#WarOfWords2 Blank mirror by J-Quill

Blank mirror by J-Quill

Scene 1,

Tell me about a honest

Impostor,.smiling greedily

In a Pose like;Sizwe banzi

I mean

Polished Smiles

Rehearsed speech

Perfected etiquettes

Standing untop of rovers

Waving hands and at the 

Right price?

My vote is yours

Scene 2 is like seeing 2000 

Gentlemen,queuing for a 

No-gentle man's job of a Driver

In a cement factory were only

One driver was needed anyway

Scene 3 unravels the mystery

As seen in cemetery

Marred visions of the

Allu victims

Aborted projects of corp members, caught up in flames

Or shredded in pieces yet

United in the phrase

"Mass burial"

Scene 4 is having four-seen a

Success,and amidst ur thrust

Tryna reach out tryna get it

Like a flash!,an unforeseen

Phrase from within

"Na man know man 

World we dey"

So scene 5 survives the 

Episode of the improvise me

Whose five senses realize that

The glued revolution I seek

Eludes sages revolution so

Even gazing @ d mirror,

I don't see me,absurdly

I can't see me but a missing

Figure of me in the mirror

You know why?

Cos the change I seek is not

The face I see in the mirror,

Its the inner-me in scene 1,

To scene 2 who don't neglect

Talent to sap for colar jobs

Or enbark on jungle justice

As seen in scene 3 so

When I see 

"chop mama thank you "

Peers on scene 4 as a poet,

I'll let my pen bleed out

To stupor I mean,

My zeal for change

Would be the urge to purge out

The me within so

When the 5 scenes co-relates My 5 senses,

Then and until then can I be

The change I seek!

Check out the video via this link

#WarOfWords2 Blank mirror by J-Quill

http://youtu.be/y9tC5z1-aiI

How to Win a Poetry Slam Competition.

How to Win a Poetry Slam

Poetry slams gained national prominence in the 1990s after originating in the mid-1980s at Chicago's Get Me High Lounge, USA. 

These contests, driven by judges and audience members, pit wordsmiths against each other in a competitive round of performance poetry. 

Poetry slams are boisterous events that sometimes incorporate elements of hip-hop rhythms and themes into the performances. 

Try these tips to win a poetry slam.

Instructions

1. • 
     
   • Perform like you mean it. Poets and poems bursting with vitality, anger and other strong emotions win high scores at poetry slams. A subdued or shaky performance won't cut it with slam judges or audiences.
   • Set your timer. Slam poets are judged on the length as well as the content of their performance. Poems three minutes or under are given the highest scores. Longer performances are penalized by half a point, up to three points for poems over four minutes.
   • Hone your skills. Try out a variety of poems, reciting everything in your arsenal, from confessional pieces and political commentary to angry rants and risqué humor. Give plenty of readings before participating in your first slam.
   • Engage your audience. Poetry slam audiences critique poets during the performance, not after. Heckling, foot stomping and booing are common if a poet is deemed unsatisfactory by the audience. If you handle hecklers with a witty phrase or comeback, you may win back the audience.
   • Make lots of friends in the poetry slam world. Get to know slam organizers and judges, and bring lots of your own friends to poetry slams. The more fans you have, the better chance you have of winning a slam, since the contests are based on audience and judge approval.
   
   

   Tips & Warnings

   • Do use poems that address oppression. Angry or socially conscious poems are popular at many poetry slams.
   • Don't use props or costumes at a poetry slam. They are forbidden by slam rules.

   
   
   Source:
   
   
   http://www.ehow.com/how_2060270_win-poetry-slam.html
   
   

Spoken Word Poetry don "fly" like "Pidgin."

He was one of the crowd's favourite at War Of Words Season 1 Slam Poetry Competition. Though he did not win, (he was the 1st runner), his performance left a lasting impression cos his unique brand of Spoken Word Poetry.

"If Dis Lines na Xmas rice? English Fowl too cost Na it make me buy pidgin"..

At Word Up Volume 5, he flew in from Calabar and showed his skill was no fluke. It was pure "Pidgin Spoken Word Poetry" at its best, no dilution, no disruption, no corruption. He just dey flow like say he get diarrhea of the mouth :)

His name is D-Ray, "the Pidgin Spoken Word Poet." 

Check out his video and tell me what you think. But please note, he said, 

"Hearing Safety, I dey talk carelessly with pidgin so wear ur seat-belt"...

D Ray on stage at WORD UP Volume 5 (First Anniversary Edition) 

which held on August 17, 2013 in Lagos, Nigeria. 

WORD UP is the biggest Spoken Word Poetry event  in Nigeria. 

It features A-list Spoken Word Poets on the same stage.

How to use Spoken Word Poetry to increase Brand Visibility and Acceptability..!!!

Nigeria is blessed with abundant resources, both human and material but we do not recognize or utilize them.

At i2X Media Company Limited, we have discovered the power inherent in poetic youths. We give them a platform to express their views and opinion in a creative and entertaining way.

Like someone once said;

writers write,

singers sing,

teachers teach,

painters paint,

drivers drive,

runners run,

but what do Spoken Word Poets do? They “Spoke.” :) 

Well, more like, they talk poetically and powerfully. They are capable of exerting influence a Governor or President might struggle with.

But why Spoken Word Poetry? Well, why not. Check out links of some of our poets' performances at different events we have organized, and you will get your answer.

http://youtu.be/42VS2FZyeCQ     - Increase 

http://youtu.be/EAfwjnPGDkU     - Obii

http://youtu.be/yq7FPpcbbSc     - Donna K

http://youtu.be/IXXmeGVVB_c     - HolyBlaze

http://youtu.be/dUjaShqBeyM     - Atilola

http://youtu.be/--EIu_yHWE0     - Soonest

http://youtu.be/QS1Mu59YiqQ     - Nini Efem

http://youtu.be/PFcn-vHyPrI     - Olulu

http://youtu.be/pn6OKZuGEUo     - Lahde

Spoken Word Poetry is an evolution, it’s an emerging art, and its gaining momentum in Nigeria and West Africa.

