Imani Sims

Imani Sims is a Seattle native who spun her first performance poem at the age of fourteen. Since then, she has developed an infinitely rippling love for poetry in all of its forms. She believes in the healing power of words and the transformational nuance of the human story. She allows her selves (Healer, Woman, Poet, Storyteller, Survivor) to tell their truths through her work. Imani is a Board Member and teacher at Bent Writing Institute and making Split Six Productions—a POC, LGBTQ, and Allied community production company—reality. She is also a 2012 CD Forum Creation Artist and her book Twisted Oak is forthcoming on Requiem Press. Imani Sims received 2016 GAP funding for The Fresh Brewed Tour. The Fresh Brewed Tour is a nod to the LGBTQ quip “Give me the T,” meaning, “Give me the truth.” She is teaming up with two other women of color, Anastacia Tolbert and Ebony Stewart for this tour. Both of them have extensive resumes and performance experience. She plans to showcase her new book, (A)live Heart, and will be reading from recently published works. This tour aims to increase the visibility of women of color in the performance art world who identify as poets. They hope to integrate performance, ritual, and audience participation into a tour that will showcase the work of three women of color. Source