Video: iWrite – Ode To The City
I’m sorry guys, but wordpress has changed up on me. I can’t post videos directly to the page. So to watch the video, just click on the link below. I posted this poem to my poetry blog the other day. I wanted to record it though. Let me know what you all think…and make sure you check out Peace of Me.
iWrite.
“I Will Wait For You” – V.O.W.
Being honest, usually when people post or send stuff to me on Facebook, I ignore it. I’m not a real big Facebook-head like I used to be. However, so many people were talking about this particular video that I had to watch.
Boy was I blown away.
I admit, a lot of the Christian poets that I’ve seen haven’t really hit the mark when it comes to spoken word. I mean the ability to braid God’s truth with metaphors and similes. I haven’t even come close to being able to do that. Maybe I’m just blind or ignorant to the good Christian poets out there (besides the ones that run in my own circle 🙂 but this woman of God blew me away. She is an official poet of P4CM (Poets 4 Christ Movement) a church based in Los Angeles, CA. I don’t know much about the poet known as Janette, but I promise when I find more, you’ll know. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
“Brave New Voices. Courages Old Souls.”
Queen GodIs is responsible for the title in this post. It is fitting.
I watched a video from the BNV 2010 DC team. It is the only one from our city but I am proud. This woman, though whispering most of the piece, has a voice so loud that it will be heard in the hearts of everyone that hears it. I was paralyzed by her passion and pierced by her transparency. This piece is the voice of many. My prayers go out to those whose voices have been muted by fear.
I’d love to hear your reactions.
iWrite.
V.O.W. – Queen GodIs
Queen GodIs – the true essence of an artist. When I tell you that this woman inspires me, she reaches the deepest parts of me and tickles my fancy until my soul smiles. She is GREAT. Everything that I want to be. A Poet, a woman, beautiful, strong, confident, RESPECTED. She coached the 2007-2008 Urban Word NYC team that went on to compete in the Brave New Voices slam poetry competition last year. She has a CD entitled “Power U” available right now (go cop that, cause I am). Her resume exntends far beyond the boundaries of this computer screen for she invests time in motivational speaking, teaching workshops and recording her second album. Please take the time to watch her in action. I promise, you won’t be sorry that you did.
5 Q’s with Spitfire
Cherece, aka “Spitfire”, is a wife and mother, but mostly she is a writer. She has been writing since the 90’s and performing Spoken Word since 2001. She enjoys the added dimension that performing brings to the written word. She will soon expand her love of the written word into a fantasy novel. diVERSEcity asked her a few questions. Here’s what she had to say:
Why do you perform spoken word? What kinds of things inspire you?
I found that I had words, thoughts, and actions colliding in my head. Writing them down was great, but SHARING them was better. I’m able to put all my emotion into a performance. As to what kinds of things inspire me? Man! What doesn’t! Seeing a red flower where you didn’t expect one, the sky, my interactions with people. I try to find inspiration in any and everything.
Is there a difference between spoken word and poetry recitals?
I think there is a difference. A poetry recital is just that, a recital. You are speaking someone elses words. However great they may be they belong to someone else. Spoken word is much more of a perfomance, and, more often than not, the words are original and specific to the speaker.
How often do you write something new?
I don’t write new things as often as I’d like to or as often as I should. Creativity is a muscle. If it’s not exercised it gets weak. This is why adults are less imaginative than children. (Now I’ve shamed myself into having to go write something!)
If you could perform on any stage, where would it be?
I think I’m going to sound odd here. I would like my stage to be a movie screen. Movies are International. You reach SO many people that way. I want to have the longest possible reach creatively speaking. Barring that I’d LOVE to be on Broadway producing an all poetic stage play of the black experience from Slavery to the Present!
If you could do a collaboration with any poet, famous or not, who would that person be?
I would LOVE to collaborate with King Solomon! That man had a way with words that transcends time. Proverbs and Song of Solomon touch me every time I read them. Next in line would be his dad King David!
Live Hope Love
Dr. Spaulding, my MCOM407 professor, sent me an email with this link simply in it. The subject read: Journalism and Poetry. She had me hooked. I clicked the link and it went to Mindy McAdams “Teaching Online Journalism” blog. She had featured this photostory that a man named Kwame Dawes created.
McAdams talks about the uniqueness of this project because of the poetry that Dawes uses instead of the typical monotone nararator voice of most multimedia journalism porjects. The project talks about HIV in Jamaica. Writer and poet, Kwame Dawes travels to Jamaica to explore how HIV has effected the lives of natives.
He has a series of poems, slideshows, documentaries and essays compiled on one website. These poems are amazing. Hearing them in his voice with the power of the photographs adds to the awesome-ness of this project. Click on the picture to go to the website.
