Billy Lamont is a NY based American poet, spoken word artist, recording artist, and experimental multi- media performance poet with a reformer spirit, and international reach. He has performed on national television a number of times, including the Joe Franklin Show, MTV and Much Music Television, and has toured and performed with rock festivals such as Lollapalooza 1994, 1995, 2003, and appeared on major and college radio stations, and given book signings at major and independent bookstores across the U.S. As a young man Lamont was part of a two week missionary team sent from Smithtown Gospel Tabernacle to Ukraine, in 1992, where he additionally did public speaking which included him reciting some of his poetry. This experience of spending time with the beautiful people of Ukraine resonates in Lamont’s heart and prayers extra brightly now, in this dark time of Putin led murderous invasion of Ukraine. Lamont has recited his poems of comfort for families of September 11th, 2001 disaster In Union Square, NYC a few days after the tragedy, and in 2013 for victims of Hurricane Sandy in his then hometown of Babylon, NY. He has recited his poems of justice on behalf of Jubilee 2000, and a debt free start for nations of the global south at The Knitting Factory in NYC in 2000, when the largest amount of petitions ever was gathered (up to that point,) and days before the first national mobilization gathering in Washington DC. He would then serve on the Board Of Trustees for Jubilee USA from 2000-2007. He would also serve on the Board Of Trustees for the Walt Whitman Birthplace Association, New York State Historic Site, from 2005-2007. He also recited his poems of justice several times at Occupy Wall Street in NYC in 2011, and to kick off worldwide March Against Monsanto In Union Square, NYC In 2014. Lamont received a Guinness World Record in 2014 for his poetry recital part in the Longest Officially Released Recording by Mike Peters of The Alarm, to help foster peace between Muslims, Christians and Jews in The Holy Land, and to benefit Love Hope Foundation, and those fighting cancer. Lamont has three books of poetry and nine album CD/digital download releases. His latest book Words Ripped From A Soul Still Bleeding: Poems For The Future Edition is a great success, and is available at Barnes And Noble and Amazon as a paperback, or as an eBook, and all his albums are distributed by The Orchard and can be streamed on Spotify and Apple Music. Vinny Calone v.j.(Vinnie) Calone, formalist poet. Winner 1st place P.P.A. Poetry contest 2023 Studied under Lewis Turco author, The New Book of Forms. BA SUNY Oswego '95. Vincent's a poet/dramatist. Writing, acting and directing original theater on Long Island for the past eight years. His poems have appeared in The Long Island Sounds Anthology, The Suffolk County Poetry Review, The Chiron Review, Atom Mind, Long Island Quarterly, Poetry X Hunger, and PoARTry. Vinnie writes, edits and posts a new poem everyday at Raven Wire Poetry Prompts on Face Book and has been doing so since August 1st. 2022. Vinnie just finished a collection of poetry called “A Caesura” to be released this fall. It is his life's work and will contain over three hundred poems. Submission Editor at THE SCENE poetry/art zine (June 2023) thescene.life You can reach Vin directly @ jeweliasdad@aol.com and thescene.life This summer he just wrote and published 60 copies of mini chapbook, “Get to the Point” about Montauk Point. See less Bohemia, New York
