(NEWARK, NJ) -- New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) hosts Mic Check: The Nuyorican at Dodge Poetry in NJPAC's Chase Room on Friday, July 11, 2025 at 7:30pm. Join them for an unforgettable night of raw talent and powerful voices at this showcase produced by the Nuyorican Poets Café featuring the 2025 Nuyorican Slam Team, the next generation of spoken word excellence.

Hosted by Newark native and Nuyorican mainstay Paul Con Queso, this high-energy event brings together emerging and seasoned performers including Sola Kush, Brittany Barker, Jesica “Sumbodies Mama” Blandon and UGBA for an evening of poetry, spoken word and lyrical brilliance. Be sure to stay afterward for your chance to step up to the mic as part of the open mic portion of this event. Come vibe with them and celebrate the art of expression.

Sola Kush (Sọ́lá Kúṣ in Yorùbá) is a decorated Nigerian-American spoken word artist, orator, researcher and mentor hailing from Jersey (with a PG area code). Alongside her academic pursuits in development and the future of work, she has won numerous honors and awards from local and national poetry slam competitions, talent shows, oratorical contests and artist showcases, including her most recent first place win at the 2024 Southern Fried Poetry Slam individual competition where she represented the legendary Nuyorican Poets Café.

Sola’s love of the stage has led her to organizing poetry workshops in Silicon Valley, performing at Google and TiVo, the U.N., and opening for Wale, Kehlani and Issa Rae’s award-winning series premiere of the HBO show Insecure, among other opportunities. In January 2024, Sola returned to her love of slam and competing after a near 10-year hiatus. She invites all to this recommitment to her art, as she pushes her pen to recombine poetry, comedy, straight up BARS and storytelling in new ways.

Brittany Barker is a child of God, an award-winning poet and educator from Harlem, NYC. As Executive Director of Creative Soul House, Brittany has been an active advocate for community wellness, impacting hundreds of youth and adults, using art as a tool for self-discovery, transformation and social change. She holds a bachelor’s degree (BA) in English Literature, a master’s Degree’s (MAT) in Secondary Education and has served as an educator for over 10 years.

Barker ranked third in the world at the 2023 Womxn of the World Poetry Slam. Her poetry has graced stages such as Lincoln Center, The New Amsterdam Theatre, The Apollo Theater. She is a member of the 2025 Nuyorican Poet Café’s national slam team, and has coached two teams, including Urban Word NYC’s 2024 Youth Slam Team and, currently, New York University’s Slam team. Brittany’s one-woman show, Standing Upright in the Crooked Room toured across states at Theaterlab NYC and Dickinson College in PA. It’s the first of many to come. Drawing on inspiration from God, loved ones and art, her goal is to creatively use her gifts to invite people into the truth.

Jesica “Sumbodies Mama” Blandon is a multifaceted artist hailing from the vibrant Bronx, NY, celebrated for her roles as a poet, spoken word artist and actor. Her list of accolades is impressive, including being crowned the February 2024 Nuyorican Poets Café Final Friday Slam winner and securing second place in the 2024 Women of the World Poetry Slam. Her journey to success began when she was named the 2009 Nuyorican Poets Café’s Youth Poet of The Year and continued when she won the 2010 Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry slam as a member of the Urban Word NYC team. She has shared stages with luminaries such as Georgio Armani, Oscar Award-winning Philip Seymour Hoffman and Savion Glover. Sumbodies Mama’s artistry is a force to be reckoned with, inspiring audiences far and wide with her compelling narratives and poignant performances.

UGBA (‘oog ba’) Ungrateful Black Artist (pronoun inclusive) is a queer poet, rapper, playwright, actor and activist based out of Brooklyn, NY. UGBA is the founder/host of “CEREMONIES” a Brooklyn based monthly Black-Queer artist showcase held in honor of Essex Hemphill. UGBA is also the founder of “Dark-Skin Support Group” a virtual support network for dark-skin Black Americans in need of a space to discuss the realities of colorism.

In 2020, UGBA was named a “Black LGBTQ+ playwright you need to know ” by Time Out New York. UGBA is the former script assistant for the Pulitzer Prize winning and 5-time Tony-nominated Broadway show Fat Ham. He is an alumnus of the Public Theater’s #BARS program and Emerging Writers Group 2020 – 2023 cohort. He is a 2023 Artivism Fellow through Broadway Advocacy Coalition, a 2022 MAP Grant recipient, a 2020 – 2021 BAM Resident, a New York Stage & Film 2023 Founders’ award recipient and current Artistic Director at NY Writers Coalition.

Tickets are available for purchase online starting Friday, May 2  at 10:00am. Tickets are also available by calling 888.GO.NJPAC (888.466.5722) or by visiting the NJPAC Box Office (One Center Street) in Newark, New Jersey.

New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), located at One Center Street in downtown Newark, N.J., is America’s most diverse performing arts center, and the artistic, cultural, educational and civic center of New Jersey – where great performances and events enhance and transform lives every day. NJPAC brings diverse communities together, providing access to all and showcasing the state’s and the world’s best artists while acting as a leading catalyst in the revitalization of its home city. Through its extensive Arts Education programs, which have reached almost 2 million children, NJPAC is shaping the next generation of artists and arts enthusiasts. NJPAC has attracted more than 10 million visitors since opening its doors in 1997, and nurtures meaningful and lasting relationships with each of its constituents.