IDRIS GOODWIN is a playwright, rapper and essayist. His plays include HOW WE GOT ON, REMIX 38 (Actors Theater of Louisville); AND IN THIS CORNER: CASSIUS CLAY(StageOne Family Theater), THIS IS MODERN ART co written with Kevin Coval (Steppenwolf Theatre), BLACK FLAG (Summer Shorts/ 59E59Theatre), BLACKADEMICS (MPAACT, Crowded Fire), BARS AND MEASURES ( B Street Theatre, NNPN RWP), THE RAID (Jackalope Theatre) and The REALNESS: a break beat play (Merrimack Repertory Theatre).

Goodwin is one of the six playwrights featured in HANDS UP an anthology commissioned by The New Black Fest. HANDS UP is being presented in theatres and universities across the country.

He is the recipient of Oregon Shakespeare’s American History Cycle Commission, InterAct Theater’s 20/20 Award and a finalist for the Lanford Wilson Award. Goodwin has been a writer in residence at The Eugene O'Neil Playwrights Center, Berkeley Rep's Ground Floor Program, The Lark Playwriting Center and New Harmony Project.

An accomplished spoken word performer and break beat poet, his albums include BREAK BEAT POEMS and RHYMING WHILE BLACK. Goodwin was featured on HBO, Sesame Street and Discovery Channel. He is the author of the pushcart nominated essay collection THESE ARE THE BREAKS (Write Bloody, 2011) and his work is anthologized widely.

Idris is the co host and contributor to CRITICAL KARAOKE, a radio show and podcast about music and culture. Idris teaches performance writing and Hip Hop aesthetics at Colorado College.