'More than lines on a page': Chapel Hill welcomes Donovan Livingston as Poet Laureate

Growing up, Donovan Livingston was always looking for ways to engage with poetry and hip-hop, from rapping in the cafeteria to freestyling on the bus. 

Livingston’s parents were both educators and his father was a pastor, meaning music that wasn’t gospel was off-limits, he said. Regardless, his curiosity about poetry and hip-hop emerged in middle school. 

For Livingston, lyricism in poetry and music is a way to build community. Now, as Chapel Hill’s 2025-2026 Poet Laureate, Livingston will use poetry to do just that — celebrate the Chapel Hill community. 

“People can use hip-hop as a form of expression that allows us to build communities across our differences, brings people together across differences,” Livingston said. 

A key inspiration for Livingston’s art are the stories of his family. His recent work as a poet and hip-hop artist has been shaped by his love for his three young children.

“I’m motivated by the everyday wisdom of the people in my life who sacrificed for me to be here,” Livingston said. 

Livingston currently serves as the Director of College Thriving and a professor in the music department at UNC, but this isn’t his first experience with the university. Livingston first attended UNC as an undergraduate student majoring in history, and it was a no-brainer decision when he had the opportunity to return as a faculty member, he said. 

Meredith Petschauer, the Associate Dean of Undergraduate Curricula, said Livingston is a ray of light. 

“He brings a great deal of joy to the workplace and a lot of integrity too,” Ian McNeely, the Senior Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education at UNC said. “He’s really committed to the mission of higher education and he wants to make cool things happen." 

Through his roles at UNC, Livingston has managed and instructed the College Thriving course and contributed to an increase in hip-hop course offerings at the university. 

“To be a part of that Tar Heel legacy, to be a part of that evolution is – much like being Poet Laureate – the honor of a lifetime,” Livingston said. 

Livingston will serve as the third ever Poet Laureate for Chapel Hill. The Town established the role in 2019 to inspire creativity and celebrate the community through poetry. 

Chapel Hill opened applications for the 2025-2026 Poet Laureate in August 2024. Applicants were judged on criteria including the poetic merit of their submitted portfolios, the passion shown in their written responses to questions and their potential for success as shown through previous experiences, Steve Wright, the Public Art Coordinator for Chapel Hill Community Arts & Culture, said. 

“When he spoke his poem in the interview, I think that made a strong impact with the selection team,” Wright said. “I think they were very impressed with that and with his record, and also his interests and plans for poetry in the community.”

As the poet laureate, Livingston hopes to use poetry as a means for building community with underserved populations in Chapel Hill, collaborating with the Town’s departments and programs and connecting with young people and students. 

“I see these next two years as an opportunity to make good on that promise that a poem is more than just a few fancy lines on a page,” Livingston said. “A poem is really a call to action.”

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