Education

1998 Adelphi University, B.A.
2014 Vermont College of Fine Arts, M.F.A.
2021 University at Albany, Ph.D.

Courses Taught

Intro to Creative Writing
Intro to Academic Writing

Career Specialties

Victorio Reyes Asili is a poet, who is especially interested in the craft and impact of Hip Hop. 

Professional and Community Activities

Victorio Reyes Asili is a poet and activist. He has extensive experience in social movements, with particular experience in the movement to end mass incarceration. He was a co-founder of the New York State Prisoner Justice Network and served as the Executive Director of the Albany Social Justice Center for eleven years.

As a writer, he has published in a wide range of venues. His poems have appeared in many literary journals including, The Acentos Review, Word Riot, Pilgrimage Magazine and Obsidian, and his work has been anthologized in Chorus: A Literary Mixtape, It Was Written—Poetry Inspired by Hip Hop, Black Lives Have Always Mattered, and Erase the Patriarchy. 

As a scholar, Reyes Asili’s research is focused on Hip Hop poetics. He maintains that Hip Hop is the most significant poetic form produced by the Americas. Most recently, his article “From Page to Stage to Lyrics Database to Page: BreakBeat Poets, Lyrics Databases, and the Textual Capacity of Hip Hop Verse” was published by The Journal of Hip Hop Studies. 

Honors and Awards

Eugene Garber Award for Short Fiction, presented by The University at Albany English Department;
Phyllis Hurd Liston Poetry Prize, The Academy of American Poets College and University Poetry Prizes, presented by The University at Albany English Department;
Carson Carr Diversity Fellowship Award, presented by The Office of Graduate Education for The University at Albany