Slam Poetry and Performance Poetry
Hearkening back to the scops (epic poets) of pre-Norman Old English speakers, performance poetry has again returned to the mainstream. Slam poetry blends divergent performance means such as hip-hop, theater, public speaking, speech and debate, traditional poetry open mics, and academic competition with populist appeal into a single competitive art form.
Any poet can benefit from competing in a slam as long as they keep the audience, not their own ego, in mind.
Through slam, scores of otherwise uninitiated audience members have come to love the power of poetry.
This lens gives you all the tips on how to compete, how to win (if that's a goal), and how to celebrate the art of spoken word.
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Fetching RSS feed... please stand byWhat's your slam status?
While slam poetry can be found all around the country, some people have never seen a slam while others have been slamming for 20 years.
"The point is not the points, the point is the poetry - Allan Wolff"
A catchy image and provocative text can help promote your slam
"The point is not the points, the point is to get more points than the other teams"
What do you believe? Declare it with a narrative
One of the 12 Olympians of Slam, Taylor Mali is known for many poems, not least of which is "What Teachers Make?"
"What Teachers Make?" is a great example of two slam poetry topics.
First, it is essentially a Declaration Poem -- about being a teacher -- wrapped in a loose narrative. Declaration poems espouse a value for a belief others may not have. A good slam poem can push your belief and make others see that value where they didn't before.
Second, ever wanted to say just the right thing to a jerk at a dinner party but it wasn't until you got home to say it? Known as an "espirit de l'escalier" or "spirit of the staircase," that witty one-liner, comeback, or diatribe comes only too late. However, your audience doesn't know that. With an "Espirit de l'escalier" slam poem, you can make it seem that not only did your response come instantly, you said it to the jerk's face in front of everyone. Now, you just need to repeat it the audience.
Essentially a revenge poem, the comeback can but full of humor, rage, and "putting the jerk (in this case, a lawyer) in his place."
Aside from the text of the poem itself, what makes this piece work so well is irritating traits Mali adds to his "foe:" he's a lawyer, he disregards the importance of teachers and, most obviously, he has an irritating laugh, which just adds to the reasons to hate the foe.
"What Teachers Make?" or "Objection Overruled," or "If things don't work out, you can always go to law school"
By Taylor Mali
www.taylormali.com
He says the problem with teachers is, "What's a kid going to learn
from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?"
He reminds the other dinner guests that it's true what they say about
teachers:
Those who can, do; those who can't, teach.
I decide to bite my tongue instead of his
and resist the temptation to remind the other dinner guests
that it's also true what they say about lawyers.
Because we're eating, after all, and this is polite company.
"I mean, you're a teacher, Taylor," he says.
"Be honest. What do you make?"
And I wish he hadn't done that
(asked me to be honest)
because, you see, I have a policy
about honesty and ass-kicking:
if you ask for it, I have to let you have it.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could.
I can make a C+ feel like a Congressional medal of honor
and an A- feel like a slap in the face.
How dare you waste my time with anything less than your very best.
I make kids sit through 40 minutes of study hall
in absolute silence. No, you may not work in groups.
No, you may not ask a question.
Why won't I let you get a drink of water?
Because you're not thirsty, you're bored, that's why.
I make parents tremble in fear when I call home:
I hope I haven't called at a bad time,
I just wanted to talk to you about something Billy said today.
Billy said, "Leave the kid alone. I still cry sometimes, don't you?"
And it was the noblest act of courage I have ever seen.
I make parents see their children for who they are
and what they can be.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids wonder,
I make them question.
I make them criticize.
I make them apologize and mean it.
I make them write, write, write.
And then I make them read.
I make them spell definitely beautiful, definitely beautiful, definitely
beautiful
over and over and over again until they will never misspell
either one of those words again.
I make them show all their work in math.
And hide it on their final drafts in English.
I make them understand that if you got this (brains)
then you follow this (heart) and if someone ever tries to judge you
by what you make, you give them this (the finger).
Let me break it down for you, so you know what I say is true:
I make a goddamn difference! What about you?
Fox the Poet's blog
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byThe Strategy of the Slam Poet
Are you an "Art Slammer" or a "Craft Slammer"? The two schools of thought slam differently and one generally always wins
There are two rival schools of thought within the slam community about how a poet should approach slam. For the purposes of this essay, we will call them "art slammers" and "craft slammers." Poets can move between both groups at will and some switch back and forth even in the middle of a slam."Art slammers": "Art slammers" try to remain pure to the emotion that inspired the poem. They believe that the quality of poem alone will win the day, regardless of the tactics or strategy. They often quote Allan Wolf, "The point is not the points, the point is the poetry." They write and perform for themselves.
"Craft slammers": "Craft slammers" try to choose which poems to slam to win. They disengage from the emotion when deciding what poems to perform then lock into that emotion when on stage. They often quote Taylor Mali, "The point is not the points, the point is to have more points than anyone else." They write and perform for the audience.
Art Slammers consider themselves "poets true to the art of poetry." Craft Slammers consider themselves "poets true to the art of slam."
Art Slammers are accused of being pretentious, arrogant or taking themselves too seriously. Art slammers must be careful not to take scores personally, but rather, examine the tactics of performing the wrong poem at the wrong time.
Craft Slammers are accused of being insincere about their poetry and only slamming to win. Craft Slammers must be careful not to lose their passion for poetry and write only slam poems.
Neither school of poetry is more right. Keep a balance so that you do not become too craft: a stylized performer who rarely steps out of your comfort zone, nor too art: so anti-competition that you don't see slam as fun.
Most poets who begin in slam rely on instincts and emotion to choose their poems. Good start. If you want to always slam what you feel, you may or may not win, and some poets are fine with that.
However, if you want to win, if you want to get on a National Poetry Slam Team, and if you want to see that Finals stage, you must work on your craft, tactics and strategy. You do not have to focus on winning, but you must understand that in slam, poems are tools. In a hot and heavy slam, unless the art slammer is phenomenally above and beyond the competition, the craft slammer will always, always win, and can actually do so with a weaker repertoire.
You can remain true to the emotion of poetry if you understand that the emotion that inspired the poem is still there. Use it when you hit the mic. But do not let that emotion interfere with your strategy and tactics. This is the Strategy of the Slam Poet.
What is "Score Creep"?
Score Creep is a poetry slam philosophy that during the course of a slam competition, the scores for performers gradually increase regardless of whether or not the quality of the poetry improves.
Score Creep is one of the most difficult aspects for slam poetry organizers to overcome when planning a fair slam. Remedies include:
* Having at least one, sometimes several "calibration" or "sacrifice" poets perform before the slam begins to absorb the low scores before score creep sets in.
* Rotating poets between rounds so that poets hurt by low first-round scores due to an early draw can benefit from late draws in later rounds, i.e., in a two-round slam with six poets: Poet A, Poet B, Poet C, Poet D, Poet E, and Poet F, reversing the order for round two Poet F, Poet E, Poet D, Poet C, Poet B, and Poet A would me that poets A & B who suffered low scores before score creep set in might benefit from their placement in the second round when score creep has arguably taken the scores higher.
Score Creep plays an active role in team slam strategy. The two strategies to compensate are The Anchor Strategy and The Front Load Strategy.
