Candace J. Dunkley is a poet, speaker and hype woman (we’ll get to the latter title later haha.)
When Candace was a child living in Co-Op City (The Bronx), she would write short stories and proudly show them to her parents. Eventually, that love of words blossomed into an appreciation for poetry when she was a teenager living in New Rochelle NY. The change came after a comment from someone caused her to write a passionate and heated poem. It was there she realized poetry could be an outlet for her emotions and thoughts about the world. That realization led her to copyright her first set of poems when she was a senior in high school. The young poet addressed a variety of topics including self-esteem, black pride, and many social issues.
Now Candace uses her art to encourage people to follow their dreams, break down stigmas associated with mental health and address injustices.
She is the winner of the Wednesday night poetry slam open mic at Nuyorican Café.
Candace was also a television news reporter for five years at the CBS affiliate in Watertown, NY and Spectrum News (formerly Time Warner Cable) for the Hudson Valley, consecutively. As a journalist, she covered numerous events and issues including presidential rallies for Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, police brutality, and a number of civil rights concerns.
In her free time Candace studies the work of other poets, travels, is always up to enjoying a good meal with friends and loves to dance. She is known by many as the life of the party and a hype woman. If you are looking to have a good time, play some music and she will probably be more than happy to bust a move with you!
When Candace was a child living in Co-Op City (The Bronx), she would write short stories and proudly show them to her parents. Eventually, that love of words blossomed into an appreciation for poetry when she was a teenager living in New Rochelle NY. The change came after a comment from someone caused her to write a passionate and heated poem. It was there she realized poetry could be an outlet for her emotions and thoughts about the world. That realization led her to copyright her first set of poems when she was a senior in high school. The young poet addressed a variety of topics including self-esteem, black pride, and many social issues.
Now Candace uses her art to encourage people to follow their dreams, break down stigmas associated with mental health and address injustices.
She is the winner of the Wednesday night poetry slam open mic at Nuyorican Café.
Candace was also a television news reporter for five years at the CBS affiliate in Watertown, NY and Spectrum News (formerly Time Warner Cable) for the Hudson Valley, consecutively. As a journalist, she covered numerous events and issues including presidential rallies for Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders, police brutality, and a number of civil rights concerns.
In her free time Candace studies the work of other poets, travels, is always up to enjoying a good meal with friends and loves to dance. She is known by many as the life of the party and a hype woman. If you are looking to have a good time, play some music and she will probably be more than happy to bust a move with you!