Ron Whitehead is an American poet, author and activist. Whitehead was born on a farm in

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, but traveled to the

University of Louisville The University of Louisville (UofL) is a public university, public research university in Louisville, Kentucky, United States. It is part of the Kentucky state university system. Chartered in 1798 as the Jefferson Seminary, it became in the 19t ...

and

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

to pursue his academic interests.

Career

Ron Whitehead has been involved in many aspects of the artistic field; writing poetry, editing literary works, organizing a

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

to support literature worldwide called the Global Literary Renaissance, teaching and lecturing to students, and collaborating with artists and musicians, focusing primarily on the Louisville art scene and Kentucky folk art. Whitehead was also the honorary poetry editor of GonzoToday.com. Whitehead has authored thirty titles which include: ''Western Kentucky: Lost & Forgotten, Found & Remembered'' (with Sarah Elizabeth Burkey), ''The Third Testament: Three Gospels of Peace'' (with art by

Lawrence Ferlinghetti Lawrence Monsanto Ferlinghetti (March 24, 1919 – February 22, 2021) was an American poet, painter, social activist, and co-founder of City Lights Booksellers & Publishers. An author of poetry, translations, fiction, theatre, art criticism, and ...

& David Minton), ''Beaver Dam Rocking Chair Marathon'', ''The Wanderer'', and most recently, ''The Storm Generation Manifesto & on parting, the wilderness poems''. In 2016 Finishing Line press released his work, ''Kentucky Basketball is Poetry in Motion'', a collection of poems about the history and culture of Kentucky

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

. The Ron Whitehead poetry collection is currently managed by the University of Louisville. A special exhibit of works produced by Whitehead, "Poets, Rock Stars, and Holy Men" was featured at the main branch of the Louisville Free Public Library in 2018 and Whitehead was honored at that event for his work in the arts by Louisville Mayor Greg Fischer. Whitehead has also released forty CDs which include: "Tapping My Own Phone", "Kentucky Roots", "Kentucky: poems, stories, songs", "Kentucky Blues", "I Will Not Bow Down", "Exterminate Noise", "From Iceland to Kentucky & Beyond", "Swan Boats @ Four", "The Shape of Water", "The Viking Hillbilly Apocalypse Revue", "Walking Home", "I Refuse", "Ron Whitehead and Southside's Southside Lounge", "Ron Whitehead and Southside's We Are The Storm", and "The Storm Generation Manifesto & on parting, the wilderness poems". Whitehead's book, titled The Storm Generation Manifesto and on parting, the wilderness poems, was released in July 2010 and includes a CD of his readings as well as his first DVD.

Bibliography

SELECTED PRINT AND AUDIO PUBLICATIONS: POETRY IN PRINT: * I WILL NOT BOW DOWN, Hozomeen Press, New London, Connecticut * BLOOD FILLED VESSELS RACING TO THE HEART, Hozomeen Press, New London, Connecticut * THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE THIS TIME: Selected Poems 1996-2000, Hozomeen Press, New London, Connecticut * WESTERN KENTUCKY: Lost & Forgotten, Found & Remembered, Published in Heaven, Kentucky * THE THIRD TESTAMENT: Three Gospels of Peace, * Published in Heaven, Kentucky (with art by Lawrence Ferlinghetti & David Minton) * BEAVER DAM ROCKING CHAIR MARATHON: 2 books, 4 editions, 4 different publishers, bop bam book press, NYC & Published in Heaven Books, Kentucky & Cook Creative, California * KOKOPELLI, House Press, Calgary, Canada * THE WANDERER, Published in Heaven Books * THE STORM GENERATION MANIFESTO & on parting, the wilderness poems (with cd companion), HollandBrown Books * WE SEE THE SOUND OF SETTING SUN, SkyLeaf Media * GHOST LOVER, TRANCE MISSION, SkyLeaf Media * SEARCHING FOR JACK KEROUAC, SkyLeaf Media * I REFUSE I WILL NOT BOW DOWN I WILL NEVER GIVE UP, Cook Creative, California * THE STORM GENERATION, Poems by Outlaw Poet Ron Whitehead (in English & Estonian), NonGrata/Estonia * MAMA: A POET'S HEART IN A KENTUCKY GIRL, Trance Mission Press, Clarksville, Indiana * blistered asphalt on dixie highway: Kentucky Basketball is Poetry in Motion (Finishing Line Press/Kentucky) * QUEST FOR SELF IN THE OCEAN OF CONSCIOUSNESS: Ibsen, Hamsun, Munch, Joyce: The Origins of Modernism and Expressionism (Cook Creative Press/Kentucky) * DISOBEY (with Jinn Bug) (Underground Books/NYC) * “I'd Never Shoot A Man While He's Washing Dishes: Arcturian Love Songs” (Long Steel Rail Press/Kentucky) * A Taoist Nun Teaches Me in Fourteen Poems (Underground Books/NYC) * The Path of The Ancient Skald (Underground Books/NYC) * KENTUCKY BOUND: poems, stories, and songs (TranceMission Press/Indiana) * NIGHTS AT THE MUSEUM/Ööd muuseumis(with Jinn Bug)(TranceMission Press/Indiana USA and Kirjastus Utoopia/Tartu Estonia ) AUDIO RECORDINGS: * TAPPING MY OWN PHONE * KENTUCKY ROOTS * KENTUCKY: poems, stories, songs * KENTUCKY BLUES * I WILL NOT BOW DOWN * EXTERMINATE NOISE * FROM ICELAND TO KENTUCKY & BEYOND * SWAN BOATS @ FOUR * THE SHAPE OF WATER * THE VIKING HILLBILLY APOCALYPSE REVUE * WALKING HOME * I REFUSE * Ron Whitehead and SOUTHSIDE's SOUTHSIDE LOUNGE * Ron Whitehead and SOUTHSIDE's WE ARE THE STORM double cd * THE STORM GENERATION MANIFESTO & on parting, the wilderness poems: audio book recording, (Holland Brown Books/companion to new book & dvd, 2010 release) * THE BONEMEN: Thomas Bellier and Ron Whitehead * TRANCE MISSION * SEARCHING FOR JACK KEROUAC (Logan Street Recordings/Kentucky * Frogg Corpse & Mr. Stranger present The End of The World, with The Storm Generation Band (Gonzo Today Records/Kentucky) * PRAYER with Harry Pickens on piano and Aaron West on violin (sonaBLAST Records/Kentucky) * Ron Whitehead & The Storm Generation Band present The Storm Generation Manifesto & Other Rock and Roll Poems (sonaBLAST Records) * Ron Whitehead & The Storm Generation Band present DRAGONS (sonaBLAST Records) * Songs & Poems from The KENTUCKY BOUND Concert (sonaBLAST Records) * THE DANCE—Ron Whitehead & Glass Eye Ensemble feature Sheri Streeter (sonaBLAST Records/Howard & Nancy Bruner Wilson release)

