In this episode of Next Up to The Mic, we welcome Influence who was our featured poet at Brass Tacks at The Low Beat on April 16, 2019.

Sharmont "Influence" Little is a Poet from New Haven Ct. who has been called engaging, prolific, and truly passionate. He uses the art form of Spoken Word to deliver his message and belief, as quoted by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”

Influence's goal is to educate and inspire people of all ages and mindsets, with a strong focus on the youth of the inner cities. He has performed all over the country using Colleges like Yale, Virginia State, Boston University, and a host of public schools as his platform to reach the youth of today. As well as performing at some of the most historic poetry venues such as the Nuyorican Poetry Café in New York City and the Lizard Lounge in Cambridge, MA just to name a few. Influence made a name for himself as a slam poet winning over 100 slams nationwide and being a five-time member of the Connecticut slam team Verbal Slap including being the coach of the 2017 team and Grand Slam champion of the 2018 team. He has worked with and or shared the stage with musical entertainers Common, Mos Def, and R&B artist Rome. One of His greatest accomplishments was to have the opportunity to open for the NAACP Image Awards.

Influence's first album was released in 2007 entitled Verbal Tears.

If “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” then Sharmont "Influence" Little has made it a mission to use every ounce of his poetic talents to engage and enlighten his audience. Living by his own saying “Poetry is life, Live it”.

Please welcome, next up to the mic, Influence.

To find out more about the great poetry and spoken word community in upstate New York, go to albanypoets.com

Our theme music was “Imagination” by Danijel Zambo (https://uppbeat.io/t/danijel-zambo/imagination) License code: 44TCGFPF1L1434BE

Episode 11: MIchele Battiste at The Poetry Motel

Next Up to The MicBy Hudson Valley Writers GuildMay 19, 2021