Calling all MC’s, Poets, Performers, Comedians, Join our tribe as a new Open Mic Host for our in-house series!

We are launching brand new programming & specialty events which will be part of our in-house series – such as Open Mic night & LIVE at Busboys and Poets – at our newly opened Anacostia Busboys and Poets location.

We are looking for funny, energetic, charismatic, and socio-politically aware people who can facilitate an open or closed mic style event for two hours.

Email us poetry@busboysandpoets.com or go to https://www.busboysandpoets.com/about/join-our-tribe/ to enter your information

Job Type: Contract

Experience:

Hosting: 1 year (Required)

Contract Renewal:

Annually

Please send – a writing sample, 2 videos/audios of you performing or hosting, 2 references, an EPK (Electronic Press Kit or Resume), and short statement on why you would fit as a Busboys and Poets host.

Payment – You receive a $100 honorarium for each hosting gig, plus a $25 meal comp NOT including Alcoholic purchases.

Preference given to poet, performers, and residents of Ward 7 and 8.

About Busboys and Poets:
Busboys and Poets is a community where racial and cultural connections are consciously uplifted… a place to take a deliberate pause and feed your mind, body and soul…a space for art, culture and politics to intentionally collide… we believe that by creating such a space we can inspire social change and begin to transform our community and the world.

The Making of Busboys and Poets

A Seat at the Table: The Making of Busboys and Poets

We’re proud to announce A Seat at the Table: The Making of Busboys and Poets, the new memoir from our CEO and Founder, which reveals the vision, challenges, and triumphs behind opening Busboys and Poets. Packed with misadventures, unexpected triumphs, and insights on race, business and politics, Andy Shallal’s memoir takes us on a “How I Built … Continued

PHOTO 2024 02 01 07 10 14

For Langston Hughes on His 123 Birthday

Speech given on February 1, 2024 in Havana, Cuba In 1927 Langston Hughes walked into a Cuba amid an emerging community of artists, intellectuals, and radicals.  He saw a “sunrise in a new land [– a day – in his words]sic – full of brownskin surprises, and hitherto unknown contacts in a world of color.”  … Continued

PALESTINE WEEK 1920 x 1080 px 2

Palestine Week 2024

January 18, 2024 – January 25, 2024 In keeping with our ongoing mission of uplifting racial and cultural connections, Busboys and Poets is hosting Palestine Week (January 18 through January 25, 2024). This week-long series of events will offer a diverse range of programming featuring Palestinian food, music, dance, poetry, discussions, and other enriching events. … Continued

Privacy Policy

Privacy Policy

Effective Date: August 2022 This Privacy Policy explains how Busboys and Poets collects, uses, and discloses personal information about our customers, prospective customers, and visitors to our website at busboysandpoets.com. COLLECTION OF PERSONAL INFORMATION  Information collected directly from you: We may collect personal information directly from you, for example through a web form, during registration, while making a reservation, … Continued

President Obama meets with former inmates in the Langston Room

President Obama meets with former inmates in the Langston Room

President Obama met at Busboys and Poets 14th & V to have lunch with a group of former inmates. He was joined by senior advisor Valerie Jarrett. The Obama administration chose to have their meeting with us since we banned the box in 2009.

6. Langston Hughes in Cuba

Follow along for the Busboys and Poets Travel Tribe’s Cultural Exchange trip to Cuba (July 6-13, 2022) By Andy Shallal (@andyshallal CEO/Founder, Busboys and Poets) The Union of Writers and Artists is one of the oldest institutions formed after the Cuban revolution. The year was 1961. Its first president was Nicolas Guillen. Cuba’s national poet. Named … Continued

ministry of culture

5. Cuba – Ministry of Culture

We approach the towering yellow stucco building that houses the Ministry of Culture. There is a delegation waiting patiently to greet us at the sidewalk. They are standing in front of a metal gated entrance. Their inviting faces have welcome written all over. We exchange “Holas”. And handshakes. The handful of Spanish words I know … Continued