Emiley Allison
Age: 19
Year: Freshman
Major: Psychology, Pre-Med
Hometown: Chesapeake, VA
Campus Involvement: Good Clear Sound, Black Awakening Choir, Black Psychology Student Association, Works at VCU Child Development Center
What has been the highlight of your year so far?
The highlight of my year has been getting close to the poetry slam team.
What is slam poetry?
On campus there is an organization called “Good Clear Sound” and it is a poetry organization that you can also compete to be on a slam poetry team. The competition that we competed in this past March was called CUPSI, the College Unions Poetry Slam Invitiation or International. We competed against 68 teams from all over the United States and Canada. The competition was actually at VCU this year and we won second place. I really enjoyed getting to know everyone in Good Clear Sound, as well as becoming closer to the people I was on the team with. When you spend three to four months with someone writing poetry and just talking about not only life, but really personal issues you become really close with someone. That’s why I said becoming close with the people on the team was the highlight of my year because winning is not silly whatever to me, however it’s not the end of the world if I don’t win, but relationships that you build with people can last a lifetime and it was really great to be able to come in to college my freshman year and develop a very strong bond with people who I know would be there for me no matter what.
How long have you been writing poetry/slam poetry?
I’ve been writing poetry since the second or third grade. I’ve been doing slam poetry since my junior year of high school.
How do you feel about taking second place at CUPSI?
I feel grateful and ecstatic and determined to do even better with my poetry also if I decide to compete again. Also, making it to final stage was the farthest I’ve ever gotten in competition with the team and so I think that’s really great that we were able to work together for the same cause or goal and go so far.
If you could sum up your freshman year in one sentence, what would it be?
Freshman year: self-love, sleep deprivation, Blackboard, toilet paper, voice, heart, and the best roommate ever equates to a radical form of healing.
She’s such a poet.