The Anchor Strategy
One way to overcome score creep is place your best last
Some teams prefer to place their weaker poets first so that low scores for weak poems are neglible to the team's overall score while stronger poets benefit from score creep later in the draw. This results in low first and second round scores and extremely high third and fourth round scores, i.e., 22 - 24 - 29.6 - 29.8. Invariably, the last, or "anchor," poet for a team scores the highest points for the team. In competitions wherein individual scores are also calculated, this catapults individuals into contention for top rankings.
For solo slams, this means reading your weaker poems first, then hitting hard with your best and greatest poems at the end. If you already have a reputation as a strong performer, the audience will anticipate your work, waiting for you to read your "signature" poems. If you hold off until later in the slam, your audience will reward you with higher scores.
The Front Load Strategy
One way to overcome score creep is place your best last
Some teams prefer to "front load" by placing their strong poets early the round, hoping that strong early poets can counterweight score creep's negative aspects while allowing weaker poets to benefit from score creep, resulting in more even scores across the board, i.e., 26.6 - 27.6 - 26.1 - 26.1.
For solo slams, this strategy requires you to hit hard and fast with your strongest poems, saving newer or weaker poems for later rounds. In slams that start unusually low, if average scores for the first round are in the 5s and 6s for instance, a powerful, polished poem in the front load strategy may score unusually high. This means your can rise to early lead, taking the pressure off for later rounds.
The weakness of this strategy is that if your first round poem doesn't score high, you're left with few options for later rounds.
Tips for your first time on the slam stage
Your name has just been called to the stage. Here are seven tips:
1. Enjoy yourself. Understand that at its core, slam is a gimmick to get non-poets interested in poetry. In the grand scale of things, a single slam poet is a cog in the machine moving society toward acceptance, respect and love of poetry.2. Remember that each and every slam is a crap shoot. We are letting a random group of people, usually non-poets, judge our work. Most judges have no clue about the craft of slam. They want to have a good time. They want to hear good poetry. They want to be moved. They want poets to rock the stage, blow them away and inspire them to write.
So do we.
If you take a score at a slam as a personal measure of your character, then slam is not for you.
Your work and your soul are separate entities.
3. Have fun. Slam is a game. Even if you lose, you will still have fun. Walk away from every slam with a new skill underneath your belt. Watch the poets who beat you. Know why and how they beat you. Was it tactics? Was it stronger poems? Were the judges on their side? Learn from the masters. Once you know how you lost, only then can you start to win.
4. Tactics do not take the place of talent. Write more. Read at open mics. Go to workshops or the writing circles. Surround yourself with poets, both slam and academic. Read other poets and if you feel something from their work, understand why.
5. Slam takes practice. On the national level, there are poets who have been doing slam for 15 years, and some date back to the first few slams almost 20 years ago. Listen to those poets who have several years of advice to offer. They have seen slam poets come and go; prodigies rise and fall. Listen and learn and strive to be a long-term poet, not a flash in the pan.
6. If you find yourself writing only slam poems, stop. Slam is an avenue of poetry like sonnets, haiku, erotica, or hip-hop. Slam is a genre, not the be all, end all of poetry. Most poems written for slam do not transfer well to page. If you are looking to ever publish a book, have your poems read by people you don't know, or by your descendants ages and ages hence, slam won't do it for you. Slam should be, at max, 10% of all your poetry.
7. Slam will not cure you. It will not satisfy. Slam is a drug. You will not wake up one morning and always win from then on. No matter your accolades, no matter your accomplishments, you will always have to struggle in each slam to measure your own talent. Any poet, rookie or veteran, can beat you. Thus, have fun and learn.
Use slam as a tool, like brainstorming or free writing, to write better poetry. Use it to network and build community locally and nationally. Success in slam comes not from winning slam after slam. It comes from building a community in which you are respected as a poet whether you're on the page, on the stage, or in the street.
Poet Dan Seaman from Prescott Arizona
From Poexplosion 3, held in Cottonwood, Arizona, on Dec. 13, 2008.
Dan Seaman returned to college at age 27 to pursue a Degree in Journalism because of his love of "words". In 1982, he was graduated from Northern Arizona University with a bachelor's degree in Journalism and an Extended Major in Photography, and a Minor in Humanities. He began in newspapers, moved into radio, and has been freelancing voice talent and copy writing for 20 years. His is the station ID voice for 106.7 FM/KPPV, and his voice can be heard on numerous radio and TV commercials. Dan gives voice/public speaking workshops. Contact him.
He later discovered the most powerful method of sharing one's self was through poetry, which he'd already been writing since he was 14 years old. So much for the college education...!?! He has been a Contributing Writer for theNoise (www.thenoise.us) -- a non-profit art & news magazine in Flagstaff, AZ for the past 3 years with his column "The Serial Poet". Dan has begun a new journal entry in this space as it regards his youngest son recently entering the U.S.M.C., and how this is impacting Dan's perceptions and realities -- Dan was a war protestor in the 60's & 70's during the Viet Nam Conflict. Parenthood: it has been a learning experience.
Books about slam poetry
Poetry Slam: The Competitive Art of Performance Poetry
Gary Mex Glazner, the official Poetry Slam Inc.'s Minister of Fun assembled this anthology of top slam poets long before Def Jam made poetry slam a common term. The features the best of the best including essays on various aspects of the art form. A must-have for any slam poet.
Amazon Price: $11.70 (as of 12/24/2009) 
Outspoken!: How to Improve Writing and Speaking Skills Through Poetry Performance
An excellent book on how to encourage students to develop self-confidence and public speaking skills through performance (slam) poetry. Co-author Michael Salinger is one of the biggest names in the national Slam Family.
Amazon Price: $29.76 (as of 12/24/2009)
The Spoken Word Revolution: Slam, Hip Hop & the Poetry of a New Generation
Are slam poets and academic poets doomed to fight like Jedi and Sith? Not so. The founder of slam poetry Marc "So What?" Smith and former U.S. Poet Laureate Billy Collins (2001-2003) join forces to discuss how spoken word, slam poetry and hip-hop only add to popular appeal of poetry in the English-speaking world.
Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)
Words in Your Face: A Guided Tour Through Twenty Years of the New York City Poetry Slam
Amazon Price: $12.21 (as of 12/24/2009)
Hewitt's Guide to Slam Poetry and Poetry Slam with DVD
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 12/24/2009)
"Tennessee" Mary Fons
Taylor Mali's "The Impotance of Proofreading"
Slam Poetry glossary
Talk the talk before you walk the walk
bout (n): A team competition, either a head-to-head (two team) contest, or a full-scale NPS (five team) slam, or a regional competition. For example, a tournament with eight teams may have four teams in the first bout, four teams in the second bout and the top two teams in the last bout.Bout Manager (n): A slam official who maintains order among the teams so the host can focus on the stage. A Bout Manager watches for possible rules violations, works as a liason between the host and the teams' coaches during a bout, ans is one of the deciding factors if a protest is brought forth.
