Ishle Park

Six Questions for Ishle Park
Ishle Yi Park is a Korean-American woman who is the Poet Laureate of Queens, New York. She has been published in over thirty anthologies, including The Best American Poetry of 2003 and Century of the Tiger: One Hundred Years of Korean Culture in America. Her first book, entitled The Temperature of This Water, is a winner of a 2005 PEN America Beyond Margins Award and is the 2005 Members' Choice of the Asian American Literary Awards. She was a touring cast member of the Tony Award-winning production, Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam and is a regular on the related HBO series.

The New York Times said of her, "Ms Park has an angelic face and the soul of a rock star." With her unique blend of storytelling, poetry, prose, and song, Ishle has been a featured performer at over three hundred venues & festivals in the United States, Cuba, Korea, Singapore, and New Zealand. She has received grants from PEN America, The New York Foundation of the Arts, The San Francisco Arts Council, and The Korea Times.

We heard you're a big fan of Beres Hammond. Is that true?
I don't claim to be an expert on Beres at all; I just love his sweet, smooth, heartbreaking voice. He knows how to lull a woman with a hip-rocking, sublime melody, and my body responds to his call.

You're also a big fan of hip-hop. What does hip-hop mean to you?
Hip-hop is like a childhood friend that I grew up with in Queens, New York. At first, she was young and fresh and dope, then she tried too hard and lost herself in jewels and money and glam, and I lost touch with her. Now that I'm older, I'm getting reacquainted with hip-hop, and loving her for the full, flawed being she is, just like I hope people will love me for my whole self.

What can we expect from you at Calabash?
You can expect to catch afire! For I am a small woman with a big flaming heart. Haha! So I'll do some love poems, poems about my Korean homeland, some hip-hop sonnets, and maybe, if I am brave or shameless enough, a few songs with my little guitar.

What were some of the pros and cons of being on the Def Poetry tour?
Pros include becoming good friends with the most diverse group of poets you'd ever expect, from a Georgia peach to a Palestinian woman to a black Jamaican lesbian. Getting to share my poems about Korean culture & identity with mostly black audiences across America. Living in Sade's old tour bus, which came complete with DVDs and green peanut M&Ms! Cons include sometimes being very lonely at night, breaking up with my lover and working seven to eight nights a week with bad food and very little sleep.

Does the term 'performance poetry' offend you?
No, not anymore. When I was younger, I used to take offence to certain titles, like 'spoken word artist' or 'performance poet' because I thought they were limiting, but I think now that whatever people call me doesn't really affect me. I know in my heart that my spirit is broader than any category, so it's okay. Sticks & stones.

What are three things you hope to do while you're in Jamaica?
I hope to hear amazing poetry & meet other artists, I'd like to dance at least one night away, and I'd like to find a tasty island hot sauce to replace my Tabasco.

Ishle Park will be performing with poets Cheryl Boyce Taylor, Suheir Hammad and Tanya Stephens at Calabash 2006 on Saturday, May 27th at 9:30 pm.

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