Poet Amanda Gorman stole the show at the inauguration

Indiewire

The 22-year-old first-ever National Youth Poet Laureate's "beautifully crafted words were a showstopper," says Ben Travers. "That they didn’t, in fact, end the ceremony is a fact likely to be lost to time. Gorman’s poem, 'The Hill We Climb,' grabbed hold of viewers from the jump ('Mr. President, Doctor Biden…') and has yet to let go. That’s very much by design. Inaugural poets are not a requisite of the ceremony. Including Gorman, only six such wordsmiths have read during U.S. Presidential Inaugurations, and only four presidents have heard them. (President Obama and President Clinton had different poets at each of their ceremonies, while John F. Kennedy was the first to invite a poet, Robert Frost, to share words.)" Travers adds that "considering Biden’s accepted mandate to unify the country, (Gorman's) words were both appropriate and expected. Yet Gorman’s talent shown through in their combination, her elocution, and her well-timed build to a larger, more resilient message."

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