Toni Love featuring at the PA Mad Poet Society virtual reading TONIGHT. Don’t go mad, write poetry! ❤

Reposted:

MAD POETS SOCIETY . Join us tonight for the next Livin’ on Luck reading at 7 pm! We will feature Pat Kelly, Toni Love, and Francesco Pasqualino. Open mic will follow hosted by Brooke Palma. To register, use the link below. See you there! Registration Link: https://wcupa.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJ0udu-srzkrH9MkU0-RXt2oPzi1gB9giaND?fbclid=IwAR0S58sEyLeH2zARcRshO0mkZv0lSfzBDaXuLypAu1WDa0QYqKQLZzxsDIQ Pat Kelly is a writer from Harrisburg. He writes poetry and fiction that explores the dark fringes of humanity and its impact on time and memory. He is currently working on his first collection of poetry, Buried Litanies, which is both a means of personal therapy and a voice to his repressed experiences with childhood sexual abuse.

Tonita Austin also known as “Toni Love” is a gifted poet, singer, activist, and writer born in West Philadelphia. While attending Columbia University, Tonita was a student of Amiri Baraka and performed in Ntozake Shange’s “For Colored Girls” as the Lady in Orange. Her writing is influenced by both experiences. She is a contributor to the anthology The Black Body and featured poet in the 2018 and 2020 Winter/Fall edition of the Philadelphia Arts and Urban Literary magazine. The Restoration EP is her first published recording; Toni’s Room is her first published book. Toni currently resides in Media,PA

Francesco Pasqualino is a restauranteur and writer living in Pittsburgh, PA. Francesco has supported many artistic groups including The International Poetry Forum, The Hillman Center for Performing Arts, and The Mad Poets Society, He has had the honor of studying with Ted Kooser and Mary Karr. His writing appears in Voices in Italian Americana, Mad Poets Review, Main Street Rag, and The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. You’ll find his culinary insights on Attenzione! A Writer’s Journal on his restaurant’s website, pasqualinos.com. He has also shared his family recipes as an invited guest on WQED public television. Mad Poets Society · P.O. Box 1248 · Media, Pa 19063 · USA

“TONI’S ROOM book signing/ reading and open mic August 24th!💓🎤🎶📚💿

You are cordially invited to my “Toni’s Room” book signing and open mic birthday party on August 24th in Philadelphia PA at the 4050 Gallery!

The gallery is located at 4050 Haverford Avenue.

The open mic list starts at 6:30 to 7 p.m.

The open mic will start at 8 after the Toni’s Room reading. I’m excited to have Sisters Laying Down Hands to accompany me and bring the vibe and the ancestors into the room.

This is presented by Music and Art for the Soul, a Carolee Production. I’m so excited to to share this moment and celebrate with my friends fans and all my loved ones. The cost at the door is just $5, we’ll have cake and beverages and lots of great music and fun. Books can be purchased in advance of the signing on Amazon or on my Toni Love site . Just let me know that you will pick it up at the signing.

💞

I will have another reading on September 15th at Pendle Hill in Wallingford PA from 2 to 4 p.m. at their amazing Sunday Coffee House. Stay tuned for more information.

Either way I hope you are well and that I get to see you soon!

Make today great.

#loveistheanswer 💞

Wednesday June 19. Toni Love at the World Cafe Live, Philly💓

Honored to share the stage with some of the best artists in Philadelphia as one of the poets performing a tribute to Ursula Rucker Wednesday, June 19th 7pm at World Cafe Live in Philadelphia! 💓

My friend and musician extraordinaire Richard Tucker will also be honored. The lineup is amazing I hope you will come out! 🎶🎤

You can message me to purchase tickets from me and avoid the box office fees, or click the link below to order them from the venue (see below) :https://www.worldcafelive.com/event/1858241-comeback-philly-style-philadelphia/

Encouraging Young Writers in Philadelphia Today

received_10209380157758316My father loved to read and wrote a multitude of songs and essays yet published only one song in his lifetime. Today in his memory I am excited to be hosting a fundraiser for Philly Youth March and Voice4Justice. The event featuring Grammy Nominee Ursula Rucker and the extraordinarily musical Monica McIntyre begins today at 3pm at Alma Mater, 7165 Germantown Avenue in Philadelphia. The suggested donation is $10 and children are free! Please come and encourage our young writers. And prepare to be blown away by the collaborations and energy in the room. 

