The poetic musings of ASU alumnus Harold Gregory Branch filled the Wells Fargo Student Center Thursday night.
Branch, a Chicago native, returned to his alma mater to bring his brand of passionate, soul-baring spoken word to the Downtown campus.
“Anger isn’t a bad thing. Emotions aren’t bad — the overindulgence in emotions is often the problem,” he said.
Since graduating in 2000, Branch has worked on various projects across the country. In December, he will begin perform biweekly at Johnny’s Uptown Restaurant in Phoenix.
“It’s great to be back,” Branch said. “Back in the day, [Promise of Progress] had one of the largest spoken word events at the [Tempe] campus — we drew over 200 students.”
Promise was an on-campus group who offered mentoring services to young males. Branch, along with leading Valley poet Divine Essence, is trying to create that same buzz for today’s Devils.
“I want to expose people to the spoken word when I can,” she said. “It’s for the students and community to come out, feel comfortable and be creative — it’s a cipher.”
Branch, who goes by “HB,” and Divine Essence have come to be known as the “mother and father” of the Valley’s poetry scene.
Since his graduation in 2000, Branch has lent his knack for understanding people and artistic talent to mentoring and motivational speaking. He has traveled nationwide and even to Canada and South Africa to speak to students about controlling negative emotions and behavior and instead embracing positive ones.
“My poetry, I use as a tool to help people diagnose their true feelings,” he said. “They might actually be sad, disappointed or hurt, and those emotions result in anger. If you hear a situation in a poem it can prompt discussion on real life problems — now we can begin to talk about them.”
Education graduate student Amanda Tomchak said she found Branch’s poetry inspiring.
“It’s powerful how spoken word can convey a message to people,” she said. “It’s a unique way to inspire students.”
Branch, 30, has a varied resume. He was formerly the artist in residency for the Illinois Department of Education, and when he was 18, possessed the title of being Arizona’s youngest truancy officer.
Branch has been featured on MTV, he preformed at Woodstock ’99 and he was the opening act for Sugar Ray and the Goo Goo Dolls on their “Dizzy up the Girl” tour. He was commissioned by Columbine High School in Littleton, Colo., to help students deal with the aftermath of the 1999 shootings.
“It’s good to be able to give back to the University [with the spoken word events]. There’s something righteous in serving the community,” Branch said.
Students should expect a raw journey through discovery when they come out for next semester’s Spoken Word Night.
“I bare my soul every time. It’s like being pregnant — I give birth to [my poems,”] Branch said.
Reach the reporter at vcolclou@asu.edu.
