One craft that often goes underappreciated among college students
Sarah Kay- “The Type”
Sarah Kay is a spoken word poet whose work mainly focuses on love, her childhood, and female empowerment. She uses spoken word to tell stories about growing up, her childhood teachers, and the people that she has fallen in love with throughout her life. This poem, in particular, is about womanhood and staying true to yourself in a world where men are prioritized.
Savannah Brown- “What Guys Look For in Girls”
In this poem, Savannah Brown critiques the beauty standard for women, especially young women, in today’s society. She shares her own story of how it affected her personally and then goes on to reassure the listener that they are perfect and enough just the way they are.
Sarah Kay and Phil Kaye- “When Love Arrives”
In this poem, Sarah Kay and Phil Kaye perform together, speaking both in unison and in turn, creating an almost songlike poem. They take you on a journey of how they experienced love throughout their lives, slowly allowing it to mature as you listen. It’s a wonderful example of how people’s expectations and lives change, sometimes unexpectedly, as they get older, and how that’s perfectly okay.
You can find more poetry by both of these writers (both in a duo and separately) on the Button Poetry YouTube channel!
Mike Taylor
In this performance, Mike Taylor showcases how important rhythm is when it comes to spoken word poetry. His flow is unmatched, and his wordplay draws the listener in, keeps them interested and entertained, and does an amazing job of getting his point across in an extremely impressive manner. Send this poem to your partners and friends to let them know you’re thinking about them!
Maia Mayor- “Perfect”
In this poem, Maia imitates her own mother and repeats some of the insults that her mother has thrown at her over her lifetime. The emotion that is conveyed through this poem is extremely obvious since Maia begins crying while reciting it. It’s a very heartfelt and touching piece that calls to mind an experience many of us can relate to having a hard time getting along with/ feeling appreciated by a parent or family figure. Slam poetry is great for connecting to the audience over strong emotions.
Slam poetry can be a great outlet for negative emotions and writing it can be a very liberating experience. Try to write some of your own spoken word and tag VALLEY to show us your progress!
VALLEY wishes everyone a safe and happy Thanksgiving break and reminds you to wear your masks and stay home!