As a major promoter of Performance Poetry and Spoken Word activities in Nigeria, we are passionate about the Art as a genre of entertainment, a tool to increase literacy level, and a means of communication among people across the globe.

We are the organizers of WORD UP -the biggest Spoken Word Poetry Event in Nigeria.

In August 2012, November 2012 and February 2013, three editions of Word Up were held providing the much needed visibility for Brands we partnered with.

The next one is scheduled for May 18 2013 and 2 others thereafter.

For the rest of the year, we will be partnering with international poets from across the world, offering workshops to empower poets and aspiring poets on how to write and perform good poems as well as turn it into profit.

This year 2013, we will also be starting a performance poetry competition that allows poets from all over Nigeria compete against each other.

What makes this exciting is that the Brand that partners with our team will receive leverage as the entries will be centered around the brand’s values and other such matters they might want promoted online.

The competition will be both online and on stage involving video presentations, article writing and Performance Poetry. It promises exciting content and results for brands that partner with us.

There will be cash prizes for the top 3 poets and partners can offer additional gifts of value to the winning poets.

Spoken Word Poetry can be used to increase Brand visibility and acceptability in any or all of the following ways:

Branding Opportunity across all touch points.

Advert placements in our DVDS sold across the country, and around the world.

Brand exposure on social media sites and affiliated websites e.g. Google plus, Youtube, Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter, Pin Interest, Naij.com, BellaNaija etc

Media exposure.

Product/ Services Experience and Sampling

Speaking Opportunity

Database Acquisition and so much moreFor more detailed information and partnership on the captioned topic, you get in contact with the undersigned.


Regards

Olumide Holloway
+2348025070892
olulu4ever@gmail.com

 

CHILL and RELAX : MARCH EXPRESSION

CHILL and RELAX : MARCH EXPRESSION

A monthly Performance Poetry and Spoken Word open mic event where everyone and anyone can step up and rock the mic.

Date is March 10, 2013 (2nd Sunday of the month)

Time is 3pm

Venue is 16, Abeni close, ASA Estate, off Ayodele Okeowo street, after Deeper Life church, Soluyi Gbagada, Lagos 

Featuring Naija's Finest Poets.

Poetry stalks me by Alice Keys MD

Poetry stalks me

in the midst of my afternoon

while I walk barefoot under a blue shell sky.

Birth pains of poetry are

higher up

than the guttural quakes that shoved

new miracles from the mouth of my womb.

Poetry harpoons me

when I lean down to pick

sharp grit from my heel.

It strikes

to the right of my breastbone,

stabs deep

to set the hook then

pulls me

into unbearably thin air.

I press

my hand to the wound

and gasp

while I wait for the light to change

at the corner.

by Alice Keys MD

http://alicekeysmd.wordpress.com/2013/01/04/poetry-stalks-me/

WORD UP Volume 3 aka Da Love Thang preview

WORD UP 

is the biggest Spoken Word Poetry Event in Nigeria

It is a show that features 

the best Spoken Word Poets in Nigeria all on one stage.

It is a major platform for poets across the globe. 

Previous editions saw poets from the Namibia, England and America grace the stage.

We also feature celebrities who come on stage to read, recite and/or perform poems.

WORD UP Volume 3 

aka 

Da Love Thang 

holds on February 16, 2013, 

at Unilag Guest House Lecture Theatre

from 3 pm.

Don't miss it...!!!!

Spoken Word as an art of Poetry...!!!!

Spoken Word has taken the poetry scene by storm since the 80's and 90's. You can hear the earthy, raw, erotic, exciting, and honest art form in many places such as restaurants, coffee houses, museums, universities, church (yes church) and just about wherever people can be found. This art form is contagious, attracting all ages, cultures, and creeds. People are drawn to its electricity on one hand, yet for others, it exudes a solemn and spiritual quality that relaxes the mind and body.

Spoken Word is similar to rapping but there is a distinct difference. Rapping is usually accompanied with some form of rhythmic music, whereas spoken word is usually a narration; it's music a natural flow of and from the human body releasing emotions that the speaker may have. Those feelings are often used to engage and entertain the audience. The objective is all about presentation, sharing stories and feelings that people don't normally put out in the open. What's so great about the art of Spoken Word is that the listeners are drawn into a magnetic field of raw honesty which is the center of spoken word.

Spoken Word is an art form that is steadily rising, birthing new ideas and ways to express emotion and stories as well as entertain listeners. The best quality is that it’s a very positive form of entertainment. There are many venues that cater to this art form throughout California. Major cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Riverside, and Oakland, to name a few are very popular hubs; overflowing with the electric energy and popular spoken word artists like Tshaka, Poetri, and the Inland Empire’s own The Poet X. (Nigeria is also fast becoming a popular hub for Spoken Word Poetry as new venues spring up everyday).

Believe it or not there are those who don’t acknowledge spoken word as a true extension of poetry but poetry in itself is about self-expression, releasing and sharing uninhibited emotions, going to a place within one’s soul that may be riddled with complexities of life, sadness, or happiness. It’s a place that many benefit from, whether speaking or simply observing, if only they would make the trek to that place of freedom, where happiness and self-discovery abounds for many. Art is what we make it. It is done to express oneself. Those in observation simply benefit from the quest of another’s artistic expressions.

By CHANTAE KNUCKLES

http://www.examiner.com/article/spoken-word-as-an-art-of-poetry