Erica Love is a spoken word artist, poet, and storyteller from Chicago, Illinois, now living in Marshalltown, Iowa. What began as private journal entries became a path to healing, self-discovery, and powerful storytelling. Her first performance at the Arts + Culture Alliance sparked a passion that led to winning her first spoken word competition and competing in poetry slams across Iowa. Today, she brings stories of love, trauma, resilience, and self-worth to the Literary Arts Stage at the Des Moines Arts Festival.