Dr. Tony Keith Jr.

is an award-winning Black American gay poet, author, scholar, and Hip Hop educational leader. Known as an “Ed Emcee,” Tony builds joyful, culturally responsive learning systems that amplify student voice, transform teaching, and reconnect educators with purpose.

He is the author of How the Boogeyman Became a Poet and Knucklehead (HarperCollins), books celebrated in schools and libraries nationwide. A multi-year DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities Fellow, Tony has performed at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, Washington National Cathedral, the Lincoln Theatre, Busboys and Poets, and in schools and communities across the U.S. and internationally.

As Founder and CEO of Ed Emcee Academy, Tony partners with school districts, museums, universities, and cultural institutions to design professional learning, keynote presentations, residencies, and curriculum experiences rooted in Hip Hop pedagogy and Knowledge of Self. His research—recognized by the American Educational Research Association and HumanitiesDC—advances how language, identity, and culture shape equitable learning environments.

Tony holds degrees from University of Maryland College Park, Penn State University, and George Mason University, and lives in Washington, DC with his husband, Harry Christian III.