Check out the Facebook event pageVoices for Justice Event for more details and I hope to see you there!

Peace and blessings and Happy Father’s day!

Toni Love #loveistheanswer

Who Am I? I Am You & We Are Connected!

MTONITA FEATURE AD JPG

You may have seen my face, maybe took a minute to listen to a sample track or even purchased my debut EP titled “The Restoration”, but do you know my story? I love poetry because I love telling a story. I love music because it adds color to lyrical expression. When you listen to my CD, you experience the two dancing together. I tell a story of love, loss and renewal within each track on “The Restoration”. You can purchase it on iTunes, Amazon Music and CD Baby. If you would like an autographed copy, please purchase from my site —-> Toni Love Merchandise where you will find Toni Love T-shirts as well!

I am excited about my interview with Connected Woman Magazine! Although I’ve been fortunate to have my poetry featured in other online publications in addition to being interviewed for several online radio stations, this is my first magazine interview! It was a new experience for me and a lot different from radio interviews because I was given detailed, probing questions in advance and had to take the time to  write thoughtful, honest responses. Some of the questions were more difficult than others because it required me to dig deep into my past and revisit places I’ve long tucked away. This interview process was a welcome experience because it made me think about how my poetry could be used to guide other woman towards healing so they too can be restored.

I hope you take a moment to visit the Connected Woman Magazine online edition tomorrow, June 8th. I am honored to be featured along with several other fabulously connected women, and I hope you are inspired by us all. I am you, you are me and we are all connected!

Thank you in advance for the LOVE!

~Toni  #loveistheanswer

 

 

Who Is Toni Love?

Have you had your heart broken and are afraid to love again? Do you feel like you give yourself to others and don’t know how to love yourself? Do you yearn for a surge of passion and romance in your life? Do you love good music and poetry? If you can say yes to any or all of these questions, then do yourself a favor and click the link below to order my debut EP titled “The Restoration”. I intertwine poetry with the brilliant music of Robb McCall to explore all of the above emotions and feelings. As you allow yourself to become immersed in the music and share in my journey, I am confident you will fall in love with love again!

You can purchase the entire EP with the bonus track or download the digital version by clicking the link below:

Order The Restoration on CD BABY.COM.

If you would like an autographed copy of the EP, or a Toni Love T-shirt, please visit my site by clicking here —-> Order Toni Love Music and Merchandise.

All CDs, t-shirts and tickets ordered from my site will arrive with a hand written thank you note and autographed as you choose.

The Restoration is my gift to you. I believe we can do nothing without love first. I offer you a chance to release old love, rekindle your current love or to believe that the love you seek will become more than a dream. Get the love you desire today!

~ I thank you for the love! Toni

#loveistheanswer

 

 

Come out and support me at The Collective, August 15th!

The Collective Open Mic is a warm, encouraging, non-judgmental family of poets, writers and artists and I am so thrilled to be asked to warm up the mic for the featured poets on Friday, August 15th at La Rose Jazz Club. I hope you can come out to support me and support the arts! #loveistheanswer

Collective Aug15

Meet Me…

“Fly into my love…”

Phyllis no one could have said it better

I want to melt like glue on the pavement in the hot weather

when you are near me

I want to stop time and tell the job, the bills, the kids and the static to hush..

I want to ride on the next warm breeze that blows by,

grab your hand to make sure it’s just you and I

and slowly climb that ladder to the moon

No one needs to know where we are

Just make sure you duck that shooting star

And meet me

Pleeease

I don’t care if it’s just for a moment

But a lifetime would be divine

As close to heaven as we will ever be

Is walking on the moon, just you and me

Meet me..

I’ll make sure you get to work in the morning

We can stop by Jupiter to get you a change of clothes

I just want a moment alone

“In the middle of the sky…you and I”

Do you hear that soft love vibe

Slowly dripping down my thigh

I NEED you to meet me

Where we can lose ourselves in the moment everlasting

Far away from outside forces that interfere with our gravity

Can you meet me?

I won’t tell a soul

but you will want to when I’m through..

Can you just meet me?

Don’t make me beg

I have the ladder, just grab a rung

and come

Can’t you get here any faster?

Meet me..

You won’t regret it my love

And you surely won’t forget it

You’ll be set free from all those wordly woes

When the moondust drifts softly between our toes

Just come..

And I promise

I’ll call your name when you do…

Original Poetry by M Tonita Austin remembering the late, great Phyllis Hyman on her birthday 7/6/12

 

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