"Calibration Poet" or "Sacrifice Poet" (n): A poet who reads before the slam to "calibrate the judges." The poem is judged, but the score does not count in the competition. Calibration poets are often the featured poet, poets who arrived too late to compete, regulars in the scene, the host or virgin poets who don't want to slam.
draw (n/v): The order in the round. Generally, poets who pull the first few slots in draw have a statistical handicap. Pray for a late slot.
drop a poem (v): forgetting it midway. The remedy is to have it memorized or be able to improvise. Slam audiences often start snapping their fingers when a poet drops a poem. Psychologically, this serves as: encouragement because it sounds like soft applause; a mnemonic tool because poets often snap fingers to remember a line; a subtle hint from the audience to "hurry up."
"East German judge" (n): the lowest scoring judge of the night. Often, appealing to them is how you win. If the judges are giving 9s for everything, but the East German is giving 6s for humorous poems and 8s for drama, do drama.
feature (n/v): A poet, usually on tour (local features are common in large slam communities), who gives a 10 to 45 minute performance before a slam starts or between rounds of a slam. In this case, the feature is usually considered the entrée of the event, with the slam itself as a bonus. Promoters usually highlight the feature poet as the reason for attending a slam. Thus, treat the feature like a visiting rock star or preacher. Generally, the feature is paid by the venue, host or organizer. Almost without exception, the feature is allowed to sell merchandise. Buy their merchandise for three reasons: 1:) touring is difficult and expensive. 2:) a feature has no long-term qualitative way to measure how they touched a crowd as they usually are on tour, but sales are quantifiable 3.) you will learn something from the merchandise, either a writing style, new phraseology, or how to prepare and market your merchandise. It is generally considered bad form for a feature to then compete in the slam.
identity poem (n): A poem that highlights a poet's age, race, color, creed, gender or gender identity, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, religion, disability, social class and/or subculture. Poets use identity poems to either highlight a difference they have from or similarity they have to the general demographic of the audience.
National Poetry Slam or NPS (n): The annual slam championship tournament, wherein three to five-person teams from North America and Europe compete against for the NPS title. Since it was founded in 1990 with just four teams, it has grown to nearly 80 and has become part Super Bowl, part poetry summer camp and part traveling exhibition, according to the PSI Web site.
Poetry Slam Inc. or PSI (n): The 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that oversees the international coalition of independent poetry slams.
rock star (n): A poet who always has a lead in a slam because of experience or the audience. If you can't beat them because of their experience, then aim for the next highest poet. Watch the rock star and learn why they are who they are.
rotation (v): The order in a round and between rounds. Random Rotation is the most dangerous for strategy and you must always be ready to slam in any slot. It generally is the most unfair numerically, but considered the most fair traditionally. Forward, Reverse, High to Low, (ABCDEF, FEDCBA, the highest score to lowest score) is one of the most egalitarian rotations. It gives all poets the strength and weakness of each round, though the poets in the middle in the first two rounds see little improvement or detriment. The weakness is that after the first three poets of the third round, the slam is usually decided. One-Third Rotation, (ABCDEF, CDEFAB, EFABCD or ABCDEFGHIJ, DEFGHIJABC, HIJABCDEF) is also considered fair though the first few poets still feel the crunch of score creep.
score creep (n): The biggest flaw in slam. Typically, the first few scores of a slam are lower than later scores, regardless of quality. Scores generally increase as the slam progresses even if the poem quality remains the same. The variance in rotation exists mainly to counter the problems of score creep.
signature (adj/n): A poem, topic, or style for which a poet is most known. The strength is that a poet can usually score well even if the signature poem is performed poorly or if the new poem in the genre or style is weak. For other poets, the counter-attack is to contrast the poem or its style. My signature poems are "The Peach is a Damn Sexy Fruit," "They Held Hands (The 9-11 poem)" and "English Major."
Slam Family (n): The national poetry slam community. We meet once a year at the National Poetry Slam and at other, smaller regional events. Networking online or with feature poets, booking touring poets or going on tour yourself incorporates you into Slam Family. It is open to all who compete.
SlamMaster (n): The poet, host, or organizer who is registered with Poetry Slam Inc. to be the official spokesperson of the venue and the scene on the national level. It handles registering teams and venues with the National Poetry Slam and other administrative operations. Most slams across the country use PSI-approved rules for slam.
slot (n): Your order in the round. Generally, poets who pull the first few slots in draw have a statistical handicap. Pray for a late slot.
spotter (n): a volunteer who helps the host get scores. Do not get in their way. Help only if necessary. Being too helpful may irritate the host, the audience, or the judges, especially if done poorly.
virgin (n): a poet who has never slammed before. After the slam, thank them for competing. If you heard their poem(s), tell them the lines you liked. If you didn't, at least ask them to come back to the next slam. Any virgin slammer is begging for acceptance in to the slam family. Make it a point to do so.
The 12 Virtues of Slam
Winning a slam is more than just performing good poetry; you must get into the mindset of a champion slammer
If you want to win, you must work on craft.Slam is a linguistic war. War is the purest art form because in war, you give everything you have. Slam is no different.
Slam poets have a number of unspoken virtues to which they all cling. While some good slam poets have done quite well without obeying some of these virtues, all great slam poets exhibit them.
The 12 Virtues of Slam
Preparation.
Memorize your poem or have your page reading skills down flawlessly. Mark notes or symbols on the page so you always know where you are if you have to read it. Start the poem in the middle and see if you can finish it. You never know when or if you may drop a poem. If the audience doesn't know, the judges will not fault you.
Introduction.
Get to the slam early and meet the host(s) and promoter(s). They dictate how you are announced. A host's inflection when announcing your name as you approach the stage does change scores.
Respect.
Off stage, be quiet. You do not have to listen to every poet, but do not be a distraction. If you are loud, disruptive, or look like you don't care, the judges will notice and it will affect you on stage.
Kinship.
Be friendly and invite your friends. Obviously, they should not be judges, but their applause and support may boost your score. It also makes performing easier. All a host wants is a full house. If you arrive with 10 friends in tow, the host is happy, the venue owner is happy, and that clout reflects on how they treat you on stage.
Additionally, poetry is about expressing the ideas of the individual to community to show a commonality of thought and thus, strengthen that community. When your friends meet strangers and get to know others in the community, it only makes that community stronger. Two strangers may meet at a slam that otherwise would never have met, and that is why we perform, rather than write poetry at home.
Homage.
At a slam, the host is god. To the audience, the host is infallible because they run the show. Even if the host screws up the order, puts the feature poet in the middle of a round, forgets to read scores, changes the draw or mispronounces your name, bring these issues to the host quietly, quickly, and professionally. The show must go on. Causing a scene in the crowd or on stage will hurt you, even if you are in the right.
Honor.
Treat every poet with respect. Slam is an honorable sport and slam poets are verbal samurai. We are here to promote poetry and improve our work. Slam is a sparring match, not an ego contest to prove you are better than another poet. The poet in last place tonight may have a 3-point lead at the next slam. They may wind up on your team. We are here for poetry, not your ego; know that the same muse guides you both.
Remember that there is a fine line between borrowing ("sampling") and plagiarism. It has been said Pay your dues. If you borrow a line or concept, give props to the initial writer. If someone tells you a certain line was good, and it wasn't originally yours, cite the writer. Plenty of otherwise good poets have had their reputations ruined - ranging from smack-talk to lower scores from judges in the know to outright banishment from a venue to lawsuits.
