- Key People:
- Saul Williams
- Related Topics:
- Poetry
- poetry reading
- poetry slam
slam poetry
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What is slam poetry?
Slam poetry is a type of performance poetry that combines performance, writing, competition, and audience participation. The concept originated in Chicago in the 1980s by Marc Kelly Smith, who wanted to bring poetry back to the people.
Slam poetry is now an artistic movement that has inspired poetry slams worldwide and influenced modern culture in areas like political movements, art, media, literature, and entertainment. These slams take place in parks, bookstores, coffeehouses, and bars. Though rules vary, there are some general guidelines that are often followed, including time limits and a cap on the use of props or musical instruments.
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How is slam poetry different from traditional poetry?
Slam poetry is a type of performance poetry that combines performance, writing, competition, and audience participation. Traditional poetry is primarily written to be read, while slam poetry is written to be performed.
Slam poetry originated in Chicago in the 1980s, when Marc Kelly Smith wanted to bring poetry back to the people. Smith created a weekly poetry event where anyone could participate by performing their work and being judged by five random audience members. Slam poetry has become one of the most accessible forms of poetry available.
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What happens during a slam poetry performance?
Slam poetry performances, or poetry slams, blend elements of performance, writing, competition, and audience participation. Originating in Chicago in the 1980s, poet Marc Kelly Smith sought to revitalize poetry by creating a weekly event where anyone could perform.
Today, poetry slams follow general guidelines that include time limits and the absence of props or musical instruments. These events are held in various venues and judged by audience members, who score poets on a scale of 0 to 10. Slam poetry has grown into an artistic movement influencing modern culture and inspiring numerous poets.
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Who can participate in a poetry slam?
Anyone, regardless of age, race, sex, education, class, disability, gender, or sexuality, can participate in a poetry slam. These slams are open to anyone who wishes to perform their original work, without the use of props or musical accompaniment.
The rules may vary by venue, but these are the general guidelines that are often followed. Poet Marc Kelly Smith created the poetry slam in Chicago in the 1980s to bring poetry back to the people.
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What are some common themes in slam poetry?
Slam poetry is a performance-based art that emphasizes audience participation, writing, and competition. As an artistic movement, it has impacted modern culture, influencing political movements, art, media, literature, and entertainment. Though some find its competitive nature unfair, slam poetry has become one of the most accessible forms of poetry.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles. -
How does slam poetry influence social issues and communities?
Slam poetry is an artistic movement using performance, writing, competition, and audience participation. Poet Marc Kelly Smith created it in Chicago in the 1980s to bring poetry back to the people.
Slam poetry has grown into an artistic movement that has inspired poetry slams around the world. Slam poets have influenced many aspects of modern culture, such as political movements, art, media, literature, and entertainment. It has also become one of the most accessible forms of poetry available.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
slam poetry, a form of performance poetry that combines the elements of performance, writing, competition, and audience participation. It is performed at events called poetry slams, or simply slams. The name slam came from how the audience has the power to praise or, sometimes, destroy a poem and from the high-energy performance style of the poets.
Origins
The concept of slam poetry originated in the 1980s in Chicago, when a local poet and construction worker, Marc Kelly Smith, feeling that poetry readings and poetry in general had lost their true passion, had an idea to bring poetry back to the people.
(Read Howard Nemerov’s Britannica essay on poetry.)
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Smith created a weekly poetry event—the poetry slam—where anyone could participate. Poets would perform their work and then be judged by five random audience members on a scale of 0 to 10. Out of the five, the highest and lowest scores were dropped and the three remaining scores were added to give the poet an overall score. Whoever had the highest score at the end of the competition was deemed the winner.
The first venue to host poetry slams was the Get Me High Lounge on the West Side of Chicago. After two years the slam moved to the Green Mill, a jazz club in the city’s Uptown neighborhood on the North Side. There it developed into the format that many slams came to follow.
Guidelines
Poetry slams are held in any venue that welcomes them, such as parks, bookstores, coffeehouses, and bars. Although the rules associated with poetry slams may vary by venue or event, there are general guidelines that are often adhered to:
- Anyone, regardless of age, race, sex, education, class, disability, gender, or sexuality, can compete.
- Poems can be about any subject but typically are supposed to be the creation of the performing poet.
- Poems are not to exceed a 3-minute limit (with 10-second grace period); if they do, points are deducted.
- No props may be used when performing the poem.
- No musical accompaniment or musical instruments may be used when performing, but the poet is allowed to sing, clap, hum, or make noise with the mouth or other body parts.
- Poets may perform on their own or in groups with other poets.
An artistic movement
Today, slam poetry is considered an artistic movement as well as a genre of poetry and spoken word. The slam poetry movement has inspired poetry slams around the world, and slam poets have influenced many aspects of modern culture, such as political movements, art, media, literature, and entertainment. A number of poets who began on the slam circuit became established in the traditional print format, including Patricia Smith, Andrea Gibson, and Danez Smith.
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Smith’s vision also spawned the National Poetry Slam, an annual five-day poetry slam held from 1990 through 2018, where teams of poets from cities all over the United States and Canada competed to determine the best in the genre. The documentary film SlamNation, released in 1998, follows the team of Saul Williams, Beau Sia, muMs da Schemer, and Jessica Care Moore at the 1996 National Poetry Slam finals. Other slam competitions continue to exist.
Though a number of poets find the competitive nature associated with slam to be unfair and the nature of the poems to be too informal and unconventional, slam poetry has become one of the most accessible forms of poetry available.