Friends – This page is a project-specific portfolio for the staff at MRAC to view, meant to feature very particular content from a narrow window of time (2017-2022), for a narrow duration of time (October-November 2022). After it serves it’s purpose, I will take it down, and reformat the site accordingly. Again, this page is not intended to act as a thorough, nor exhaustive record of my work and press coverage. Thanks for understanding – Larry (10/03/22)
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Dear MRAC Staff – Copies of My Submission Elements Are Below…
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Short Bio: Larry Lucio, Jr. is a Chicano poet, arts facilitator, producer, youth worker, and business owner from West St. Paul. He is the founder and CEO of Twin Cities-based Amplified Life, Inc., where his clients include artists, schools, institutions, & organizations. At the age of 20 he co-founded the Twin Cities Celebration of Hip Hop (aka The Hip Hop Fest), and has gone on to work with diverse personalities and global brands, from 50 Cent and Mariah Carey to multiple Nobel Laureates. You can learn more about and contact Larry at larrylucio.com
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ORIGINAL WORK #01
CLS 50
Larry Lucio, Jr. performs over Zoom on March 25, 2021.
This clip features footage from a virtual art exhibit walk through, followed by a performance for the Chicano Latino Studies department at The U of MN for their 50 Year Anniversary.
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PRESS / MEDIA
MPR
This is press coverage featuring Larry Lucio, Jr. and Palabristas from September 26, 2022.
To listen to and/or read the article on MPR NEWS, please click HERE. If you prefer video, clicking this image will open a screen recording on YouTube.
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PRESS / MEDIA
KSTP
Larry Lucio, Jr. and Palabristas received television news coverage on ABC/KSTP, as commissioned contributors to the Chicano Latino Studies department 50 Year Anniversary celebration.
To view this story on YouTube click here: Larry’s Palabristas project featured on KSTP News.
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ORIGINAL WORK(S) #3
P20
Larry Lucio, Jr. and Palabristas celebrated their twenty year anniversary on September 9, 2022 with PALABRISTAS: A 20-YEAR READING.
This is unedited footage of Larry’s entire performance featuring additional original works.
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Extended Bio: Larry Lucio, Jr. is an award winning writer and organizer. He is primarily known for his work as a performer of spoken word poetry as a member of the Latin collective Palabristas, a producer of projects such as Bao Phi’s double album Refugeography, as an organizer (cofounder of The Annual Twin Cities Celebration of Hip Hop aka The Hip Hop Fest), and as an educator (youthrive: LIVE! / PeaceJam). As the founder & CEO of Amplified Life Incorporated, he’s organized hyperlocal and international events while working alongside seven Nobel Peace Prize Laureates from around the globe to advocate for K-12 focused arts education programs in the United States.
Larry acted as program manager for a collaborative after school literacy program with the Minneapolis Public Schools (Stadium View), and the Hennepin County Juvenile Justice Center. For more than seven years, he hired professional artists from The Twin Cities to teach classes on songwriting, music production, visual arts, and more. And each summer, students, parents, and correctional officers alike, would gather in a wing of the institution for a student-led concert to celebrate their achievements, and to bond together over music. Some of the artists involved were Maria Isa, HC The Chemist, Muja Messiah, producer Benzilla, DJ Snuggles, Rodrigo Sanchez-Chavarria, Danami, producer Paul “PC” Collier, and Tish Jones.
During his entire tenure as a classroom teacher Larry never once had to ask for a student to to be removed due to behavioral concerns. “For me, that was a testament to the students more than anything. I simply treated them with respect and they reciprocated. Although it’s true that I did not truly realize how special this outcome was until I began to share this stat with other teachers. To be honest, I think very few of them actually believe me.” Much of the work done at the JDC went unsung and unrecognized. Which was not an accident. “Staff kept telling me, this was likely the first program of it’s kind in the nation, but when I asked them if we could share the good news online, they strongly discouraged us from doing so. The consensus was that if the general public caught wind of this program, they would likely try to shut it down. Generally speaking, people don’t want to hear about how well adjudicated, or preadjudicated students are doing, especially while incarcerated. To this day it is still disappointing to me that the students who worked so hard to make great art weren’t able to share their stories more widely.”
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Vizualize.Me LinkedIn Infographic (*valid ONLY for work through 2013)
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