Keep this guideline in mind when and if you decide to borrow:
"One of the surest tests [of the superiority or inferiority of a poet] is the way in which a poet borrows. Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or at least something different. The good poet welds his theft into a whole of feeling which is unique, utterly different than that from which it is torn; the bad poet throws it into something which has no cohesion. A good poet will usually borrow from authors remote in time, or alien in language, or diverse in interest."
T.S. Eliot's book "Philip Massinger."
Confidence.
Be confident, but not arrogant. In the end, every poem is just words and it is up to audience to do something with them.
Grace.
Demonstrate grace. In part, every audience member and every judge subconsciously wishes they could be slamming. Make them see you as someone for them to admire. Most likely, the judges have never been on a slam stage. In the United States, public speaking is more dreaded than death. They are amazed that anyone can be calm on stage. Put them in awe of you.
Enjoyment.
Have fun. In the split second before you leave a stage and a judge raises a score, you are still on stage. Even if you dropped your poem, were reading on page, or have been drinking, if you look like you nailed the poem, and enjoyed it, the judges will reward you. They may not score you high on this poem but, if not, then maybe next round, or in another slam. Make it look effortless.
Nobility.
If you win, do not brag. If you lose, do not complain. Know that if you played your strategy right, you gave your best effort to win. If you play the right strategy, someone in the audience heard exactly what they needed to hear and/or was moved by poetry, the most common virtue held in esteem by both the Art Slammer and the Craft Slammer. You may have lost tonight, but there is always the next slam. You may have won tonight, but there is always the next slam.
Humility.
Always thank people for compliments. They may be judges or they may slam against you next time. Even if they never see another slam, make them walk away respecting poetry. A jerk may win tonight's slam, but they will not win 10 in a row.
Wisdom.
Walk away from each slam having learned a little more about strategy and more about poetry. You should have heard at least three lines that moved or inspired you and you should have a few ideas about new poems or ways of presenting old ones. Rather than ignoring or holding a grudge against an opponent, let their work inspire your own.
What's your style?
Craft Slammer or Art Slammer: In it to win it or in it for the word?
"Art Slammers" try to remain pure to the emotion that inspired the poem. They believe that the quality of poem alone will win the day, regardless of the tactics or strategy.
Art Slammers often quote Allan Wolf: "The point is not the points, the point is the poetry." They write and perform for themselves.
"Craft Slammers" try to choose which poems to slam to win. They disengage from the emotion when deciding what poems to perform then lock into that emotion when on stage.
Craft Slammers often quote Taylor Mali: "The point is not the points, the point is to have more points than anyone else." They write and perform for the audience.
Slam poetry CDs
Wisdom of the Root Cellar New Poems By
Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)
The Difference Between Left & Wrong
Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)
Poems from the Like Free Zone
Amazon Price: (as of 12/24/2009)
The Strategy of the Slam Poet: General Tactics
Strategy plays a major part in winning. Here are tips to help your strategy
Strategy is the science and art of command as applied to the overall planning and conduct of large-scale combative operations to win.Tactics is the science that deals with securing objectives set by strategy, especially the technique of deploying and directing resources in effective maneuvers against an enemy, i.e., opposing poets.
A slammer is a chess player. Your poems are rooks, knights, bishops and pawns. Use tactics of moving poems at the right time to a score a checkmate and win the slam.
The tactics and strategies are not a list rules to follow, but a list of observations of what works and wins. Even if you follow each point, an original poem written and presented creatively will always beat yours, even if, or especially because, it ignores every point below. The key is to always be original. Bend some rules, break others, but do so with intent.
General Tactics
Know the house rules.
Not all slams are run with official Poetry Slam Inc. regulations. Some only have three judges. Some have no time limits.
Feature poets.
They are touring the country because they are good. Whether they are page poets, spoken word artists, or slam poets, they are good at what they do. First, respect their sacrifice of traveling to visit you, and second, learn what they have to offer you as a poet and a performer. Do not leave when they are performing and do not worry about your performance in the following slam while they're on stage. Buy their merchandise: books, CDs, or DVDs as you can enjoy and learn from them.
Know your slot and be ready to go.
If the rotation is random, be ready to go after any poet. Practice your strategy by asking yourself, "If I had to perform after this poem, what poem would I slam?"
Keep an eye on the poet immediately before you.
See how they approach the stage and the mic and how they leave it. If your poem is meant to be more dramatic and personal, approach the mic with more dignity and grace. If the last poet was funny and you are doing a crazy, humorous, maybe you should run to the mic frantically. The poet before you left the last taste in the audience's mouth. Their residual affects your performance.
A slam is not a wine tasting, it is a starving man's buffet. There is no water to cleanse the palate. The audience and judges are tasting all the other poets before you, especially the one right before. Pair your poetry to match theirs to improve the flavor, thus winning the slam.
Appearance.
You can't judge a book by its cover, but you can guess what it's about by the title. The moment you get on stage, the audience is trying to evaluate you as a poet and person. Despite our ideals, the human mind immediately attempts to classify people by their age, race, color, creed, gender or gender identity, marital status, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, religion, disability, social class and/or subculture. As a performer, you can control of number of those characters. Appearance and dress can confirm or deny those characteristics.
Additionally, you can use people's assumptions against them by performing poetry that contrasts your actual identity or addresses assumed stereotypes. Audiences generally prefer interesting poets. A poet from group "A" who writes poetry expected from group "A" is not as engaging as a poet who comes from group "A" but writes poetry like groups "A" and "B," and a poet who blend groups "A" and "B" in their appearance, and writes like groups "A," "B," and "C," is even more intriguing. Don't wear a costume, as that's against the rules, but be aware of how you present yourself before you even speak.
An audience tries to identify you quickly. If your poem does not deal with stereotypes, identity, etc., then make your appearance easily understood so the audience isn't spending the first few moments trying to identify you as a person.
Judges' bias.
When planning poems, be aware of the judges and their biases. If you are performing at a college coffeehouse, poems about college life, grades, and having no money may strike a chord. With judges in their 60s, poems about history, politics, personal ancestry, childhood, and learning through aging could win. With five female judges, poems about women's rights, love, sincere emotions and gender equality might do well. With five men, humorous poems about sex, failing with romance, or working a dead-end job may score high.
Know your judges and give them what they want to hear.
A judge wants to know that they are not alone in their opinions and beliefs. Perform poems that they wish they could write or use poems to convince them to see the world through your eyes.
Know your judges and give them what they should hear, not what they want to hear.
A more complicated tactic is to take what the judges know and love and twist and turn through metaphor into what you want them to know and love, especially if it is the opposing concept. This is basic rhetoric. Even if the judge doesn't immediately change their beliefs, if you can make them see, you've won high marks.
Politics.
Know the politics of your crowd. If you are performing in a liberal arts college venue, the poetry can push the leftist envelope. If you are performing in rural Oklahoma at a conservative Baptist college, you may want to stay rightist. You don't need to change your political beliefs to win a slam, but you should be aware of the politics in your work and the crowd.
Watch you hands and arms.
Use your hands only when necessary and only to accentuate points. If the poem discussed grapes, pluck them; if it touches sensuality, use your hands to caress your invisible lover's hips, etc. Tape yourself, watch yourself on mute and see how silly you look with darting arms.
