.
Hulon “The Survivor” Thompson is a poet, artist, musician and survivor. He was our featured guest at Scriptorium Saturday on September 19, 2015, and gave a courageous presentation on his life growing up in Compton, triumphing over a cancer diagnosis, his poetry that reflects personal growth into his self-made identity, and conscious art pieces. It was an evening of testimony, creative thought, and encouragement.
“I started writing raps and poetry at the age of fifteen because it was what my friends were doing at the time,” says San Francisco-born rapper and poet Terrence Thomas, “but suddenly I began to develop a sincere passion for my ability to express myself through my music and my poems. Rapping and writing poetry became my source of release and a way to get whatever was in my heart out,” he says.
Shaun Parker is a hip-hop artist, lyricist and poet born in San Jose but raised in Sac-Town, a graduate of Pleasant Grove High School, and soon-to-be-graduate of our own California State University, Sacramento. At the ripe age of nine, he began putting his pen to the pad in the form of poetry, which has ultimately developed into a passion for music. Having been inspired by his Aunt Jacque who was in an R & B group in the 80s, and hip-hop icons such as N.W.A., Rakim, Public Enemy, Kanye West, and Kendrick Lamar, music has become that creative place Shaun has made his home as an artist.
Francesca Elizabeth is an emerging jazz artist based out of Sacramento, California. Her passionate and soulful style of music is influenced by such female artists as Billie Holiday and India Arie. She desires to share a message of hope with her listeners. She has a passion for music that began as a young child singing in her local church choir. Her message is delivered by means of acoustic guitar, which she has played for the past 7 years.