Grammy Award-Winning Artist, Performance Poet and Author J. Ivy will visit Cheyney University of Pennsylvania on Tuesday, April 24, 2018, to perform at CU’s Fade to Black poetry night. This event, sponsored by The Office of  Residence Life and Housing, the CU Cultural Programming Committee and campus organization, The Brotherhood, will be held in the Carnegie Hall Great Room at 8 PM.

Renowned spoken word artist J. Ivy has translated the art of poetry into mainstream music and television arenas, through his use of compelling performances depicting contemporary society. The seasoned artist, who hails from Chicago, is widely known for his captivating performances on Russell Simmons’ HBO Def Poetry of his original poems, “I Need to Write” and “Dear Father.” Ivy’s poetry has also been featured on the song “Never Let Me Down” by rapper Kanye West. J. Ivy’s feature on the now hip-hop classic ultimately earned him a Grammy Award. The multi-talented performer has also released two studio albums of his own.

Additionally, J. Ivy has voiced openings for sporting events like the NFL’s Sunday Night Football, the 2017 NBA Draft, and ESPN’s US Open. He also narrated the award-winning BET film Muhammad Ali: The People’s Champ, has starred in a national ad for AARP and collaborated with several R&B artists to complete voice-overs.

Ivy is also a published author, having released the memoir Dear Father: Breaking the Cycle of Pain and Here I AM: Then and Now, a follow-up to his second studio album, HERE I AM, which contains a compilation of lyrics, stories that inspired the alum and other poetry works. Most recently, he has released the audio book My Daddy’s Records: Songs from the Book Dear Father.

This event is free and open to the Cheyney University campus community. For additional information on this event, contact Thomas Nixon, Director of Residence Life and Housing, tnixon@cheyney.edu.