If the audience is intently watching you, that nervous jerking arm that happens every 10 seconds at the end of line begins to draw more attention than your words. Give the audience minimal distractions from your poetry.
Body language.
Be sure not to rock back and forth or side to side. It can be distracting, especially if the poem is low-energy. Every move you make says something to audience. Use your body as you would use your voice.
Prop fouls.
Slam has rules against props. The enforcement of these rules varies on the local and national level. A prop is anything that enhances the performance of the poem that is not available to all the poets. Thus, a microphone, a mic stand, and a mic are fair game, while an occasional chair or other item on stage is also sometimes usable. Ask the host before the slam starts. Most local scenes ignore minor or accident props, such as clothing, glasses, hair, etc., but the National Poetry Slam can get rigid with its interpretation. Some local scenes are even more militant about props. The interpretation is varied.
For example, a poem may mention wearing glasses. If the poet then touches their glasses, that is a prop foul. If they don't then it's usually OK. Logos on clothing, types of clothing, using one's pockets, logos on hats, tattoos, jewelry, etc., are usually considered props. Referencing hair, one's disability, race, or being pregnant have all come before PSI at various times. The basic rule is, if it's not a normal human function (having a certain skin color, being pregnant, being an amputee or growing hair) or if it's directly pointed to, it could be considered part of "costume," not available to all poets. Bottom line, if you got it, don't point at it.
Entertainment vs. boredom.
A high-energy, entertaining poem with varied dynamics will beat a dull, quiet, but better-written poem. Slam poets entertain our audiences. The audience came to feel art but also to be entertained.
Be open to criticism.
The best slam poets are always learning from other slammers, loyal fans, critics and first-time attendees. Poets go downhill when they get blinded by ego, wins, loses, or uniformity. Always try to change your style to keep opponents, the audience, and yourself on your toes.
Leave the stage quietly, quickly and efficiently.
The last thing your audience should remember of you is your last line, not how you stumbled away to shouted at the barkeep for a beer.
Humility is a virtue.
It is better to be confident but humble rather than confident and arrogant.
Control the microphone
How you sound to the audience is key. A brilliant poem suffers if the audience can't here you.
As musicians know their instruments and lawyers know the loopholes, poets must know their equipment. Effective mic control can be the difference between a 7.0 and a perfect 10.0. With a standard mic, direct it toward your face so that you can see a the ring (in red in the photo). Make sure it does not block too much of your face.Mic check: If you can get a mic check before the slam, do so. Listen for the nuances of the mic: popping, buzzing, high and low ranges, feedback, volume, depth, tinniness, resonance and fullness. Adjust your vocal performance accordingly.
Yelling: In a venue with an awesome sound technician and state-of-the-art equipment, you can yell into the microphone. Those situations are rare, if not impossible. If you yell in your poem, either back off the mic perhaps more than foot, move away from the mic, or position your head so that you are shouting over the mic and it is not picking up your voice. An audience does not want to lose hearing because of your passion for shouting. If you disrespect the mic by shouting, the judges will penalize you, regardless if they are aware of it or not.
Whispering: The most common flaw is that whispering comes off breathy and your words get cluttered and lost. The audience may not hear your lines. Rather than actually whispering, simply lower your voice, get close to the mic, and speak softly. The audience will understand your intent.
Dynamics: Three minutes of monotone is dull no matter how great the poem. Vary your vocal dynamics in both pitch and volume as you would in typical speech. Often rapid poems, hip-hop, or high-energy poems carry the same vocal tone and volume fro start to finish with occasional breaks for breathing. You can maintain the speed, style or energy but make your presentation diverse.
Barbara Adler
Barbara Adler
Barbara Adler
Barbara Adler
Brendan McLeod
Brendan McLeod
Brendan and Barbara
Brendan McLeod
Brendan McLeod
Brendan and Barbara
A little shock value in an image contributes to adding drama to what listeners will hear at a poetry event.
A Slam Tutorial
Christopher Fox Graham's picks for a typical slam
The following include my choices for a generic three-round slam, using my own poetry.as the fodder.
My personal preference is to hit the first round with either a flash and bang poem, a silly poem, or one of my memorized favorites. I have a terrible case of nerves before a slam, and hitting a polished piece gets me over the hump.
For round two, I prefer, like a lot of other poets, to perform a slow, personal, meaningful poem. A running joke among many of us in the national slam scene is that "In round two, everybody dies." These are where the breakup poems, death poems, suicide poems, and sorrowful poems find the most traction. The crowd is more subdued and willing to accept what you have to say. The flip side is that if the three or four poems ahead of you are personal poems, but low-energy downers, I sometimes throw a humorous poem to change the energy. If the scores are low, 7s and 8s, this can often score a high 8 or in the 9s. This sometimes backfires if the scores are higher because the audience wants to stay serious.
Round three is the most loose. If the night has been high energy, I go out high. If it's low energy, I usually perform one of signature poems or a polished poem. If I have a big lead or I'm way behind and statistically unable to place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd without more than a perfect 30, I'll perform something new that likely scores lower, just to test the piece. Also, if I'm in a situation where I'm feeling sentimental about the venue, the date, the slam itself, or personally, I'll perform a poem with personal value and forget about the scores. Additionally, I there's someone in the audience who I want to hear a particular poem, this is where I throw it.
Round One: An invocation to open the slam
Early in the first round, an invocation, much like one at the beginning of a church service, can put the audience in the mood for an intense slam. Many ancient Grecian performances began similarly, with an Invocation to the Muse.
Imagine a Religion
imagine a religion
where words
are scripture
and we only speak to pray
this is how she and I communicate
each word with salvation on its edges
the sounds of angels in our speech
and god in our sentences
I never want to open my mouth
let sound spill from my lips faithlessly
I want each word to move believers
in the way I have been moved
I want believers to quote my prose
knowing that faith is in the understanding of language
I want them to take vows of silence
except with speaking sincerely
no tone or breath should leave lips
without a purpose
except to shatter shackles
or build homes for those less fortunate
words should hammers become
raising walls and roofs beneath which families may flourish
words should be so valued
that each one is written down in sequence
we speak with this brevity of purpose
where minds lock hands with minds
dropping the illusion of wordplay
in favor of doubtlessness
imagine a world
where tongues speak truth without suspicion
where people are judged only
by what they say
imagine the death of chatter
imagine a society where small talk is sin
where strangers are silent
except when faith convicts them to sound
imagine a world where lies have no substance
imagine children learning that words must have weight
or they are useless,
imagine people speaking only when the spirit commands it
imagine a world where all strangers can be trusted
if they break their silence
to tell us their names
or stories of how they came to be here
imagine a world where lovers
whisper in the dark
only to say what haunts them
so we may whisper back, "fear not, I understand"
Round One: An invocation to open the slam
Early in the first round, an invocation, much like one at the beginning of a church service, can put the audience in the mood for an intense slam. This often works well in the first two slots, if the poem is well-rehearsed.
