In this, the final episode of The Personhood Project , host Aaron Tyler Hand sits down with poet Kathy Fagan. Fagan is the author of six poetry collections, including Bad Hobby , Sycamore , and The Raft . In the episode, the two discuss how poetry is often felt before it’s understood, and how its music and mystery allow both readers and writers to access emotions and truths that ordinary language can’t reach. They also talk about the difficulty—and necessity—of confronting th

In this penultimate episode of The Personhood Project, poet Diannely Antigua sits down with host Aaron Tyler Hand for a conversation about the intersection of healing and craft. In the episode, the two discuss Antigua’s poetry collections Ugly Music  and Good Monster , and how diary-entry poems can serve as a bridge between the therapeutic and the artistic. They also discuss the importance of noticing the poetic in the mundane, the role of community in healing, and how reclai

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant reflects on the work of Pulitzer Prize–winning poet Jericho Brown. Brooke explores how Brown’s poetry, known for its formal innovation, such as the duplex, and its emotional vulnerability, invites readers into urgent conversations about identity, race, love, and the body in America. Brown’s work blends musicality with deep introspection, using language to confront both personal and cultural experiences th

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant explores haiku poetry through the work of Masaya Saito and his collection Snow Bones . Brooke reflects on how haiku invites attention to brevity, stillness, and the present moment, and how meaning emerges through what is observed as much as what is left unsaid. The episode explores how Saito’s poems employ restraint, imagery, and silence to convey emotion and insight, inviting listeners to slow down and e

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant reflects on the work of spoken-word poet Taylor Mali and his dedication to poetry as a vibrant, public art form. Brooke explores how Mali’s poems use performance, humor, and direct address to make poetry accessible, urgent, and deeply human. The episode explores spoken-word poetry as a space for connection, one that invites listeners to reflect on language, education, and the ways words shape our percepti

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant reflects on the poetry of Major Jackson and his attention to inner speech and quiet utterance. Brooke explores how Jackson uses poetry as a space to turn inward, listening closely to the music of language and the emotional rhythms of daily life. The episode views poetry as a sanctuary—one that allows Jackson to step away from the world's noise and focus on love, memory, witness, and meditation. Brooke als

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant discusses the poetry of Sarah Ghazal Ali, a poet drawn to the immediacy and accessibility of the form. Brooke examines how Ali utilizes poetry as a contemplative and immersive space—one that invites readers into moments of reflection while engaging with questions of identity, spirituality, and self-awareness. The episode explores poetry as a therapeutic practice for Ali, a means to process complex emotion

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant explores the poetry of Oliver de la Paz, a poet drawn to the freedom, brevity, and depth the form allows. Brooke discusses how de la Paz uses poetry as a way to hold complex emotional truths in small, portable spaces—writing toward questions of parenthood, anxiety, and the world his children will inherit. The episode explores poetry as a tool for introspection and emotional growth, examining how de la Paz

In this episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant turns her attention to the poetry of Luisa Muradyan, a Ukrainian-American poet and author of American Radiance . Brooke explores Muradyan’s understanding of poetry as a space of distance and quiet—a place to hide when vulnerability feels overwhelming. They discuss Muradyan’s metaphor of writing as navigating a dense forest, full of cover and shelter, and how that privacy enables her to write deeply person

In the season three debut episode of The Personhood Project , guest host Brooke Pillifant takes a closer look at ekphrastic poetry through the work of Diane Seuss and her collection Still Life with Two Dead Peacocks and a Girl . Brooke explores how ekphrastic poems respond to visual art, how attention and observation shape the poem on the page, and the ways Seuss uses stillness, description, and voice to move beyond the image itself. The episode invites listeners to think abo

This month poet Rosebud Ben-Oni sits down with Aaron Tyler Hand for the 20th episode of The Personhood Project. In this episode, the two discuss the ways in which poetry can offer hope when all other signs point towards there not being any and the ways poetry allows us to see people more three-dimensionally. The two also discuss the pain of watching a loved one get locked up as well as the importance of writing to congress to make change in things you believe in. Rosebud als

Sitting down with host Aaron Tyler Hand this month is poet, editor, and copywriter Phil Goldstein. In it they discuss Goldstein's debut...

For the 18th episode of The Personhood Project, host, Aaron Tyler Hand, sits down with poet Megan Fernandes. In it, they discuss...

This month, The Personhood Project welcomes poet James Fujinami Moore to speak with our host, Aaron Tyler Hand. In this episode, the two...

For our 16th episode, host, Aaron Tyler Hand is joined by poet, environmental educator, and cultural preservationist Ashia Ajani. Outside...

This month, poet Joshua Burton joins our host Aaron Tyler Hand to discuss his debut collection of poetry, Grace Engine, as well as his...

This month, the amazing Mag Gabbert sits down with our host, Aaron Tyler Hand, to discuss her two chapbooks Minimal Poems and The...

For the first episode of season two of The Personhood Project, host Aaron Tyler Hand, sits down with poet and educator Jose Hernandez...

For the final episode of season 1, poet and playwright, Ebony Stewart joins our host, Aaron Tyler Hand, to discuss her two 2022 poetry...

For episode 11, host, Aaron Tyler Hand, is joined by poet Taylor Byas. In this episode, Byas offers insight into her forthcoming...