Mindstate Mixtape
So, after a conversation with one of my avid readers (who shall remain nameless…ahem…thanks Janae!) I got more information about the group in my previous post. Their name is actually Mindstate. After a little research, I found out that one of the founders of Mindstate is actually a Towson Alumna; J Pope is her name. The artists in the video are J Pope, Black Root, Wordslave, and LOVE the Poet. According to their website, Black Root shared his vision for Mindstate Mixtape with J Pope mid-year 2008.
“It [is] a terrific way to promote and support the Baltimore, DC and the Greater Metropolitian area (the DMV) and reach a broader audience of people displaying their talents bestowed upon them.”
The actual mixtape is called Mindstate Mix Vol. 1 and is available on their website. I’ll have another video up real soon from them. Their an awesome group that mixes hip-hop, R&B, poetry and just pure hotness! Be on the look out for another video!
iWrite
The Facebook Poet
There are so many people that would consider themselves “The Facebook Poet” (in fact, I used to be one of them) but out of my friends list, there has been only one person that stood out. A 26-year-old poet from Jamaica, NY, Matthew Bacchus is a writer and an avid believer of the word of God. I haven’t had the pleasure of interviewing him as he is a busy man, but I was granted permission to feature some of his poetry on my blog in a passing wall post. Bacchus currently has 398 notes on Facebook, most of which are his own poetry.  He writes a new peice almost everyday (according to my Facebook newsfeed). I’m not sure if he performs but he’s a pretty good poet. I would love to hear some of his work live.
Finish the Race
by Matthew Bacchus
Tired
Weary
Tired of the Journey
Tired of running this race
Feeling like I will never make it
Feeling like its too late
Feeling like this is a waste
How about if I just give up now
Turn back around
Go back to doing things as usual
Staying in my comfortable shoes
I must have been a fool
To try to run this race
This race is not for me
The process is too long
I am not strong for this
I am too weak
I am going back
I turn around to head back
The voice of God say the race is not given to the swift
It is not given to the strong
That why you feel this journey is too long
It is given to the one that endures
Your trying to run the race on your own strength
You wont make it to the end
God is the source of your strength
He is the strength of your life
Are you determine to hold on to the end
Continue running your race
Tie up your lace
You dont have time to waste
Finish what you started
God is going to finish just what he started
Even if the water has to be parted
Dont be broken hearted
God is going to finish what he started in you
He will complete his work
You continue the work
Finish the race
You will realize that your running was not a waste
iWrite – "I Witness"
As IÂ sifted through a plethora of videos in my video folder I found a video of me performing one of my favorite poems about three weeks ago at this event at Morgan State University called Paradise Lounge. It was a cool event; some poetry, some dance, some live music. I enjoyed myself. Here’s the poem in it’s entirety.
Video of the Day: "P.O.W."
Alicia Keys performed this peice on Def Poetry Jam Season 2. It is very reminiscent of a Maya Angelou performance: powerful, precise and delivered with passion. This particular poem “P.O.W.” comes from her book entitled Tears for Water.
The Twitter Poet
140 characters — Twitter has become the mega-platform for this term. One poet has taken advantage of this and decided to take it a step further by tweeting poetry.
Leif Baradoy is an Operations Manager for a non-profit organization that helps people end extreme poverty by changing the way they give gifts during the holidays based in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Baradoy decided to tweet poetry on April 1 of last year — however it was no April Fools joke. Leif has been tweeting a poem atleast once a day since then.
“I thought it would be an interesting new media experiement. I wanted to offer people little shots of art to influence their perceptions throughout the day–give people the opportunity to be surprised by a phrase or image that cuased some emotional reaction in them.”
I thought to find someone out there who tweets poetry after sitting in class itching for my pen and pad. I thought, “I wonder if there is a poet who tweets poetry.” I found that there are SEVERAL poets that do just as Baradoy does. He says that he follows several twitter poets. Just to name a few:  @momku, @perpetualpoem, @irenekaoru, @TwitterBard.
There is method to the madness. Because of Twitter’s nature, 140 characters is the limit. So, Baradoy and poets alike are constrained to say a few bars. Baradoy says that he usually tweets lines from longer poems. Which means that often he does not tweet specifically for Twitter.
“I’m not overly concerned about gaining followers or having my work retweeted. A more strategic poetic might work to incorporate breaking news into a poem.”
While twitter is not Baradoy’s number 1 influence, he believes that each poetry tweet should be able to stand on it’s own, even if it is from a larger work.
iWrite
5 Q’s with Under_Score
Why do you perform spoken word? What kinds of things inspire you?
I perform spoken word for a bunch of reasons. One of the main reason is because it’s a serious challenge to who I am as a person. Overcoming the fear of the mic, the discomfort of being the focus of each eye in the room… it’s so much freedom in that, and I love it! The two things that inspire me the most are people’s passion and God’s love. Both motivate me to give it up a little bit more, in their own ways.