The Dust is Centuries Thick
For Erin
In the corners of this room,
the dust is centuries thick
accumulated from the hundreds of thousands
of footfalls that have shaken the hardwood floors
in the corners, the dust narrates stories
of surviving the earthquake that leveled the city of Lisbon
in 1755 but left this building standing
its tiled walls still echoes the voices
of the men from the 16th century
who filled this library
whispering to each other
the truths that they gleaned from illuminated books
this dust heard Napoleon at the gates
held safe the patriots that resisted him
the vaulted arches comforted both factions
in the civil war without choosing sides
to further divide the brothers already at war
the dust in this room withstood the revolution,
the coup d'état, the book-burners,
the two world wars
and the end of an empire
the dusted lasted all these years
but never has it seen anything
as beautiful as her
she, the dancer, glides across this hardwood floor
on bruised and battered toes
her arms ache from repeating the movements
until they are flawless
she takes the train
the bus, the metro
to come here
suffer the abuse of a teacher demanding no less
than perfection
she is intimidated by her own passion
yet will not surrender
she, the dancer, is artistry in motion,
skimming over the hardwood
with every limb, every ounce of her
articulating all the poetry that used to fill this room
books are no longer necessary
define beauty
watch her
what is art?
watch her
is there a god?
watch her
speak to me a radiant poem about a sun rise
watch her and the poem
will spill from lips like breath
she does not move like us
her muscles are an army
every part, an instrument
combining the chorus of her feet
with the brass of her legs
the strings of her arms
the percussion of her chest
beating her heart drum
in rhythm to the symphony of her presence
if the tiles had eyes
they would not blink
fearing that she would wisp away like a dream
in the sunrise streaming through the windows
fill this space with the memory of your movements
dance across these wood floors that creak underfoot
and ache to hold your steps
for a moment,
like a lover would
as she dances at the center of the world
the dust, in the corners of this room,
forgets all the years
forgets the wars, the blood, the books, the whispers
and she,
at this moment
is why this building stands
Round One: Heavy Social Advocacy
Living is tough. The world is unforgiving. While we all know this, there are certain incidents that hit us harder than others. As poets, our job to empathize and speak for those who can't.
This poem relates to an 8-year-old boy named Dylan, who hanged himself in Cottonwood, Ariz., in December 2004. On Jan. 22, 2005, a local 11-year-old, RayLynne hung herself. It was been the third such suicide by hanging in the Verde Valley in two months. The first was Dylan, then a 15-year-old boy, the son of Camp Verde's Town Manager.
The girl's mother had a meeting with me at the newspaper I worked at. The girl's grandmother had faxed a letter to the editor thanking local organizations and individuals for support and donations to the girl's funeral expenses. The mother wanted to add some names.
She came in Friday and she was tweaking on methamphetamine at the meeting. I helped her out as much as I could and made the changes she requested, but I wanted to punch her. I left work immediately after. I just wanted to break something. I wrote this poem later.
Three Minutes for Dylan
Wednesday, Cottonwood
7:07 p.m.
in the air the boy hangs
suspended above the floor like an angel
his lungs are vacant of sound and life
7:08 pm
the upstairs bedroom closet door opens
slow at first
and fear explodes
mother's hands
no! struggle! rope! throat!
no! phone! fumble! 9-1-1!
no! address! son! paramedic!
no! baby! come! quick! please!
no! son! son! son %u2026
Dylan %u2026
she had three minutes with him
three minutes alone
three minutes to contemplate
how her eight-year-old son
could hang himself
could jump from a chair
could prepare a closet
could tie a noose
could find his lungs vacant of a reason to live
could decide at 8
that life was not worth living
she had three minutes
before they arrived
and no answer when they did
there is a word
for a man widowed by a wife
for a woman widowed by a husband
for a child orphaned by parents
but there is no name
when a parent loses a son
because the thought is too terrifying
to imagine
he was trying to speak to us
but his lungs were vacant
before he jumped
but his lungs were vacant
before he tied the noose
the ritual of suicide
speaks a language of its own
with a gun - helpless fury in a moment
with a leap from a building - surrender to the world
with an overdose - a secret shame
with a bomb strapped to your body - rage wrapped in your people's despair
but with a hanging
every step must be calculated
and there can be no doubt
of your intention
but his vacant lungs either
did not speak before then
or we did not hear him
the medical examiner ruled the case closed
with no four play
and the paramedics added one more
atrocious anecdote to their nightmares
and we, at the newspaper,
had to grapple
with how to best word the headline
and write the story
of a child who was too silent to speak
whose lungs were too vacant of breath to be quoted
no one was charged in his death
but we are criminals
because none of us stopped him
none of us heard him
none of us offered him
three minutes of silence
to contemplate his value
to tell him he was an angel worth living
he tied the noose
he prepared the closet
he jumped from the chair
but we hanged him
by not hearing the scream held
in his 8-year-old lungs
his name was Dylan
these are the three minutes I'm giving him
your turn
Round Two: An intense personal poem
An intense personal poem often makes a good piece to read in the second round a three-round slam. Be wary if every other poet is doing the same. Your poem must stand out and relate to the audience. If it's too wrapped up in your nuances, personality or pr
She Only Loves Me When the Bars Close
she only loves me when the bars close
and no one else is willing to take her home
spilling drama Ibsen would envy
about this girl or that boy
who said or did something
we must deal with right away
even though the guilty parties
aren't around to argue the contrary
she comes in the back door
as my roommates sleep oblivious to the impending Armageddon
soon to destroy us all
fights past all my contradictions
to slip into my satin sheets
and call me to bed
no matter whatever late-night duties require my attention
I just want to sleep
without a stranger's tongue in my mouth
drift off to sleep alone and contented in my loneliness
without her arms wrapping envious tendrils around me
desperate for my attentions, tongue or cock
to remind her she's human and wanted
I've lived my days without a woman
to make me feel like a man
just give me a soft pillow
and dreams of past lovers
or memories of travels
or fictional visions of potential futures
and I drift into dreamland
with a smile until dawn
but she calls me to bed
to wrap myself around her
hold her like all the lovers she's left behind
I am not them
I am more than a body
with a hungry organ seeking a cathedral
to play my music in
while the seats sit empty of religious devotees
I don't need the fictions
that tonight is the night two twin souls find each other
one drunk on whiskey
the other loaded up with gin
making long island iced tea love
ripe with thick cigarette smoke on our breath
to stink the air beneath the sheets
she slips off her clothes
throws her panties to floor
as if the only key I needed to her moistness
was the lack of a cotton barrier
my hips learned the motions
the thrust and throb of hips
from wise women who could have taught
a hundred thousand men
the way to love properly
I have been a student of masters
who still make my head spin
years after they taught me how to play
one who showed me how a tongue can speak verse
by the way it flicks and glides across a clit
as if poetry was not the sound of words
but their movement in space
another who wanted to fuck everywhere but the bed
finding the best place of all
was an overloaded dryer
bouncing off-balance
while the buzzer went off every 15 minutes for hours
another who taught me the way to find perfect rhythm
is to pretend you're a jazz trio
accompanying a polka band
while the titanic sinks
loving a woman with hips and skins
takes intention and concentration
but their arts are wasted when you are, too
she calls for lips
pops a pill to ease herself
pulls close my muscles
and wants the better parts of me
to fill her
but when the competition is eighty proof
I see no reason to trespass on her intoxication
I want to love her
but her stories change too fast to trust
she stretches her limbs
rubs below my belt
to awaken what she thinks she wants
and opens her anime eyes to my otaku desires
but I've seen the way this ends
and no one in Neo-Tokyo lives to tell the tale
I am more than her cartoon perfect playmate
I've seen her pull the football out from her Charlie Browns
only she's left unsatisfied and oblivious
while they go off to find
little red-haired girls to love
she treats her pussy like a daytrip destination
instead of somewhere one wants to live
pay a mortgage,
build a white-picket fence
and eventually retire
we've all gotten postcards
from those who've been there before
and the mystery has become a cheap tourist trap
we only visit for the novelty
of saying we've been there, done that
she spreads her legs
to spill honey
but she's only catching flies
so I zip mine up
and sleep on the couch
by myself at least I'm with someone who loves me
for what I dream of
not what I dangle between my lonely thighs
she only loves me when the bars close
only calls after 2 a.m.
