By Raymond Tyler
When twins walk into a room together, it tends to create a sense of excitement. There is something unique about the similarity. Even when the twins are not identical, the bond seems to fill the air with a curious aura.
When the twins are in fact identical, the curiosity almost becomes celebrity. The twins become the most interesting and talked about people in the room.
Delaware natives Nnamdi Chukwuocha and Albert Mills are more than just another set of identical twins. The brothers have made a name for themselves as the Twin Poets. They are known in cultural circles nationally as artists, activists, politicians and icons of culture in the world of poetry and the spoken word.
On Thursday, Feb. 8, the Twin Poets returned to the Mays Landing Campus of Atlantic Cape Community College for an evening of poetry and culture.
Even before taking the stage, the two Delaware poets laureate were connecting with Jersey friends, meeting young people, doing on-the-spot interviews and helping to set up their book table.
When they are on a program, the Twin Poets share the magic of the spoken word, adding to the legacy of oral traditional storytelling.
The story of 53-year-old brothers Nnamdi Chukwuocha and Albert Mills also includes numerous years connecting with families as social workers. Today both serve their communities as politicians and write bills/laws to affect change (when not on stage).
Nnamdi Chukwuocha serves as a representative in the Delaware General Assembly, and Albert Mills is currently serving on the Wilmington City Council. Both brothers have spent decades affecting change with more than just poetry, and both brothers served in the Army.
As the Twin Poets, they take the stage and set free words and stories. When they perform poems such as “Dreams Are Illegal,” the two have a back-and-forth energy that is exciting. They held the crowd captive while discussing children’s dreams vs. the realities young people face today. The poems are enjoyable for their execution and delivery. The poetry and performance deliver on entertainment, urging people to think and to love.
After leaving the stage the Twin Poets again met with the people who had just taken a poetic ride with them.
The Twin Poet experience on stage lasted about an hour, but the connections with people from South Jersey will last a lifetime. The story of the Twin Poets is still a wonderful work in progress and nowhere near the final stanza.
You can connect with Raymond Tyler via Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram @RaymondTyler2018.
