Written poetry is pretty amazing and there have been some amazing poets out there like Robert Frost, T. S. Elliot, Rupi Kaur, Amanda Lovelace, and William Shakespeare. But slam poetry is just a million times more interesting than just reading a poem.
“Slam poetry, a form of performance poetry that combines the elements of performance, writing, competition, and audience participation. It is performed at events called poetry slams, or simply slams. The name slam came from how the audience has the power to praise or, sometimes, destroy a poem and from the high-energy performance style of the poets,” according to Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Slam poetry address a lot of problems and topics that society is facing today, and are sometimes harshly truthful about this topics. They put things into perspective that everyone can understand and relate to, which is part of what makes them appealing to others.
While there are tons of slam poetry just waiting to be found on YouTube, these 7 are my favorite:
1. “Somewhere in America”
2. “Rape Joke”
3. “Rigged Game”
4. “Repetition”
5. “OCD”
6. “Lost Voices”
7. “When Love Arrives”
If you’re looking for more slam poetry videos, check out Button Poetry.