and I can tell her time zone
by checking the clock
each message begins with slurs
about missing me with extra "s"s
and how much she hates me for not calling back by three
but how much she loves me, but hates me, but loves me
whatever my name is tonight
she curses my lovers
points at their photos and says they'll never love me again
but that's not why I keep them
they loved me once
and that's all I have in the end
she hates my wall-hanging lovers
because she hasn't been one of them
she doesn't remember
the night I let go of these rules
slipped part of me into her
and watched her writhe with joy
as her hips shook uncontrollably over and over and over
she asked me the next morning if we fucked
they way you'd ask someone
if they'd read a news story
or seen a movie
or cleaned the rain gutters last year
if she can't remember
why remind her
I've fucked for fun
and for curiosity
but not to be forgotten
I don't need any more stamps in my passport
and I've visited countries like hers before
she only loves me when the bars close
but I don't serve what she's drinking
I only save her a barstool
pour water and soda until she's so drunk on her own vintage
that she doesn't know what time it is
drifts off to sleep in my arms
only then is she finally honest enough
for me to trust her
only unconscious, still and silent
do I believe what she has to say
only then
when she can't contradict me a thousand ways
I whisper what she wants to hear
Round Two: A personal poem about family
We all have family. For some, family is a footnote. For others, family is the most important part of life. For people like me, we don't really know how important they are until their gone. Any audience member can appreciate that distinction.
We Call Him Papa
for Frank Leslie "Buster" Redfield
May 14, 1925 - Oct. 31, 2004
What makes this topic so important to me personally is that my grandfather and I shared 25 years on Earth, but I learned more about him in the last six hours we spent together talking, both knowing his cancer was terminal, than I did in the 25 years before those hours. The tragedy is that my grandfather had to die for me to truly understand what I had lost and what he meant to me. That lack of understanding for so long is the only sin in my life I truly regret.
we call him Papa
and he could move mountains with his silence
he fathered a family of artists
who knew the value of labor
the efficiency of expression
if it is unclear, rephrase it
if it is unusable, remove it
if it is imperfect, rework it
until it is as much a part of you
as a limb
he never said this
but his life implied it
his stone eyes
edited lies from our speech
before we could speak them
his hands held me tight once
after I sinned
they held me soft
when my father translated himself
into a mythology
I've since ceased believing in
his hands were the tools
with which he spoke through his silence
he carved and crafted rifles
like Stradivarius made violins
and the first recoil
was a symphony
compressed to a split second
he brought wood to life
as though generations of forests grew
to make the right grain
the right feel worthy of his talent
he did not build airplanes,
he built aircraft with the precision of a heart surgeon
knowing a loose screw, one misaligned wire
could transform a craft of beauty
into a coffin
and wife like his into a widow
he made no widows
except one
he crafted art that soared like mechanical angels
and made us feel
how he must have felt with Grandma
even in his absence he scares me
because he was so much more
of what a man should be
than the men I see around me
than the man who fathered me
he was sometimes the machine moving me
he was sometimes the monster under my bed
keeping me from going gently into the night
without fighting the darkness
he was sometimes a giant
stretching hands from horizon to horizon
holding down the sun and moon
and dictating their rising
I am convinced that eastern Montana
is so perfectly flat
in awe of him
we call him Papa
and he could move mountains with his silence
I never heard him say he loved her
not in words
not in a way I could steal
not in a way that the cheap poet in me
could have plagiarized into a stanza
for some mediocre poem unworthy of his memory
I never heard him say he loved her with words
he said it with his eyes
he said it in the stories my mother would tell me
about how he would raise armies and wage wars
just to bring her flowers
he said it with the way he told me
about driving across New York and Pennsylvania every weekend
just to see her for two hours between college classes and curfews
he said he loved her by playing "waltzing matilda" on a harmonica
like he was asking her to dance for the first time,
even after all these years
he said he loved her
by showing us how good man
should love a woman right
we call him Papa
and he could move mountains with his silence
he is the poet
me, his eldest grandson,
I am just his microphone
Round Two: A Controversial Issue
Be it abortion, gay rights, domestic violence, or suicide, controversial issues all have personal stories behind them. Whatever your politlcal or social leaning, putting a human face on the subject makes the topic more than a cerebral debate.
This poem covers a topic of dear friend of mine and her boyfriend at the time who had to travel to New Mexico to have an abortion. She was under age 18 at the time and could not have an abortion in Arizona without her parents' approval. They did not know she was pregnant.
A Moment in Albuquerque
thump, thump
thump, thump
two hearts
one body
thump, thump
thump, thump
familiar landscapes drop away
in the rearview
summer moments falling behind
into the anxious embrace of the autumn
missed moons and winter choices
keep or cut loose
thump, thump
thump, thump
tires kiss asphalt
the way he kissed her
intentional and unavoidable
between the lines
between the sheets
the inevitable path onward
heads to skin to gas tank
skin to breath to pistons
breath to hips to axle
hips to rhythm to tires
rhythm to climax to road
and the headlights illuminate
the silent afterglow
thump, thump
thump, thump
the geography of bodies and maps
tell stories of our history
lovers' names tied inexorably to cities,
hometowns and vacation destinations
cities we've fled from or fled to
cities we met lovers or lost them
cities we've yet to see
or want to never see again
for her, Albuquerque carries a memory
most men can't comprehend
though the mathematics of the choice
we can calculate and counter
two bodies and a moment
equals three heartbeats in two skin
and a choice to subtract one in Albuquerque
thump, thump
thump, thump
November seems unseasonably cold
maybe it's the 80 mph highway wind
against the chassis
the silent air between them
as the miles tick by
thump, thump
thump, thump
what small talk should we have?
whatever slips of lips
seems woefully insignificant
if it evades the subject inside you
weather, road, womb, reaching fingers
desperate to comfort
so we say nothing
watch the passing headlights
chase the taillights ahead
from 89A to 17 to 40
thump, thump
Flagstaff
thump, thump
Holbrook
thump, thump
"Welcome to New Mexico"
one of you won't be leaving
thump, thump
Gallup
thump, thump
Albuquerque
thump, thump
we made the choice before we left
thump, thump
three becoming two
thump, thump
two heartbeats, one body
thump, thump
moment
thump, thump
choice
thump, thump
consequence
thump
thump
an equation
a city
a memory
and the ambivalent road
Round Three: A love poem with a dash of humor
By the third round, surely someone has slammed a love poem. Perhaps everyone has dropped a poem here or there. They best way to turn the slam on its head is with an over-the-top humorous poem that tackles poetry's favorite subjects: love, sex, lust.