Awards and accolades

Whitehead has been honored for his work as a writer and his involvement in the literary community. Some of his accolades include The All Kentucky Poetry Prize, The Yeats Club of Oxford's Prize for Poetry, a nomination for the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

twice, and a nomination for the

Nobel Prize in Literature The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning ''for'' Literature (), is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in ...

. Whitehead's work has been featured prominently on the international scene. In 2002 his poem "Never Give Up" was the featured theme for the United Nations affiliated program called "Poetry on the Peaks." This poem has been featured in other venues including ''

National Geographic ''National Geographic'' (formerly ''The National Geographic Magazine'', sometimes branded as ''Nat Geo'') is an American monthly magazine published by National Geographic Partners. The magazine was founded in 1888 as a scholarly journal, nine ...

'' magazine and a book written by the

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (born 6 July 1935; full spiritual name: Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, shortened as Tenzin Gyatso; ) is the incumbent Dalai Lama, the highest spiritual leader and head of Tibetan Buddhism. He served a ...

. In 2009 Ron was one of the one hundred and thirty featured poets representing fifty countries at the International Poetry Festival, which took place in

Granada, Nicaragua Granada () is a city in western Nicaragua and the capital of the Granada Department. With an estimated population of 105,862 (2022), it is Nicaragua's ninth most populous city. Granada is historically one of Nicaragua's most important cities, econ ...

. Whitehead's work has been published in other venues as well, including Northwestern's ''

TriQuarterly ''TriQuarterly'' is a name shared by an American literary magazine and a series of books. The journal is published twice a year under the aegis of the Northwestern University Department of English and features fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama ...

'' magazine, England's ''

Beat Scene ''Beat Scene'' is a UK-based magazine dedicated to the work, the history and the cultural influences of the Beat Generation. As well the best known and more obscure Beat novelists and poets this has included artists, musicians filmmakers and publi ...

'', and Japan's ''Blue Beat Jacket''. Whitehead's work is also featured in Delinda Buie's

archive An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials, in any medium, or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or organ ...

at the University of Louisville Library. In 2019, Whitehead was appointed to serve as Kentucky's Beat Poet Laureate for the years 2019-2021 by the National Beat Poetry Foundation. He is the first writer from the United States to be tapped as writer-in-residence for the City of Literature international residency program in Tartu, Estonia. In May 2021, Whitehead was named U.S. National Beat Poet Laureate for 2021-2022 by the National Beat Poetry Foundation.

