Gwen Cee is an Author, Poet/Spoken Word Artist who was born in Louisville, KY. With her parents and literally, an old school bus, she relocated to and grew up in Galveston, TX, where she was given the nickname “Gwen Cee” by a homegirl. The name became permanent, eventually being tattooed on her thigh. Oddly, she was encouraged by a friend who was two years younger than her to write. She wrote her first poem about war and Sadaam Hussein when she was 13 and has been writing since. She wrote custom poems for others in Texas as well to express their feelings or as a reflective tool for situations in their lives. Gwen believes poetry can be used in any subject area and even has pieces about the Los Angeles Lakers. Her poetry life was revitalized in 2013 when she started performing in contests, shows and anywhere she possibly could. It had been 18 years since she performed a piece in front of an audience and doing so is something she refers to as “torture that she loves” because while, she wants to share her art, she does not prefer to be the center of attention. It is her goal that everyone who interacts with her poetry whether it is witnessed in spoken word settings, viewed in video format, reviewed on social media or read in a book will find at least one item that they connect with. She believes so much in the importance of impacting the community or an individual at any scale. She has worked to support domestic violence and children shelters, organ transplant program, United Way, Breast Cancer Foundation, American Cancer Society and most recently served as Campaign Chair for her employer’s Fund for the Arts Campaign. She believes this is tied to her memory of the feeling she had at age five when she was provided gifts from the Salvation Army after her mother worked as a “bell-ringer.” In 2012, she also helped found a youth basketball team which she is still a part of and is currently working to help grow. She partners with the team to hold clothing drives, coat drives etc. for victims of domestic violence or others who are in transitional situations. Gwen attended 10 elementary schools, 2 middle schools and 5 high schools which she knows was no excuse for skipping class… However, after returning to college later, as an adult who felt she had to “catch up,” she completed her Associates Degree at a community college. She then went on to the University of Louisville where she completed her Bachelor of Science in Business Administration and then her Master of Science in Human Resources. She is beyond grateful for her first feature opportunity at Grady’s in Louisville, (thank you Tony Trotter a.k.a. DoMe), her first hosting opportunity and every single ounce of feedback she has received. She knows that all of these opportunities are components and experiences that must be endured for her to truly “shed her shell.” Her first book, giving readers an opportunity to experience more than 60 poems, was published in August, 2015. Its title Cee: Anchored in Poetree is reflective of her past and her current mind set and beliefs while it covers all things from love, family, social issues, barriers and burdens, struggles and successes, and more. She remains thankful and hopeful that all readers will find one thing that truly connect with in the area of life, love or leadership. Currently, she is working on #thebook II, title and release date to be announced! As you know, her second album, “#CeeTheWorth” is available now!!! While, she has performed in multiple cities in the tristate area, she feels blessed to have performed at jusWill’s BYond Music in Indianapolis on multiple occasions over the course of two years, Jazz and Jokes, in Radcliff, KY monthly since October, 2015, at the Grand Opening celebration event of M7 Café in Lexington, KY who also allowed her to host a poetry set (thank you Chef Mikey), and at Cîroc the Mic (since 2013) as she has moved with them from Jazzy Blu, to several locations leading to the most recent venue. She is sending a special thanks to TheeMario for interviewing her and allowing her to introduce her book to his audience on TheeMario TV Season 3, Episode 2 in September, 2015 (http://www.theemario.com/TheeMARiO-Show.html), and to Brittany B for featuring her in the March, 2016 edition of 937 Mag, (http://www.937mag.com/features/gwencee/). And, sending much love and thanks to Kim DuWaup for giving her the mic, for her first out-of-state feature on August 30, 2016 in Cincinnati, OH. Since that time, Gwen has partnered with AlleyKat (Clarksville, TN) for a team project which is a combination of Poetry/Spoken Word and Rap. She has also featured at Mr. Maurice “Haymaker” Hobb’s, Laugh and Lounge in Clarksville, TN in both October and November, 2016. In November, 2016, she also opens for a comedy show with UB Thomas and Jason “TooFunny” English at Tim Faulkner Gallery in Louisville, KY. "Thanks to all the artists, comedians and poets who show me love... #showloveGROWLOVE (Thanks for your SOOO encouraging feedback Donald Fa'Sho Martin and Meech Dog!)" She is extremely excited about her piece originally titled, “Stop Killing Black People” aka #CeeTheWorth (the name of her 2nd album) as this is a project that she holds as the most important and it is part of the group project she created, “We ART the World.” “This group, “We ART the World” is comprised of poets, singers, and rappers who are working on a group piece to support Black Lives Matter and to serve as a tool to fight against unnecessary police shootings. They plan to take this piece to other cities as part of their 2K17 tour and would love to bring this to a venue near you! Please follow her everywhere at: Gwen Cee AnchoredInPoetree FB You Tube & SoundCloud: Gwen Cee (https://www.facebook.com/GwenCeePoetree409502/ IG: AnchoredinPoetree Twitter: @GwenCeePoetree gwenceepoetree@gmail.com