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James Franco -

James Franco is no one-trick pony. The Oscar-nominated actor has penned several works of fiction and non-fiction, as well as a number of poetry collections.

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James Franco -

Franco's poetry chapbooks (slender volumes of poetry) include 2012's  'Strongest of the Litter,' which deals with the positive and negative aspects of power, and 2015's 'Straight James/Gay James, 'an uninhibited look at his public and private personas.

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Tupac Shakur -

Lesane Parish Crooks, known to his legions of fans as Tupac, was renowned for his lyrical flair as a rapper. But it wasn't until after his untimely death in 1996 that his artistry as a poet came to light.

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Tupac Shakur -

A collection of more than 100 poems, written between 1989 and 1991, was published in 1999 as 'The Rose That Grew from Concrete.' With a preface by his mother, Afeni Shakur, the book received widespread critical acclaim.

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Charlie Sheen -

Actor Charlie Sheen's reputation for hard-living apparently masks a more poetic side. Writing as Charles Sheen, the former 'Two and a Half Men' star published his first–and so far only–collection of poetry in 1990.

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Charlie Sheen -

Now out of print, Sheen's self-published collection 'A Peace of my Mind' was illustrated by director Adam Rifkin, and has achieved something close to cult status for its rarity and somewhat surreal style.

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Johnny Cash -

Legendary musician Johnny Cash was a renowned lyricist, but his talents didn't end there. The "Man in Black"was a prolific poet, leaving behind a huge body of work on his death in 2003.

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Johnny Cash -

In 2016, 41 of the musician's powerful pieces, collated by son John Carter Cash and author Paul Muldoon, were published as 'Forever Words: The Unknown Poems.' The collection was widely praised by critics.

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Pamela Anderson -

Pamela Anderson loves to put pen to paper, with many of her poems published via the Pamela Anderson Foundation website. In 2017, she made headlines worldwide when she penned what appeared to be an ode to friend and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange.

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Pamela Anderson -

'My Julian' praised the "sexy" whistleblower, calling him "the most intelligent, interesting, and informed man in existence."

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Matthew McConaughey -

Matthew McConaughey peppered his 2020 memoir 'Greenlights' with liberal doses of his poetry.

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Matthew McConaughey -

His musings clearly found an audience–'Greenlights' debuted at number one on The New York Times non-fiction best-seller list.

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Florence Welch -

Florence + the Machine's fiery front woman Florence Welch isn't content with conquering the world via her powerful performances of soaring songs. She published a collection of lyrics, poetry, and sketches in 2018.

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Florence Welch -

'Useless Magic,' the title a nod to the song-writing process, was released to critical acclaim for its candid and elegant poetic style.

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Billy Corgan -

Smashing Pumpkins singer Billy Corgan has an army of fans who appreciate his rather melancholic musical and lyrical style, so it was no great leap for the star to put pen to paper.

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Billy Corgan -

His poetry anthology, 'Blinking with Fists,' was published by Faber and Faber in 2004, with his musings on identity, loyalty, loss, and love garnering mixed reviews.

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Ally Sheedy -

Actress Ally Sheedy's personal life publicly hit difficulties after the success of '80s hit films 'The Breakfast Club' and 'St. Elmo's Fire,' and the actress used her time in rehab to exorcise her demons on paper.

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Ally Sheedy -

In 1991, Sheedy's deeply-personal anthology 'Yesterday I Saw the Sun: Poems' was released, with fans praising the honesty with which she tackled subjects such as addiction, bulimia, and the more testing aspects of teenage life.

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Tionne 'T-Boz' Watkins -

One third of legendary musical trio TLC, Tionne 'T-Boz' Watkins was looking for a way to express herself artistically when the group was between albums. The art of poetry was calling!

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Tionne 'T-Boz' Watkins -

Her 1999 collection, 'Thoughts,' saw the singer express herself candidly about relationship difficulties, and other pressures of life. She described the poems as "thoughts from the heart, and my art."

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Leonard Nimoy -

Loved the world over for his role as Mr. Spock in 'Star Trek,' Leonard Nimoy had considerable other talents, not least of them poetry.

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Leonard Nimoy -

The actor published several well-received collections of poetry throughout his lifetime. The first, 'You & I,' was published in 1973, and his last collection, 'A Lifetime of Love: Poems on the Passages of Life,' was released in 2002.

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Viggo Mortensen -

Actor Viggo Mortensen is an artistic soul through and through. As well as starring in hit movies such as the 'Lord of the Rings' trilogy, he's a photographer, artist, and a poet.

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Viggo Mortensen -

His 2002 book 'Coincidence of Memory' combines his talents, in a collection of photographs, paintings, and poems.

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Ashanti -

R&B star Ashanti took the music world by storm in the early ‘00s, with her debut album ‘Ashanti’ topping the charts in 2002. The same year, she found time to pour her creative energies into poetry.

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Ashanti -

Released in November 2002, 'Foolish/Unfoolish: Reflections on Love' saw Ashanti reflecting on the trials and tribulations of young love in a sometimes pained, sometimes humorous collection.

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Alicia Keys -

Acclaimed singer, songwriter, and pianist Alicia Keys is clearly a woman of many talents. Alongside her hugely successful career in music, she’s an accomplished poet.

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Alicia Keys -

‘Tears for Water: Songbook of Poem and Lyrics’ was released in 2004 and appeared on The New York Times best-seller list. It features original poetry as well as lyrics to songs from her albums ‘Songs in A Minor’ (2001) and 'The Diary of Alicia Keys' (2003), and was re-released in October 2018 with an updated cover.

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Jill Scott -

Revered in musical circles, platinum-selling Jill Scott impressed readers with her debut poetry collection, published in 2005.

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Jill Scott -

Scott had been writing poetry since the early 1990s, and her collection 'The Moments, The Minutes, The Hours' was praised for its earthy style and relatable content.

Sources: (Entertainment Weekly)

See also: Celebrities reveal their favorite poems

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