Musical collaboration and event production

Whitehead has also been involved in production of

musical Musical is the adjective of music. Musical may also refer to: * Musical theatre, a performance art that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance * Musical film Musical film is a film genre in which songs by the Character (arts), charac ...

and poetry events worldwide. Some of these events include days long music and poetry readings called "Insomniac-a-thons",

benefit concert A benefit concert or charity concert is a type of musical benefit performance (e.g., concert, show, or gala) featuring musicians, comedians, or other performers that is held for a charitable purpose, often directed at a specific and immediate h ...

s, and International and National Poetry Festivals in locations such as London, New York City, and the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. Whitehead's most notable production was the Official

Hunter S. Thompson Hunter Stockton Thompson (July 18, 1937 – February 20, 2005) was an American journalist and author, regarded as a pioneer of New Journalism along with Gay Talese, Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, Joan Didion, and Tom Wolfe. He rose to prom ...

Tribute, which featured individuals such as

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp, multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award as well as nominations for ...

David Amram David Werner Amram III (born November 17, 1930) is an American composer, arranger, and conductor of orchestral, chamber, and choral works, many with jazz flavorings.

, and

Roxanne Pulitzer Roxanne Pulitzer (née Renckens) is an American celebrity, author and actress. Career Following her highly publicized divorce from newspaper heir Herbert "Peter" Pulitzer, she appeared on the June 1985 cover and interior of ''Playboy'', for which ...

. and he has participated in a yearly "Gonzofest" in Thompson's hometown of

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

honoring Thompson. He has collaborated with many musicians as well, doing readings of his work with other artists. Whitehead has worked with musical artists ranging from Icelandic musicians

Sigur Rós Sigur Rós () is an Icelandic post-rock band that formed in 1994 in Reykjavík. It comprises lead vocalist and guitarist Jónsi, Jón Þór "Jónsi" Birgisson, bassist Georg Hólm, and keyboardist Kjartan Sveinsson. Known for their ethereal soun ...

and

Utangarðsmenn Utangarðsmenn (literally Outsiders in Icelandic) was an Icelandic punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subcult ...

, to

Jim James James Edward Olliges Jr. (born April 27, 1978), professionally known as Jim James or Yim Yames, is an American vocalist, guitarist, producer, and primary songwriter of the rock band My Morning Jacket. He has also released several solo albums. ...

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Kos ...

and

Lee Ranaldo Lee Mark Ranaldo (born February 3, 1956) is an American guitarist, singer and songwriter, best known as a co-founder of the rock band Sonic Youth. In 2004, ''Rolling Stone'' ranked Ranaldo at number 33 on its "Greatest Guitarists of All Time" li ...

Sonic Youth Sonic Youth were an American rock band formed in New York City in 1981. Founding members Kim Gordon (bass, vocals, guitar), Thurston Moore (lead guitar, vocals) and Lee Ranaldo (rhythm guitar, vocals) remained together for the entire history of ...

. One of his most recent collaborations was with heavy psychedelic rock group

Blaak Heat Blaak Heat (formerly known as Blaak Heat Shujaa) is a French-American musical group whose recordings blend psychedelic rock with a number of outside sources, such as traditional Middle Eastern music, progressive rock, surf rock, spaghetti wester ...

, on their EP ''The Storm Generation'' and following album ''The Edge of an Era''. In March 2019, Glass Eye Ensemble featuring Sheri Streeter mounted a multi-media music, video and art installation using Whitehead's poetry as a springboard for creative collaboration; the world premiere of which was held at the Tim Faulkner Gallery in Louisville, Kentucky.

Editing and teaching

Whitehead has also continued to be involved in the academic world through working as an editor and a professor. He has edited thousand of works by authors such as

Jimmy Carter James Earl Carter Jr. (October 1, 1924December 29, 2024) was an American politician and humanitarian who served as the 39th president of the United States from 1977 to 1981. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party ...

Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian ...

Andy Warhol Andy Warhol (;''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''"Warhol" born Andrew Warhola Jr.; August 6, 1928 – February 22, 1987) was an American visual artist, film director and producer. A leading figure in the pop art movement, Warhol ...

Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of th ...

, and

.Morgan, Bill
The Works of Allen Ginsberg, 1941–1994: A Descriptive Bibliography
(Greenwood Publishing Group, Inc., 1995), 76–77. Whitehead has also taught at various

institution An institution is a humanly devised structure of rules and norms that shape and constrain social behavior. All definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity. Laws, rules, social conventions and ...

s of higher education including the

New York University New York University (NYU) is a private university, private research university in New York City, New York, United States. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded in 1832 by Albert Gallatin as a Nondenominational ...

Trinity College Dublin Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Unive ...

, and the

University of Iceland The University of Iceland ( ) is a public research university in Reykjavík, Iceland, and the country's oldest and largest institution of higher education. Founded in 1911, it has grown steadily from a small civil servants' school to a modern co ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Whitehead, Ron Living people American male poets Year of birth missing (living people) Poets from Kentucky