Biography
Early Years
Yolande Cornelia Giovanni, Jr. , known as Nikki Giovanni was born in born in Knoxville, Tennessee on June 7, 1943 as the second and youngest daughter in a close knit family. Nikki's family was very proud of their race and community and taught her to love it to. Her grandmother had a great influence on her as Nikki learned the most about her heritage and race from her. As she states it, "I have come from a long line of story tellers who have made me what I am today". Her passion for writing developed when she was a young child. Giovanni loved to read and write stories and share them with her friends and family. After a few years, her family moved to reside in a black suburb called Cincinnati, Ohio. The years growing up were spent in Cincinnati with many visits to Knoxville to see her family, especially her grandmother. As the years flew by, it was soon time for college. Giovanni enrolled in a prestigious all black college in Nashville, Tennessee called Fisk University. At this point of time, there were many people that wanted to express more about their heritage distinctly in innovative ways. She served as the campus literary magazine editor, participating in the Fisk Writers Workshops and worked to restore the chapter of Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC). Nikki graduated with B.A in 1968 and attended graduate school at the University of Pennsylvania and Columbia University in New York.
Start of Career
When she first published poetry and books, Giovanni got most of her inspiration from assassinations and works of other important figures such a s Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Medgar Evers, and Robert Kennedy. Nikki wanted to spread more awareness about the rights of Black people just like these people did, but through her writing. Some of her most famous books are Black Feeling, Black Talk (1967) and Black Judgement (1968). These first few books displayed a strong perspectives of African- Americans, politically and spiritually. These books sold very rapidly and soon Giovanni was established as a Black peoples rights activist and author/poet. Her first few pieces of work were critiqued as very revolutionary, rebellious and passionate. Some people considered her political views unsophisticated and were threatened by her rebellious attitude. But that didn't stop her from growing. Her first three books had been a huge success that answered the readers need for inspiration, anger, and solidarity . Giovanni always felt the need to spread Black awareness amongst people of her society. She fought for race equality gave voices to those the world had never heard from. As her writing career expanded, she traveled the world and spoke to many audiences, continuing to spread more of her passion.
Rise To Fame
In the year 1969, Nikki Giovanni took a teaching position at Rutgers University and also had her first son named Thomas. After the birth of her son, she took her writing and made it more versatile by starting to illustrate and write children's books. Her books were based on childhood memories, images, feelings and talk about African - American Black history. Giovanni has received may awards to acknowledge her skills, passions and emotions as a writer. the awards include Caldecott Medal and the Coretta Scott King Award for illustration, honors from the National Council of Negro Women and the National Association of Radio and Television Announcers, the Rosa Parks Women of Courage Award, the Langston Hughes Award for Distinguished Contributions to Arts and Letters, and more nominations as well.
A Change in the Tides
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Nikki Giovanni turned the volume of intensity down in her poetry. She continued to travel around the world and wrote poems that were much more somber than her usual strong and passionate writing. The poems and books were more gentle, lyrical and pronounced. Giovanni's topics ranged from family and love, to loneliness, and frustration but with a softer tone. But she still keeps up with her political views and dedicated her next book (Those Who Ride the Night Winds 1983) to Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and Phillis Wheatly.
When Nikki was diagnosed with lung cancer, there were many ups and downs in her life. Her battle with the disease continued, but she didn't lose faith. After she recovered, she wrote a book of poetry called Blues: For All the Changes (1999) that outlined her struggles and battles with cancer and how she survived.
Conclusion
As a whole, Nikki Giovanni has created a powerful impact on the Black community over the past years. Her writing has inspired many to become more accepting and caring instead of being discriminative or racist. "Writing is what I do to justify the air I breathe. I have been considered a writer who writes from rage and it confuses me. What else do writers write from? A poem has to say something. It has to make some
sort of sense; be lyrical; to the point; and still able to be read by whatever reader is kind enough to pick up the book.”
Nikki Giovanni is currently a professor at Virginia Tech University.