Hanif Abdurraqib headshot

Ten Evenings

Hanif Abdurraqib

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“I have fallen so in love with the leaves, who do the duty of making their death beautiful, bursting from otherwise unremarkable branches before the cold browns them and grinds them to dust.”

Hanif Abdurraqib, A Little Devil in America

Hanif Abdurraqib is an award-winning poet, essayist, and cultural critic. A Little Devil in America, winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal and a National Book Award finalist, is a sweeping “masterpiece” exploring Black art, music, and culture in all their glory and complexity.

“I was a devil in other countries, and I was a little devil in America, too.” Inspired by these words, spoken by Josephine Baker at the 1963 March on Washington, Hanif Abdurraqib has written a profound and lasting reflection on how Black performance is inextricably woven into the fabric of American culture. With essays on Aretha Franklin, Michael Jackson, Patti LaBelle, Billy Dee Williams, the Wu-Tang Clan, Dave Chappelle, and more, Abdurraqib writes prose brimming with jubilation and pain, filled with sharp insight, humor, and heart. With care and generosity, he explains the poignancy of performances big and small, each one feeling intensely familiar and vital, both timeless and desperately urgent.

Hanif Abdurraqib is a poet, essayist, and cultural critic from Columbus, Ohio. His essays and music criticism have been published in The FADER, Pitchfork, The New Yorker, and The New York Times. His first collection of essays, They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us, was named a book of the year by Buzzfeed, Esquire, NPR, Oprah Magazine, The Los Angeles Review, and The Chicago Tribune, and others. Go Ahead In The Rain: Notes To A Tribe Called Quest became a New York Times Bestseller, was a finalist for the Kirkus Prize, and was longlisted for the National Book Award. His second collection of poems, A Fortune For Your Disaster, won the 2020 Lenore Marshall Prize. Abdurraqib was named a MacArthur Fellow in 2021.

“A rapturous exploration of Black genius . . . Whether heralding unsung entertainers or reexamining legends, Hanif Abdurraqib weaves together gorgeous essays that reveal the resilience, heartbreak, and joy within Black performance. I read this book breathlessly.”

Brit Bennett, author of The Vanishing Half

Books

Copies of A Little Devil in America are available from White Whale Bookstore.

a little devil in america book cover

WHEN

Monday, April 17, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. ET

TICKETS

Tickets to attend in person start at $18
Virtual passes are $15
$10 student tickets are available with promo code LS23STUDENT
Group discounts are available for orders of 5 or more tickets
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Tickets may also be purchased via phone (412.622.8866) or at the door starting at 6:30 p.m. on the day of the event.
The video link for the livestreamed event will be emailed to all ticket holders on the day of the lecture. The captioned video will be available to view for one week, expiring on April 24, 2023.

Free tickets through RAD Pass

Reserve your RAD Pass with a library card from any Allegheny County library by clicking here! For more information on RAD Pass and how to use it, visit their website.

WHERE

Carnegie Music Hall
4400 Forbes Avenue, Pittsburgh, 15213

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