The talents of a local poet and songwriters from the Twin Cities and Nebraska will come together Saturday night in Ranier for an evening of nightlife entertainment.
The lineup includes International Falls native Matt Rasmussen, Twin Cities singer and songwriter Chris Koza and an opening set of songs by William James Hutchinson, a songwriter from Nebraska.
Rasmussen will read poems he has written and had published. His poetry has been published or is forthcoming in popular publications including: The Literary Review, Gulf Coast, Cimarron Review, H_NGM_N, New York Quarterly, Paper Darts, and at Poets.org.
Rasmussen is the recipient of a 2014 Pushcart Prize, and has received awards, grants and residencies from The McKnight Foundation, The Bush Foundation, The Minnesota State Arts Board, Jerome Foundation, Intermedia Arts, The Anderson Center in Red Wing, Minn., and The Corporation of Yaddo. He is a former Peace Corps volunteer and teaches at Gustavus Adolphus College and Minneapolis College of Art and Design. His first book of poems, Black Aperture, won the 2012 Walt Whitman Award and he’s a founding editor of Birds, LLC, a small, independent poetry press.
Koza is a Minneapolis-based singer-songwriter who has been recording and releasing albums since 2004, when he self released “Exit Pesce,” a collection of nine songs self-recorded and produced one summer in a sublet apartment.
With both his full band, and also as a duo with longtime guitar player Peter Sieve, Koza has toured around the U.S.
In the Twin Cities, Koza performs as both a solo artist, as part of ensemble shows and primarily with his band, Rogue Valley.
Hutchinson, who grew up in Nebraska, lives in Minneapolis and is celebrating the release of his latest album, “Goldfish Diaries.” His music is characterized as alternative folk with an emphasis on narrative songs.
This year, he has been awarded as a finalist in the International John Lennon Songwriting competition for his song “St. Croix.”
The performers say an audience of all ages is welcome to the two-hour show at the Ranier Community Building. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the show begins at 7:30. Tickets are available at the door on a sliding scale of a $5-$10 suggested range.
