JCW FRIDAY NIGHTS: One-Mic Stand with SJ

Step up. Speak out. Stand tall.

Jersey City Writers invites you to One-Mic Stand with SJ—an open mic experience like no other! This is where raw talent meets electrifying energy, and every voice has a chance to shine.

On the 2nd Friday of every month, two incredible featured poets will take the stage alongside a lineup of fearless performers from our vibrant poetry community. Open mic slots are 5 minutes each, giving you the perfect space to share your truth—whether it’s poetry, spoken word, or a story waiting to be heard.

Come for the poetry. Stay for the magic. Join the movement.

$10 Suggested Donation (Cash, Venmo, Paypal)

Doors open at 6:30pm, Open Mic starts at 7pm -- first come, first served!

Our Host Steve Willett (SJ) is a sound poet who is actively involved in the poetry community and has had several feature performances around New Jersey. His poem ‘Petulance’ was a shortlisted selection for the University of Grimsby’s Hammond House International Poetry Competition in 2019. Steve serves as moderator for the Jersey City Writers (JC Plums) poetry group, which meets online every week to discuss poetry and improve participants' works. He was also one of the producers for the Jersey City Writers JC Poetry Festival in 2023 and is currently working on the 2025 festival. He is also a teaching artist at Newark School of the Arts. He lives with his wife, 2 daughters, and 5 cats in the Heights. He is excited to have his own Open Mic, (One-Mic Stand with SJ), and give back to a community that has given so much support to him.

9/12 FEATURED ACTS: Munsif Husami & I. Benaventura (a.k.a. Patrick)

Munsif Husami is a first-generation Indian-American who writes about identity, mental health, immigration and culture. He has featured as a poet on the PBS documentary ‘Voices in The Garden – A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ in 2025, and performed at venues like SOB’s, Rutgers University, the Paterson Poetry Festival and the NYC Poetry Festival. You can find his poems in Soup Can Magazine, NYU’s Aftab Magazine, BIG HAMMER 2025 and Afterword Magazine. His first chapbook ‘Honey, I Met the Shrink’, was published in 2023 by Two Key Customs. Munsif is currently working on his second book and a collection of diaspora poetry.

I. Buenaventura (a.k.a Patrick) is a New Jersey-based poet. He holds an MFA in Design & Technology from Parsons School of Design. Patrick has practiced both self-defense and martial arts for three decades. He self-published a book on self-defense for women called “Your Body is Your Weapon: The Little Self-Defense Handbook,” which he illustrated and wrote in free verse poetry. The book was awarded an Honorable Mention in the Inspirational / Self-Help Category of the 31st Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards.

An activist for LGBTQ+ rights, Patrick fought for marriage equality in New Jersey in 2013. He began transitioning full-time in 2022 and identifies as transmasculine and non-binary. He has been documenting his transition in a series of poems, and much of this work serves as a form of activism in support of the trans community.

Supported by public funds from the Jersey City Arts and Culture Trust Fund