City kids have a hard, often despairing way to go: Thien-bao Phi delivers a lyrical testament to how they do it and still find magic in their world. – Dwight Hobbes, Pulse
Graydon Royce
November 7, 2000
Phi packs his rap with clear images and emotion, painting his city through your mind with a palette of words that tumble effortlessly out of his mouth – close to the street, breathing with the anxious verve of kids surviving the alley and tender with love stolen in an abandoned store. – Graydon Royce, Star Tribune
Jeremy Swanson
March 29, 2000
Phi smoothly combines familiar rhyme with subtle, insightful metaphors. -Jeremy Swanson, CD Review of “Flares”, City Pages
Rohan Preston
February 25, 2000
Bao Phi delivers work that has the urgency of fire. -Rohan Preston, Star Tribune, Free Time Section
Eliza Hoyt
May 28, 1999
At 24 years old he is nationally recognized for his turbulent, thought provoking poetry on stage. – Eliza Hoyt, Asian American Press
Kristin Tillotson
August 17, 1998
Poets aren’t generally known for their infectious charm… but Bao Phi isn’t just any poet…Phi’s tone can shift easily from serious to humorous, although many of his funny lines are delivered with bite. – Kristin Tillotson, Star Tribune, Variety Cover Story