LEXINGTON, Ky. — Devine Carama, a Lexington leader in youth violence prevention, is now a published author.

What You Need To Know

  • One Lexington Director Devine Carama is adding a new avenue to help reach young people with his message of nonviolence

  • "Pages Full of Rhymes" hit the shelves this year on Carama’s 24th anniversary of performing

  • Carama's oldest lyrics in the book were written in 1996

  • The book shares his 20 years of creativity, hardship and raps, compiled into 150 pages

Walking through rows of books and shelves at Joseph Beth’s bookstore is nostalgic for Carama. 

He’s stepping outside of his daily assignments with the gun-violence prevention group for young people, One Lexington, to prepare for his upcoming book signing for "Pages Full of Rhymes." It’s the first book Carama wrote to share about his faith and his life on paper.

“Block party in heaven. I wrote this in 2020, and this was after my daughter passed. So this is like going into heaven and seeing, like, a block party,” Carama said. 

Now, his 20 years of creativity, hardship and raps of perseverance are compiled into 150 pages. 

“Hip hop to me is one of the greatest forms of literary expression. And so the literacy world doesn’t always embrace hip hop culture because it’s shorthand text,” Carama explained.  

Carama says he’s excited to share his work with readers, particularly teens and young adults through local bookstores. 

Carama has led programs in Lexington to create an overall reduction in gun-related homicides. He says he wants this book to help those he supports better understand his “why.”

“But for me, it was synonymous with community. It was about being a voice for the voiceless, which is exactly what my work and passion is today. So that is in the book,” He said. 

With attention-grabbing lyrics and sentimental subjects to take in, Carama says he hopes Pages Full of Rhymes resonates with the community. 

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