An Open Letter to Every Slam Poet Ever
To everyone who has ever slammed poetry:
I’m pulling a President’s card today by lodging an executive request of the whole of the Slam community: I am imploring all Old School slammers to re-take Slam stages next year.
Nationals, iWPS, WOWps, local level, regionals…I want to see Slam’s founders/old guard/old school/veterans in them.
I want those don’t-care voices back, those keen poetic eyes brought to light with a maturity that only comes from having been there and returned. I want SlamNation: The Revenge! I want to see Phil West slamming with Lisa Buscani slamming with Taylor Mali slamming with Jeremy Richards! I want to see Jack McCarthy slamming at iWPS!
OH WAIT! Jack McCarthy IS slamming at iWPS this year! You gonna stand for THAT, veterans?
But that’s just what *I* want. Let me tell what we need:
Those of us still active in Slam need to be constantly reminded of what has come before, not because it was so much better in the past or out of a sense of nostalgia, but because legacy and heritage is important. It informs value, and some values determine where we take Slam from year to year. Poetry is one of the few popular art forms controlled from top to bottom by its artists. As someone who has been lifting a lot of loads in the name of Slam for the last decade, it is impossible to overstate the gratification - on numerous levels - of sharing a stage with your heroes, guides and mentors. It dissolves so much bullshit that people bring to Slam, and what people conceive as its purpose. I have learned so much from all of the poets that came before me that I have interacted with. Every time I see one of them perform under any circumstance I am reminded of how much more I need to learn. I love that we occasionally have Legends showcases and the like at our events. These are necessary things. But I want to see you SLAM. We need to see you SLAM. When we see you slam, it suggests we’re in the right place, doing the right thing for the right reasons because, by god, YOU are.
All of you might not make a team or win the slots for the PSi events. That’s okay for this mission. I want my Facebook feed to blow up with sightings of old school veterans bringing heat to slam stages everywhere because the point isn’t just made at Nationals or iWPS or WOWps. The point is made within the body of the movement, and if I can drive to Cleveland and maybe catch Sarah Holbrook or Ray McNiece slamming with One Truth or Akeem, that instills a value not just in their community, but in OUR community.
I want to see you back, just for one year if nothing else. I want to see you slamming at Nats or abroad. But most importantly, Slam NEEDS you to.
Now, I’m not putting any stipulation on what makes one a “veteran”. If you think you’re old school, then you probably are. Nobody willingly embraces the pasture, so you know if you’re old school or not. Maybe I’ll make a sign-up page online or something. And I don’t want to hear any of this “I’m retired from Slam” nonsense. I’m in charge of the person in charge of the purse strings and I don’t recall seeing my name on the bottom of anybody’s retirement check.
And for the inevitable batch of folks slamming now who won’t get the point: anybody who thinks that running around saying, “I beat Regie Gibson/Taylor Mali/Beau Sia/Patricia Smith in a slam!” means anything is an idiot. If anything, they let you win. This is probably true for most old schoolers in modern slam. I’m telling you now that if you think this about pumping up your resume or your ego, I will end you.
So give me one year folks, I’LL TAKE JUST ONE SLAM, next year. Slam locally, regionally or nationally. Give that slam’s audience the best show they ever saw. Make these kids today earn it…whatever. Let’s reset the clock and the record books.
But most importantly, let’s start the next 25 years TOGETHER.
My name is Scott Woods, and I AM the president of poetry slam.*
*Name the movie and I will buy you a beverage of your choice when next we meet.
I’m pulling a President’s card today by lodging an executive request of the whole of the Slam community: I am imploring all Old School slammers to re-take Slam stages next year.
Nationals, iWPS, WOWps, local level, regionals…I want to see Slam’s founders/old guard/old school/veterans in them.
I want those don’t-care voices back, those keen poetic eyes brought to light with a maturity that only comes from having been there and returned. I want SlamNation: The Revenge! I want to see Phil West slamming with Lisa Buscani slamming with Taylor Mali slamming with Jeremy Richards! I want to see Jack McCarthy slamming at iWPS!
OH WAIT! Jack McCarthy IS slamming at iWPS this year! You gonna stand for THAT, veterans?
But that’s just what *I* want. Let me tell what we need:
Those of us still active in Slam need to be constantly reminded of what has come before, not because it was so much better in the past or out of a sense of nostalgia, but because legacy and heritage is important. It informs value, and some values determine where we take Slam from year to year. Poetry is one of the few popular art forms controlled from top to bottom by its artists. As someone who has been lifting a lot of loads in the name of Slam for the last decade, it is impossible to overstate the gratification - on numerous levels - of sharing a stage with your heroes, guides and mentors. It dissolves so much bullshit that people bring to Slam, and what people conceive as its purpose. I have learned so much from all of the poets that came before me that I have interacted with. Every time I see one of them perform under any circumstance I am reminded of how much more I need to learn. I love that we occasionally have Legends showcases and the like at our events. These are necessary things. But I want to see you SLAM. We need to see you SLAM. When we see you slam, it suggests we’re in the right place, doing the right thing for the right reasons because, by god, YOU are.
All of you might not make a team or win the slots for the PSi events. That’s okay for this mission. I want my Facebook feed to blow up with sightings of old school veterans bringing heat to slam stages everywhere because the point isn’t just made at Nationals or iWPS or WOWps. The point is made within the body of the movement, and if I can drive to Cleveland and maybe catch Sarah Holbrook or Ray McNiece slamming with One Truth or Akeem, that instills a value not just in their community, but in OUR community.
I want to see you back, just for one year if nothing else. I want to see you slamming at Nats or abroad. But most importantly, Slam NEEDS you to.
Now, I’m not putting any stipulation on what makes one a “veteran”. If you think you’re old school, then you probably are. Nobody willingly embraces the pasture, so you know if you’re old school or not. Maybe I’ll make a sign-up page online or something. And I don’t want to hear any of this “I’m retired from Slam” nonsense. I’m in charge of the person in charge of the purse strings and I don’t recall seeing my name on the bottom of anybody’s retirement check.
And for the inevitable batch of folks slamming now who won’t get the point: anybody who thinks that running around saying, “I beat Regie Gibson/Taylor Mali/Beau Sia/Patricia Smith in a slam!” means anything is an idiot. If anything, they let you win. This is probably true for most old schoolers in modern slam. I’m telling you now that if you think this about pumping up your resume or your ego, I will end you.
So give me one year folks, I’LL TAKE JUST ONE SLAM, next year. Slam locally, regionally or nationally. Give that slam’s audience the best show they ever saw. Make these kids today earn it…whatever. Let’s reset the clock and the record books.
But most importantly, let’s start the next 25 years TOGETHER.
My name is Scott Woods, and I AM the president of poetry slam.*
*Name the movie and I will buy you a beverage of your choice when next we meet.