Example from a Spoken Word Youth Competition Poetry intended for Performance Can also be written, but… Roots are in Oral Traditions and Performance Often encompasses elements of rap, hip-hop, storytelling, theater, jazz, rock, blues, folk music Characteristics: Rhyme, Repetition, Improvisation, Word Play Topics: Social Justice, Politics, Race, Community Example from a Spoken Word Youth Competition

“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” Murdoch Burnett Born 1953 From Canada Had 10 siblings Left school at 17 years old to be a Poet Lives in Bermuda Murdoch’s work Gilbert Scott-Heron (1949-2011) Born in Chicago Grew up in Bronx Mom – Opera Singer Dad – professional athlete in Jamaica Known for his Spoken Word albums in the 1970’s & 80’s “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised”

Kevin Coval Born in Chicago Educated at University of Wales & Ohio University Co-founder of “Louder Than a Bomb: The Chicago Teen Poetry Festival” A performance by Coval “Hip-Hop is poetry. KRS-ONE called himself a poet. Chuck D would send me to the library to look up references he was making in his rhymes. These emcees were consciously participating in and exposing me to an alternative canon of verse in American letters, verse that felt more inclusive of the American experience; a working class narrative, not just dead white dudes getting lost in the woods.”