Henri Harps is a guitarist, writer and jazz fanatic born in Washington D.C. After spending nearly a decade navigating the flailing cultural milieu of New York City, he now happily calls Chicago home. He does this along with his wife, menagerie of aging animals, and a continually expanding array of musical instruments.

Please join Henri and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Gint Aras has been trapped on planet Earth since 1973. His prose and translations have appeared in such places as Quarterly West, St. Petersburg Review, ReImagine, STIR Journal, Antique Children, The Good Men Project and other publications. His novel, The Fugue, was a finalist for the 2016 Chicago Writers Association's Book of the Year Award. He lives in Oak Park with his family.

Please join Gint and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Parneshia Jones is the author of Vessel: Poems (Milkweed Editions), winner of the Midwest Book Award and an Oprah.com pick for 12 Poetry Books to Savor. After studying creative writing at Chicago State University, earning an MFA from Spalding University, and studying publishing at Yale University, Jones has been honored with the Gwendolyn Brooks Poetry Award, the Margaret Walker Short Story Award, and the Aquarius Press Legacy Award. Named one of the "25 Writers to Watch" by the Guild Complex and one of "Lit 50: Who Really Books in Chicago" by Newcity Magazine, her work has been anthologized in She Walks in Beauty: A Woman's Journey Through Poems, and The Ringing Ear: Black Poets Lean South, and featured on PBS Newshour, the Academy of American Poets, espnW, and Poets and Writers Live. She currently serves as the Poetry Editor for Northwestern University Press/TriQuarterly Books. In addition to her editorial duties, Jones holds the position Sales and Community Outreach Manager, working with communities across the globe on literature focused in the humanities.

Please join Parneshia and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Britt Julious is a writer born and bred in Chicago. She currently pens a weekly column for the Chicago Tribune and previously edited for Vice. She's written feature profiles and personal essays for the New York Times, Rolling Stone, GQ, Esquire, ELLE, Pitchfork, and many other outlets. She's currently at work on a collection of essays about overcoming trauma.

Please join Britt and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Jeff Ruby is the chief dining critic of Chicago magazine. He is the author of the middle-grade novel Penelope March Is Melting, which comes out on November 14th, and coauthor of Everybody Loves Pizza: The Deep Dish on America's Favorite Food. Ruby has also played college basketball in Ireland, assisted in an autopsy, and sumo wrestled in front of 20,000 people in New Jersey. He lives in Chicago with his wife and three children.

Please join Jeff and our other amazing readers on Tuesday, November 7, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 7pm, and the show starts at 7:30. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Tuesday Funk cohost Andrew Huff read a couple of quick haiku at the Andersonville Arts Week edition of the show.

Puerto Ricans are
U.S. citizens. We are
failing Americans.

Unexpected stain:
Where did this spot come from?
Was it last night's meal?

Autumn leaves clog drains,
turning streets into streams and
temporary ponds.

We had a blast at the special Andersonville Arts Week edition of Tuesday Funk, demonstrating the eclecticism of our format for an attentive audience who braved the rain to see us on a Saturday.

Leading us off, Karen Clanton read an essay about how she's saying "I usually don't, but..." a lot more as she's gotten older. Then Aaron Cynic railed against the administration and channeled a lot of the nihilism and rage a lot of folks have been feeling this year. Cohost Andrew Huff read a couple of his patented seasonal haiku, and Paul McComas and Maya Kuper took us into the intermission with a performance an excerpt of their alt-rock musical UNPLUGGED: A Survivor's Story in Scenes & Songs.

Bartender Jason refilled our drinks, and we settled back into the show with a prose poem by guest cohost Emma Terhaar. Benjamin Goluboff read a trio of poems from his forthcoming collection, and finally Kellye Howard read a portion of her memoir in progress.

We'll be back to our usual first Tuesday schedule with a show on November 7, featuring Parneshia Jones, Henri Harps, Jeff Ruby, Gint Aras and Britt Julious. Hope to see you there!

Photo by Aaron Cynic

Aaron Cynic is an independent journalist and photographer based in Chicago. His interest in the tapestry of politics and media began in the '90s when he stumbled into a table of zines at a punk show at the Fireside Bowl. Since then, he's written and photographed for numerous publications, zines, books and websites. He's a regular contributor to Chicagoist, a co-founder of Visu.News, and his work has also appeared in Progress Illinois, Alternet, Truthout, In These Times, The Daily Line, The Huffington Post, Shareable and more.

Please join Aaron and our other amazing readers on Saturday, October 14, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 2:30 pm, and the show starts at 3. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Maya Kuper and Paul McComas explore the intersection between performing arts, and progressive outreach & healing. As the Dayna Clay Project, Maya & Paul raise awareness and funds for The Kennedy Forum's suicide-prevention and mental-health leadership initiatives, and for RAINN (the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network) -- the nation's largest anti-sexual-violence organization. Join Maya & Paul at City Winery Chicago at 1 pm on Sunday, Oct. 22 for a special book and album release performance of their alt-rock musical UNPLUGGED: A Survivor's Story in Scenes & Songs. Learn more at UnpluggedTheMusical.com.

Please join Maya and Paul and our other amazing readers on Saturday, October 14, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 2:30 pm, and the show starts at 3. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.

Karen Clanton is an attorney whose law degree did not stifle the English major lurking within. She has forged a career as a writer in the legal profession, where she develops internal communications strategy for a major law firm. Karen served as the reporter for an American Bar Association (ABA) Commission examining diversity and has led editorial projects for both the ABA and the Chicago Bar Association. She is a single mom living on the South Side of Chicago chronicling her adventures through stories that can be heard at open mics on the city's live lit scene.

Please join Karen and our other amazing readers on Saturday, October 14, 2017 in the upstairs bar at Hopleaf. Doors open at 2:30 pm, and the show starts at 3. It's free, and 21-and-over. RSVP on Facebook.