Bloom: Poetry Slam
It’s Scorpio Szn!!! Which means it’s Sakura Series’s founder’s birthday!! Come celebrate the birth of Leilani by coming to our poetry slam!! They’ll have an amazing lineup, networking bingo and some special fun surprises. Hosted by the phenomenal Keynote, this night will be one to remember for sure 🎉🎉🎉🎉🥳🎈🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸
About the host:
KeyNote is a poet and performer born and raised in Paterson, NJ. She began writing at the early age of 12; eventually self-publishing her first book, Mind of A Mature Youngin‘ at age 16. She continued her passion for the art in college as Vice President of Kean University’s Poetry Club, where she earned her BA in Psychology and MA in Forensic Psychology. KeyNote has been a featured poet, guest poet, and slam competitor at 50+ events across NJ, NY, and Philly. She is also the 2024 Winner of the New Jeru Send-Off Slam and earned her spot on the 2025 team going on to compete nationally. Now, KeyNote is focused on growing her craft, curating OutCry the Slam in Newark, KeyNote Speakers Social Event in Paterson, and co-hosting Cozy Keys in Union City, NJ.
about our founder: Leilani (@Leilani.poetry) is an award-winning, internationally performed spoken word poet and multi-disciplinary theater artist hailing from Honolulu and currently based in Brooklyn, New York. She has featured at many events at prominent venues including opening for Rudy Francisco, performing twice off-broadway and is slated to perform at the 2027 Lincoln Center Poetry Festival. Leilani has also led writing workshops for organizations and universities like the New York Poetry Society, NYU, Hunter College, and the ACLU. Leilani is also the founder and host of the poetry non-profit Sakura Series (@sakura.series), where she has produced, hosted, and curated over 30 events. This writing workshop, open mic, and slam series is dedicated to facilitating spaces where artists can use their poetry as a tool to educate, entertain and inspire. Leilani is a Seoulful Productions Korean Writers Lab alum, a participant of the Dramatic Question Theatre (DQT) playtime cohort, a member of the DocBloc Intergenerational Theatre Lab Cohort, and will be a Sundress Academy for the Arts Resident in Spring 2027. She is currently working on her debut manuscript “Sweet, Sour, Spicy”, which explores four generations of the women in her family as well as a companion play.