What's the deal with 'Spoken Word?' (Brave New Voices)

[trueshotaura]

So I just spent an hour watching Brave New Voices with my gf and i'm thinking do people really like this stuff? This how black folks get their emo on?

 

[rtz13]

their is a lot of pertinent and important social commentary and dialogue in the material these kids are putting out. even though i really hate the spoken wordformat, the stuff they are putting out is real.

oh my bad though you're doing it, makin jokes on niketalk.

 

[ekon one]

Originally Posted by TrueshotAura

This how black folks get their emo on?

 

[trueshotaura]

Seriously though

what's with all the crying too? It seems the more these fat ugly people curse, become eradicate, and scream the more praise theyreceive. I don't know

 

[jvhoop22]

I would not recommend "Brave New Voices" as an introduction to spoken word poetry. If you're located in NYC, you should check out the FridayNight slam at the Nuyorican Poets Cafe. Otherwise, there are many other spoken word venues around the country. Technically, spoken word has been around sincethe creation of poetry, since poetry was originally oral--not written. Think of Homer's "Odyssey," which was an oral poem passed down fromgeneration to generation and eventually written down.

Youtube is also a great place to check out spoken word videos. There are a ton posted from "Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry." Off the top of myhead, a few poets you could check out are Saul Williams, Black Ice, Gemineye and Suheir Hammad.

Just remember that the poets you are seeing in "Brave New Voices" are teenagers (although some are superb poets) and that they never show a fullperformance of a poem.

 

[kennythegreat23]

Spoken Word

Sometimes i feel as if the random speeches i do in cars, with friends,
or while im philosophizing are spoken word pieces.

Heh.

 

[ikari xd]

Originally Posted by rtz13

oh my bad though you're doing it, makin jokes on niketalk.

 

[jeyel]

i tried watching brave new voices and couldnt watch it..

i understand they're teenagers but there wasnt anything poetic about half of the poems i saw.. or anything great about the performance .. just cause youwent through something painful doesnt always translate in to a great piece..

brave new voices does do a lot of great work in the community though.. shout out to youthspeaks in the bay area too

 

[Johnny_Cakes]

It is so annoying.

 

[jawnyquest]

 

[julius wrek]

Hey_

I love poetry/spoken word.

Loved BNV.

Julius F. Wrek