“Brandon motivated me to speak my truth and share my story. Something I wanted to do for so long but never took the time to do it. When I saw Brandon’s performances, I was moved, literally into action. The part that moved me the most was knowing that you were from the 209 too. It made me feel like I was that much more capable of doing something spectacular with my words.”

“Being 17, 16 at the time I was Impacted by Brandon’s poems mainly because I was so inspired by them. I never really read poetry before until I saw him perform on AGT. It calms me when needed and makes me think. I would say all of Brandon’s poems affected me because they are so real, open and heart touching.”

“Being a young poet born in raised in Stockton Brandon’s time on agt gave me a new light that maybe I can do something with poetry. I’ve been writing for 2 years now and I have the confidence I can do anything with my writing. Because of his journey I felt a true connection between him, the poet, and the city. Brandon has shown me that the journey may not always be easy but at the end of the day we see the light.”

“Brandon’s poem on finale night brought me to tears. My whole childhood I battled with never feeling seen, heard or loved by my own father. It was an internal struggle for me. And as I got older, I found myself looking for love in all the wrong places. It was extremely hard for me to love myself because inside, I felt empty. Your poem let me know that I’m not alone.”