Cedric Tillman holds a BA in English from UNC Charlotte and graduated from American University's Creative Writing MFA program. He is a Cave Canem graduate fellow and a former Nation Magazine (now Boston Review) "Discovery" contest semifinalist. Cedric's poems appear in several publications including RHINO, Pleiades, Barzakh Magazine, Rove, The Manhattanville Review, Solstice Literary Magazine, The Florida Review, Kakalak, and Home Is Where: an anthology of African American Poets from the Carolinas. In 2016, he was named a semifinalist in the Saturnalia Books & Cleveland State University Open Book Poetry competitions; he was also named a finalist for the University of Akron Poetry Prize.  In 2017, he was named a semifinalist for the University of Akron, Philip Levine, and Pleiades Press Editor Poetry prizes, and a finalist for the Press 53 Poetry Prize; that same year, his poem "the flag" received Special Mention recognition for the Pushcart Foundation's Pushcart Prize.  In 2018, he was named a finalist for the Pleiades Press Lena-Miles Wever Todd Prize. "Feed My People (The Toxicology Prayer)," published in RHINO in 2021, earned him second place recognition for the magazine's Founder's Prize. His debut collection, entitled LILIES IN THE VALLEY, was a semifinalist selection for the 2011 42 Miles Press Poetry Award, and was published by Willow Books in 2013.  His latest collection, entitled IN MY FEELINS, was published by WordTech Communications in 2019. Cedric hails from Lilesville, North Carolina and Charlotte, where he currently resides.