Breakfast Cereal
for Gretchen Ryan Hays
I like you like breakfast cereal
choc full of goodness
because I want have you first thing in the morning
while watching cartoons
as a reward for being for being good
or really, really naughty the night before
I like you like breakfast cereal
because I feel all soft and soggy inside
when I'm around you
like a marshmallow
tender and squishy
I like you like breakfast cereal
you have green clover in your hips
and red balloons in your lips
I want to make love to you under the yellow moon
and let all the blue stars watch
and I find myself following purple horseshoe prints to find you,
tracing them with my finger back around to you
I like you like breakfast cereal
and I like feel that stupid rabbit trying to catch you
and I could put on silly costumes
and tell you long-winded stories
and try to distract you long enough to get just a taste of you
but tricks are for kids
and we promised to be honest
so honestly -
you have been part of my complete breakfast
ever since I saw you across the room
and tasted you with my eyes
imagining your flavor
my tongue gets twisted in fruit loops
I am so lucky, so charmed to have you
I like your packaging - simple but really pretty
I feel like a Cap'n in your arms
I am coco for your CoCo Puffs
you make me cheery, oh... so cheery
I think of you first thing in the morning
and how you have enough vitamins and minerals when you blush
to keep me healthy all day long
I want a bowl of you every morning
until I am too old to pick up a spoon
and have to have you though a straw
I will follow you to France and make toast
or Florida to squeeze oranges
or South America for bananas
but you don't need anything extra to make me like you
I could have you wet ... or dry
quickly on a lunch break
at 2 a.m. all drunk and sloppy
on a camping trip
or while driving cross country in a Waffle House parking lot
you're satisfying anywhere
I want you three times every Saturday morning
when there's no school, no work,
and when we can play till Sunday
because your contents don't shift during shipping and handling
and none of your ingredients are artificial
you are naturally flavored
and so painfully sweet it hurts my teeth when I see you
I will like you until all my teeth fall out
Round Three: A poem that celebrates the power of poetry
You're at a poetry slam and it's the last round. Chances are, the audience is already in awe of all the poetry they've heard, so now's the time to rub it in by talking about how powerful poetry can be.
Spinal Language
give me a tattoo
deeper than skin
on the bones of my spine
onto the surface of every vertebrae
in every human tongue
tattoo their word for "poetry"
so that no language feels foreign anymore;
so that each human voice
can speak a word in me
let Arabic and Hebrew
sit side by side without throwing stones
let Cantonese and Hindi characters
link hands to hold Swahili and Hutu in a hammock
let Basque and Zulu finally touch lips Vietnamese
while Navajo rests it's head on the shoulder of Malay
we speak six thousand tongues
but i'll endure the pain and the time
so no human voice can speak to me
without being felt
down to the bone
let African syllables
share space with European articulations,
Asian morphemes,
and Aboriginal pronunciations,
line them up and engrave them
like an organic barcode written in Braille
readable by the worms that will one day convert me back
to the religion of dust and ash
that we believed in once
before this cult of flesh and blood
brought us out from clay
to play brief characters in the rain
let them taste the flavor of our words
let them consume poetry
and give it back to the soil
so the earth can feel the weight of our words
and not forget us
when we extinct ourselves
like the species before us
carve the last word
in morse code
at the base of my spine
so that I can hear the rhythm of the word
in my hips when i sleep
.--. --- . - .-. -.--
let dots and dashes spread
across all my bones in a virus of comprehension
so if i lose my voice
I can still speak a word
by tapping my fingers,
pounding a drum
or changing the rhythm of my heartbeat
to speak with my blood
imagine
six thousand tongues
playing my spine
in 33-part harmony
making a symphony of me
with a melody that reverberates
up my spinal cord
echoing louder and louder in the tunnel
amplifying the compounding music
all the way to the base of my brain
where it detonates
and resonates inside my skull
ricocheting
six thousand new expressions
for the same word
with the voices of six billion singers
into my six trillion thoughts
until I can take no more chaos
and their song explodes from my lips
offering the world
a moment of synchronized understanding
of one song
of one voice
of one man
for one instant
before the world blinks
loses focus
and listens to the echo
slowly fade away
Round Three: The signature poem
All slam poets become "known" for certain poems. When the chips are down and you need a perfect 30, or you're so far ahead you want to reward the audience regulars, a signature piece is a thumbprint of you and your work.
The Peach is a Damn Sexy Fruit
the Peach is a damn sexy fruit
if I could love a fruit like a woman
I would love a Peach
strong but soft
sweet but tart
the fuzz tickles my nose
and the sticky dewiness
is finger-licking good
you can keep your apples
Mr. Johnny Appleseed
that turn brown in minutes
you can have your bitter grapefruit
the blinder of eyes at breakfast
tempt me not tomátoes or tom%u0103toes!
cucumbers and zucchinis
those transvestite fruit
masquerading as vegetables!
for shame!
be true to yourselves!
do not deny that you were born as
and will always be fruit!
Coconuts require hammers, screwdrivers, or stones
and I am not into fetishes
Raspberries are too fragile
and can not love my volatility
Strawberries went corporate and sold out
now just fruits of the Man
Bananas are too exotic, too high maintenance
I have no patience for their ego
Cherries are but pop culture prostitutes
in everything from couch syrup to antacids to condoms
give me truth!
give me tenderness!
give me consistency!
give me a Peach!
give me Peaches!
give me millions of Peaches
Peaches for me
millions of Peaches
Peaches for free
you can eat a Peach voraciously
diving into juicy goodness
dribbling down your chin,
or eat it slowly in slices - one by one
you can nip off the skin
bit by tender bit
in a slow seduction
and tongue and suck it to the end
or you can rub that Peach into your face
eating it like a drunk starving monkey
and leave the orgasmic dew
on your cheeks and lips for hours
when complete,
no matter how consumed
you have the core
as a reminder that we are all the same
beneath it all
when our flesh, youth, and vitality are gone
yet...
you can bury the Peach core
to be born again
because the Peach embodies hope
because the Peach embodies life
the Peach is a message
the Peach is sensual
the Peach is you and me
the Peach is a damn sexy fruit
Give me your feedback
-
Reply
- Kimberly Cook Kimberly Cook Nov 20, 2009 @ 3:30 pm
- That Peaches Poem has changed my life
-
Reply
- Mar 28, 2009 @ 1:55 pm | in reply to Jessica_Burde
- Thea easiest way to find "registered" slams - those that annually send a team to the National Poetry Slam and which are usually more established, larger slams - is by checking the "find a slam" link on Poetry Slam Inc. You could also check your local newspaper. Poetry slams are also easy to start, all you need a venue, microphone, amp, and audience.
-
Reply
- Jessica_Burde Jessica_Burde Mar 28, 2009 @ 7:30 am
- I've heard references to slam before, but never really knew what it is. Any suggestions on how I can find slam in my area?
Jessica
http://www.squidoo.com/jessicaspoetry
Make a simple love poem a great one
Love poems seem easy: "I love you, now, please love me back." The key is to turn that most simple of concepts into a great poem. Try rich visual imagery and extended metaphors, known as poetic conceits, to expand that idea into a winning slam poem.
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