Ro Deezy - Professional Bio
Born Rochell D. Hart and renamed to Rochell D. Hart-Burton by marriage (in 2007), she's better known as Ro Deezy.
An underground superstar, Ro Deezy is already a veteran of her game. In a review of her first book, an Oregonian staff hailed her as “a female cross between Langston Hughes and 2 PAC.” Spoken Vizions Magazine ( of St. Louis) called Ro “the Queen from the West” and Cris Day of the Willamette Week Newspaper said, "... she stands out as an original and intelligent voice struggling free from a crowd of one-dimensional stereotypes."
A noted activist and a writer all her life, Ro Deezy is the author of six published books. Ro blasted onto the public scene in 1998 as a performance poet. The first night Rochell stepped on stage at a poetry slam (1998, Berbati’s, Portland, OR) she received not only the highest score of the night, but also the highest score possible - a perfect 30. As a result of Hart’s win that night and her unprecedented talent; she landed among the sixteen finalists to compete for the ultimate prize - a spot on the annual, nationally bound Portland Slam Team. Ro Deezy made the final four and in doing so, she became the first black woman chosen from Oregon to represent at the slam. Hart and the other three members traveled to Chicago in 1999 for the 10th annual competition. That year saw its largest gathering to date; attracting four-person poet teams from 48 different states and more than one hundred people competing in the individual slam competition.
In 1999, Ro Deezy had the honor of meeting privately with the world-renowned Dr. Maya Angelou. In 2001, Highbridge Press of NY signed Hart for her second book, "A Black Girl's Song" which was later considered for the Oregon Book Award - the highest literary award in the state. A spoken word legend, Ro Deezy has had innumerable solicited appearances from organizations that include, NIKE, The Urban League, The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, Portland State University, Portland Public School District, Portland Community College, Washington State University, Bennett University (North Carolina), The Spring Valley Domestic Violence Coalition (New York), The National Coalition Against domestic Violence and many more. In August of 2001, Hart opened a concert for Grammy award winning group "The Roots." August 1 of 2002 brought the release of Hart’s debut CD, produced by the world-famous David (O.G. One) Jackson. The CD carries 15 tracks of socially conscious, politically relevant hip-hop and spoken word backed by slammin beats from O.G. One. Ro Deezy wrote every track on her album. In March of 2002, for the 4th year in a row, Hart won 1st place at the 27th Annual International Women's Day All-Girl Poetry Slam. In February of 2003, Hart was the first spoken word artist featured (twice) on the nationally syndicated radio station Jammin 95.5 for two live on-air performances.
In December of 2004, Hart opened a show for Laura "Piece" Kelly of HBO's / Russell Simmons Def Poetry Jam. Hart’s career continued to expand with an invitation to be a guest speaker and professor interim from Portland State University. Hart has lectured and performed at the University for “Art as Resistance,” “Women’s History” and “Black Feminism” classes. In February 2005, Hart sat in as guest professor for a “Women’s Studies” class at PSU. In Feb of 2005. Ro performed at a reception for and with Nikki Giovanni preceding Dr. Giovanni's lecture at Lewis & Clark College In 2006 – on Malcolm X’s birthday, Ro Deezy opened a show for the revolutionary legends, Dead Prez. On the same day in 2007, Ro Deezy and Dead Prez shared the stage again for another night of fist pumpin, revolutionary lyrics.
An admitted Black Nationalist, Ro Deezy seems to make some people nervous. She laughs and says "...for me, Black Nationalism represents cultural pride in the absence of racism. I do not advocate (or even believe) that blacks, whites and others should live separately. Black Nationalism means I am very dedicated to the social, economic, educational and political advancement of the heirs of Africa (in other words, black people). It DOES NOT mean that I am anti-anybody. My true friends, comrades and even family members derive of all backgrounds ranging from White to Persian and Asian and Jamican."
In 2005 and 2006, film-director, lawyer, hip-hop enthusiast and media mogul Opio Sokoni featured Ro’s work twice in two of his documentaries, including “Small City, Big Hip-Hop” a showcase of the hottest in hip-hop from Portland and “Meth Around”, a critical examination of the ongoing meth epidemic across the county. In 2007, Ro Deezy also makes a strong appearance in the highly anticipated and recently released Opio Media Film, TURN OFF CHANNEL ZERO which is gaining national attention. The film is a revolutionary wake up call regarding the current ascendancy of negative black images in media – largely at the hands of Viacom, which owns BET, MTV and VH1 Networks. Filmed in collaboration with the legendary Professor Griff of Public Enemy, TURN OFF CHANNEL ZERO is not just a movie, it’s a movement.
The start of 2007 found Ro Deezy on stage in a show with hip-hop legend KRS-1 and celebrating therelease of her sixth book, titled What Else Did You Think I Would Say? The nationally available book is a passionate and candid collection of verse, What Else Did You Think I Would Say brings forth some of Rochell D. “Ro Deezy” Hart’s most influential scripts concerning politics, oppression, resistance, love and struggle. With titles such as Assata (She who struggles), Breath Is Hard to Come by Sometime, Justified Paranoia, Latina Lullaby, Some of Us Are Born Powerful, I find God in Strange Places and a myriad of others; this collection stands alone as a contemporary and courageous voice in a world where passive silence is becoming a distressing trend. What Else Did You Think I Would Say concludes with an encapsulation of Hart’s distinctive style as she speaks ingenuously and often comically about her perspective on matters ranging from cultural nationalism to self-defense. What Else Did You Think I Would Say will satisfy long-standing RO DEEZY enthusiasts while effortlessly earning the respect and appreciation of new readers.
