Kyle “Guante” Tran Myhre is an MC, two-time National Poetry Slam champion, activist and educator based in Minneapolis, MN. I've known his work for well over a decade now since first meeting him in Minnesota.
His verse is always powerful and engaging. I particularly loved his spoken word CDs El Guante's Haunted Studio Apartment and the follow-up Return to El Guantes Haunted Studio Apartment, and with pieces like his Love In the Time of Zombies firmly positions himself as one of the deeply talented speculative poets and spoken word artists working today.
His work has appeared everywhere from the United Nations, to Welcome to Night Vale, to Upworthy and beyond, and he currently makes a living traveling to colleges, conferences, and high schools, using spoken word as a jumping-off point for dialogue around identity, power, agency, and activism.
One of the things I've deeply respected about his work over the years is that his activism isn't just parroting existing positions within the social justice movement, but it consistently expands upon those positions and gives historically under-represented perspectives new tools and ideas to integrate into their own lives. His work embraces strong literary rigor with hip-hop and a dynamic style that's a joy to read and share.
His debut book is A Love Song A Death Rattle A Battle Cry. One part mixtape, one part disorientation guide, and one part career retrospective, this collection brings together spoken word poems, song lyrics, and essays from the past decade of Guante’s work. Don't miss it!
Check out www.guante.info for more.
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