Marcus Amaker
Author archive
empath (bones)
(a poem about lynchings) If the Angel Oak tree could talk, she’d tell us stories we don’t want to hear. Her family has been roped into being the backdrop of racism’s roots, her friends had no choice but to stand, stoic through storms that bore strange fruit. She’d tell you about the relentless weight of […]
Photos from recent school visits / workshops
March 28, 2018
(this is my life’s work. So proud to be able to visit schools and show students that poetry is alive).
New issue of No Depression on stands now
March 28, 2018
Here are some pics of the latest issue that I designed. I’m proud of this work! Click here to order a copy.
empath (variations) – electronic music + spoken word
March 28, 2018
I can honestly say this is the electronic album I was born to make. Why? Because, finally, I feel like everything came together much better than any other of my solo releases. empath (variations) feels … complete. Everything I’ve learned about music production, design, publishing, mastering, song structure, looping and more is all here. I […]
Photos from the empath book tour
March 21, 2018
The tour is going well! Here’s some photos from Columbia, Sumter and Greenville. Audiences have been great and I’ve connected with a lot of wonderful souls. More coming …
I opened up for Tracy K. Smith, Poet Laureate of the UNITED STATES
February 28, 2018
I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE IT. Tracy K. Smith, the poet laureate of the US, is on a tour of small towns. She made her way to Adams Run, SC, and I was asked to read poetry before her performance. I STILL CAN’T BELIEVE IT. So, yes, Marjory and I were the special guests for Tracy. […]
Electronic music, in my backyard
February 26, 2018
it’s totally normal to play meditative electronic music in your backyard, right? open is a 21-minute collage of music, recorded live. It’s a warmup for a full-length release, later this year. gear used: Elektron Digitakt, Moog DFAM, Teenage Engineering’s OP-1, Folktek Nano Garden, Teenage Engineering’s PO-16. the free download is here: https://tapeloop.bandcamp.com/album/open-2018 and the video:
empath book tour: Halsey Institute, Charleston, SC
February 23, 2018
I asked some students from Burke High School to open up for me at a recent show. It was a proud moment for me to have these young voices amplified in Charleston. Much more shows like this will happen in the future …
Two new interviews …
January 11, 2018
I was interviewed by Quintin Washington on Quintin’s Close-Ups and Leyla Gulen of Fox 24. Watch them both below! Let the media blitz for “empath” begin …
empath (book + journal) is here!
January 1, 2018
Happy new year, happy new book. empath is available NOW! the album version is up next. This book has my best work and my best design. I’m excited to share this experience with you. The book has six parts: Part 1: habit creature (love poems, a return to the style of my earlier work) Part […]