Is there a difference between spoken word and poetry recitals?
Absolutely. To me, spoken word and poetry aren’t necessarily
synonymous. Spoken word really meshes the written skill with the
performance ability. I’ve written some poems that should never be
performed as spoken word because they lack the performance aspect in
the creative thought process.
How often do you write something new?
I write something almost everyday. Usually, I’ll get some random inspiration from somewhere and I have to hurry up and write it down… even if it’s only a phrase. On the other hand, completed performance pieces might come once every month.
If you could perform on any stage, where would it be?
Will there be a stage in heaven?
If you could do a collaboration with any poet, famous or not, who would that person be?
Two choices: Langston Hughes or Brook Yung. Hughes’ writing seems to break all the rules of traditional poetry, but it also maximized on painting a picture that cannot be ignored. Mother to Son and Suicide Note are great examples. B. Yung is a younger poet whose skill both on paper and behind the microphone are ridiculously inspiring. Though I’ve never met him AND he’s like 5 years younger than me, I’ve really learned a lot on being a better artist from watching him.
HBO & Russell Simmons Present: Brave New Voices…the series
“One part Def Poetry Jam and two-parts documentary, Brave New Voices is a docu-series that features the finest young spoken word artists in the country.”
Not just African American, but poets of all races, backgrounds and religions. On HBO’s brand new series Brave New Voices, poets from all over the country speak words of empowerment, enlightment and truth at Local and National Youth Speaks Poetry Slam Competitions.
“It’s a medium that almost anybody can tap into,” says the Executive Director of Urban Word in NYC Michael Cirelli. The first episode is available on the Brave New Voices series website. Â
 These poets have brave NEW voices. Young poets with old minds and old ideologies come together with a new voice; a fresh voice: a voice that inspires the teens and the young people who the older folk can’t get to.
“It’s like I got this fire in my chest that ya’ll can’t see,” says the very first featured artist B. Yung. B. Yung is among some of the most prominent Brave New Voices poets. He is featured on several YouTube clips. On the premiere episode, he eventually makes the New York Slam Poet Team and travels to Washington, DC to compete in the National Competition with four other poets.Â
I’ve been waiting for a show like this for a long time. Brave New Voices is something that has been in the shadows for a while. These young people have vowed to make a difference and to spark change with their words. Having it televised is just another “table” on which to sit their pen and pad open for the world to read.
The first episode aired Sunday April 5, 2009 @ 11PM. You can catch it every Sunday at 11 on HBO. And if you don’t have HBO (like most of us who refuse to give Comcast a million dollars) you can check it out on HBO’s youtube channel.
What is "spoken word"?
“Spoken word is a form of literary art or artistic performance in which lyrics, poetry, or stories are spoken rather than sung.” That’s what Wikipedia says. But it must be more than that.
Eric Borden, a local Christian spoken word artist, quotes the Newark Youth Slam Team in their poem entitled Save Somebody’s Life:
 “Spoken word is more than just cliche phrases and teenage phases… it’s about making changes.”
That’s the point: to change. Spoken word has become this form of spoken advocacy used by urban youth all over the country to spark emotions or feelings amongst a crowd. Ultimately, spoken word has become the voice of a generation known to most as Generation X; a generation the world thought would never make it. We are drenched with titles such as It Rained Last Night (Abortion Poem), Coded Language and Imagine. Or even screamed at by artists like Yellow Rage and Georgia Me. For most, even the average person sitting on a park bench, pen in hand with a chewed top and a tattered notebook, poetry is an outlet. Spoken word has just found a way to bring the notebook to the stage and open it to allow everyone to read.
Poetry has been recited, read, analyzed and assigned in 12th grade classrooms for papers but how often have you had the priviledge of getting the authors exact emotion portrayed in the reading? Spoken word is the art of a poet ripping out his heart and merging it with yours.
Speakeasy DC
Just another spoken word cafe — or not. Atleast that’s what I thought when I typed “spoken word” into a Google search.
These “poets” aren’t poets at all. In fact, they’ve been dubbed storytellers by Speakeasy DC, an organization of performers dedicated to “entertaining, creating meaning, and building community through the creation and performance of original stories drawn from real-life experience.”
I had never heard of anything like it before, but apparently they have a topic and they tell a story about it. Pretty simple, right? I don’t think so. Try asking me to stand up infront of an audience and freestyle about an experience that I endured; definitely couldn’t get me to stand up there.
I think it’s cool though. There are all different types of people that perform here. Old, young, white, and black, and everything in between! I think I might check it out one day. The events calendar looks pretty full; something going on almost every week! Definitely looks worth a trip to DC on a Saturday evening.
iWrite
diVERSEcity 