Last night was just slamming. I got to see ten of the absolute best poets in the country perform. It’s was totally amazing and somewhat spiritual to watch these men and women do their thing. As such, I was honored to be the official time keeper. Based on the rules of the slam, contestants are allowed 3 minutes to recite their poems. If the poet goes over the allotted time, there is a half point penalty for each 10 seconds over that mark. Knowing how close the scores would be, I took my job quite seriously but still managed to enjoy the performances. Luckily only one poet went over the allotted time.
The 10 poets who competed last night were: Omari (Hollywood, CA), Corinna Delgado (Anchorage, AK), Jive Poet (NYC, NY), Mike McGee (San Jose, CA), Anise Mojghani, Shane Koyczan (Vancouver, BC), Da Shade (Austin, TX), Delisile Godeffroy-Taylor (Boston, MA), Soul Evans (Chicago, IL) and Suzy La Follette. All the poets did an amazing job but after three bouts, Mike McGee walked away being crowned the 2003 Individual Championship for National Poetry Slam. He totally brought the house down.
Anyway, it’s still not too late to get tickets for tonight’s Team Championship at Navy Pier. If you’re not in Chicago, be sure to check out your local poetry scene.