damali ayo's award-winning work has been shown at galleries across the world. She speaks to Colleges, High Schools, Non-profits and communities in the U.S. and Canada about race, art and eco-living. damali and her work have been featured in over 100 publications world-wide including Harpers, the Village Voice, Salon.com, the Washington Post, Seattle Times, Chicago Tribune, Redbook Magazine and CSPAN2's Book TV.

damali's book, How to Rent a Negro was acclaimed as "one of the most trenchant and amusing commentaries on contemporary race relations." It was granted a 2005 Honorable Mention in the Outstanding Book Awards from the Gustavus Meyers Center for the Study of Bigotry and Human Rights. Her radio work "Living Flag: Panhandling for Reparations" won a Silver Reel Award from the National Federation of Community Broadcasters.

damali has worked as a professional diversity trainer, prison activities director, team leader, program developer and camp director, but chose to become an artist as an effective means of achieving progress. damali believes that "art should make you think and feel, it doesn't have to match your couch." She also feels strongly that laughter and the infectious habit of re-telling funny stories is one of the ways that social change can spread virally through a culture. damali says: "I have seen that change starts with people, relationships and courage. This fuels my passion for challenging people to be all they can be." She does this through a unique mixture of humor and piercing honesty that she calls "standup/smackdown."

photo by pete springer

damali grew up in Washington DC, and has lived in Rhode Island, Maine, Illinois and Oregon. She has a Bachelors in Art from Brown University in a dual concentration of Public Policy and American Civilization. She also holds a Masters in Fine Art from Portland State University in Studio Art. She is a Reiki master and yoga instructor. damali is an avid gardener and grows her own food and medicinal herbs. She strives to live a life in harmony with principles of sustainability, though she has a weakness for NASCAR. She can sometimes be caught playing a mean air cello to Beethoven's fifth symphony, or having dance parties to Bollywood hits in her living room. She currently lives in Los Angeles with her blind adopted dog, Stevie.

damali's name means "beautiful vision with joy."

Team ayo

Heather Day has been damali's assistant for the last two years. She is a student of hip-hop, anti-racism, feminism, and culture. A senior at Connecticut College, majoring in American Studies with a minor in Human Development, Heather, regularly leads workshops, classes, and group discussions on hip-hop, anti-oppression, non-violence, peace making, and human rights in public and private schools, conferences, camps, and after school programs for youth, adolescents and young adults. She also has extensive experience working and volunteering at shelters for the homeless and/or those fleeing domestic abuse.

Grant Buckles hails from Leitchfield, Kentucky and currently attends Transylvania University. He is a political science major with a devotion to progressive/radical social change, especially in the areas of racial injustice and class alienation. Hip-hop is his passion and he strives to promote hip-hop as a means to stimulate thought and discussion about identity and different forms of injustice in our society.

Stevie Madison Ayo has been a part of damali's life since 2006. She was rescued by a farmer in the Ohio woods where she had been abandoned. He took her to the local animal shelter. After naming her and loving her as the office favorite for six months, the shelter could not place her. They contacted rat terrier rescue, who sent Stevie to their resident blind dog specialist in Oregon. Stevie came to meet damali and never left. Stevie is six years old and keeps her name as a way to honor the people who saved her life.