New Jersey Stage 2017: Issue 7 | Page 35

begins by declaring that, “ev- eryone’s a poet” and offers the mantra of hope for a divided na- tion: “I pray the truth finds us all in time.” Prasa says he wrote poetry years ago, but found it was easi- er for him to hear a song and its melody and then work on the lyrics based on whatever mood he was in at the time. The title track itself is a political state- ment inspired by a real life hero. The inspiration was Shannon Johnson, a 45-year-old health inspector who was shot trying to shield a co-worker from gunfire during a terrorist attack in San Bernardino, California. Prasa still remembers seeing CNN’s Anderson Cooper interview- ing the woman saved by John- son - a woman whose name was pronounced like his, but was spelled differently (Peraza). “‘Poets & Heroes’ is about who- ever you believe in. They’re ly- ing to us all of the time,” said Prasa. “You’re just looking for some truth from someone.” Listen to “Poets & Heroes” by Peter Prasa NJ STAGE 2017 - Vol. 4 No. 7 INDEX NEXT ARTICLE 35