Poet Maya Angelou, who has written 12 bestsellers including "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings," will give the keynote address for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Week tonight.

Angelou, the Reynolds Professor of American Studies at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, was the second poet in U.S. history to produce original work for a presidential inauguration and read it at the ceremony. She created the work, "On the Pulse of Morning," for the inauguration of Bill Clinton in January 1993. She has been nominated for three Grammy Awards for best spoken-word album.

Her talk in Memorial Hall at 6 p.m. Wednesday will be free, but those planning to attend should get reserved-seat tickets in advance at the Memorial Hall Box Office, open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays except Jan. 19. UNC students may pick up two tickets per UNC One Card beginning Jan. 13; others may get two tickets per person beginning Jan. 15.

A candlelight vigil before the lecture will be at the Old Well on Cameron Avenue at 5:30 p.m.

Other events during the week will include a students' day of service on Jan. 19 - the federal MLK holiday - a jazz ensemble performance, a dinner and a film.