Chinaka Hodge is a multifaceted American artist, born in 1984, who has garnered national recognition for her innovative and thought-provoking work across various mediums.
Growing up in Oakland, California, Hodge's childhood was marked by her experiences in different neighborhoods throughout the city, which would later influence her artistic focus on gentrification.
Hodge's academic journey began at New York University's Gallatin School of Individualized Study, where she graduated in May 2006 as the student speaker at the 174th Commencement exercise. Four years later, she received the prestigious Annenberg Fellowship from the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts, earning her MFA in Writing for Film and TV in 2012.
Her impressive educational background was accompanied by numerous awards and residencies, including the Phelan Literary Award for emerging Bay Area talent in 2012 and the Sundance Feature Film Lab Fellowship for her script "700th&Int'l" in 2013.
As a 2012 Artist in Residence at The Headlands Center for the Arts, Hodge had the opportunity to develop her craft alongside other talented artists. Her work has been featured in various publications, including Newsweek, San Francisco Magazine, Believer Magazine, and PBS, as well as in two seasons of HBO's Def Poetry.
In addition to her writing and performance career, Hodge has worked extensively in the non-profit sector, serving as a program director, associate artistic director, and teaching artist at Youth Speaks/The Living Word Project, a San Francisco-based literary arts organization. She has also held similar positions at Urban Word NYC and Get Lit: Words Ignite in New York and Los Angeles.
Hodge's personal life is marked by her long-term partnership with McLeod Bethel-Thompson, a gridiron football quarterback who has played for the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League.
In 2016, Hodge published her book Dated Emcees, a collection of poetry exploring the intersection of urban hip-hop and gentrification. Her work has also been featured in music videos, including two collaborations with Watsky in 2013 and 2014.
In recent years, Hodge has expanded her creative reach, serving as a head writer on the upcoming Marvel Studios streaming series Ironheart for Disney+ and collaborating with fellow artists Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal as a founding member of the hip-hop ensemble The Getback.
