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Kwame Alexander        

Poet, Educator, Publisher, Emmy Award Winning Producer & New York Times Bestselling Author Known for "The Crossover"

Kwame Alexander is a poet, educator, Emmy-winning producer and #1 New York Times bestselling author of 41 books, including the upcoming release "Black Star," the second installment of his Door of "No Return" trilogy, "This Is The Honey: An Anthology of Contemporary Black Poets," "Why Fathers Cry at Night," "An American Story," "The Door of No Return," "Becoming Muhammad Ali" (co-authored with James Patterson), "Rebound," which was shortlisted for the prestigious UK Carnegie Medal, and "The Undefeated," the National Book Award nominee, Newbery Honor, and Caldecott Medal-winning picture book illustrated by Kadir Nelson.

Alexander is also the Emmy-winning Executive Producer, Showrunner, and Writer of "The Crossover" TV series, based on his Newbery-Medal winning novel of the same name, which premiered on Disney+ in April 2023. The series was produced in partnership with LeBron James' SpringHill Company and Big Sea Entertainment, Alexander's production company that is dedicated to creating innovative, highly original children’s and family entertainment. Other current projects in development at Big Sea include "America’s Next Great Author," the groundbreaking reality television series for writers.

A regular contributor to NPR’s Morning Edition, Alexander is the creator and host of the "Why Fathers Cry" podcast, premiering September 2023, featuring conversations about love and parenting and loss, with fathers and sons. He regularly shares his passion for literacy, books and the craft of writing around the world at events like the Chautauqua Lecture Series, the Edinburgh Book Festival, Aspen Ideas, and the Global Literacy Symposium in Ghana, where he opened the Barbara E. Alexander Memorial Library and Health Clinic in Ghana. Most recently he was appointed the Rudell Artistic Director of Literary Arts and Writer-in-Residence at the Chautauqua Institution.

His mission is to change the world, one word at a time.

Speech Topics


Light for the World to See

A Talk and Performance on the quintessential American bullet points of Race, Racism, and Hope.

Say Yes

KWAME ALEXANDER shares stories from overcoming the NOs—winning the most prestigious children’s book award in America after five years of rejections from publishers—to dreaming the impossible—building a library and health clinic in Ghana, and everything in between—all by saying YES, to himself.

The Playbook: #BasketballRules for Life

Sports is a great metaphor for life. It is about how we prepare for the games in our fantastic and messy lives. In these games we decide who the best players are to assist us, and we test our skills on the court of life to help determine who we really are and what is most important to each of us.

Be Constructive with Your Blues

A talk on facing your fears, finding your voice, standing up for what’s right, and taking whatever situation you are faced with and making something constructive happen with it. Making your blues beautiful.

The Writerly Life

A bit of conversation, and a splash of performance as KWAME ALEXANDER shares what he’s learned from reading and writing poetry and children’s books.

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