Andrea Sanderson (poet, singer, hip hop artist) known on stage as 'Vocab' has been a spoken word artist since 2001 here in San Antonio, where she was born and raised in. In October of 2011 she released a c.d. entitled Vocab Presents: Sessions In Flight and it is available on iTunes. The poetry spot 2nd Verse that she co-hosts won, Best Open Mic in the Nation, in 2011 & 2012. She was voted in the top three, Best R&B Band/Artist, by the San Antonio Current for 2012 & 2013. She was featured in a documentary entitled Close to the Line, which won Best Short Documentary in the Capital City Black Film Festival.
In 2015 she traveled internationally to Abu Dhabi performing at, Al Dhafra Airbase. She serves as a creative Writer In the Community for Gemini Ink & Barrio Writers, co-hosts: 2nd Verse, Jazz & Poetry with a Purpose, and Fresh Ink Youth Slam. In 2018, she debuted her theatre production, The Bad Mama Jama Mixtape: A Woman's Soundtrack to Life, to a sold-out capacity crowd at The Little Carver Theatre at the Carver Cultural Community Center.
In December of 2016 she was a guest teacher for the groundbreaking course: Black Women Beyonce & Popular Culture at University of Texas at San Antonio this course gained international attention and is featured in various publications worldwide. In 2018, she was presented with the Dream Voice Award at the Inaugural Mayor’s Ball in San Antonio, Texas by Dream Voice/Dream Week. In 2019, she was the Mistress of Ceremonies for the 19th Annual International Women’s Day March held in San Antonio, Texas.
In 2020, Andrea was named City of San Antonio Poet Laureate by Mayor Ron Nirenberg. She was also a recipient of The Friends of San Antonio Public Library Arts & Letters Award. Also, in 2020, she was the host of The Queens of Poetry, an event presented by The Friends of Carver Library. This event featured talented poets of the renowned Furious Flower Poetry Center, as well as nationally acclaimed poet and author, Jessica Care Moore.
Currently Andrea is a WIC Writer for Gemini Ink and a member of Arte y Pasion, a performance art organization. Andrea also enjoys doing volunteer organizing with the Martinez St. Women's Center, Rape Crisis Center, and Haven for Hope. Andrea finds inspiration in the poetry of Dr. Maya Angelou, Robert Frost, and classic soul lyrics. She infuses complex rhyme schemes and inspirational text into her work that ring true to her gospel and hip-hop roots. She is an advocate of community outreach and loves mentoring teen poets. She is a co-founder and on the Board of Directors member of the non-profit organization, Write Art Out.