Topics

1

General Discussion / Portable Digital Recorder tips?

« on: April 22, 2011, 11:13:07 PM »

say, family, i am going to buy a portable digital recorder for my latest summer tour, and i want to use it to record my stuff live for a cd.

any models that work really well for you?

love,

big poppa e

2

General Discussion / can we change IWPS to Individual North American Poetry Slam championship?

« on: December 22, 2010, 05:13:29 PM »

there was a running joke at IWPS that the Canadian poets represented not only their lovely country, but, in fact, the entire world. granted, there was one guy from Australia. However, calling this event the Individual WORLD Poetry Slam seems not only inaccurate but, really, more than a bit arrogant.

what do y'all think about a name change to reflect the true make-up of the poets represented?

Individual North American Poetry Slam?

INAPS?

just thinking out loud... what do you guys think? pros and cons?

big poppa e

3

General Discussion / why are storm poets allowed to participate in IWPS?

« on: November 27, 2010, 11:46:05 PM »

i don't really understand this at all, so i'd love to start a conversation about it.

i thought the original purpose of IWPS was to have each officially-sanctioned poetry slam venue to name a champion through open competition who will represent that scene at IWPS, which would be the all-out battle of the slam champs for global domination.

however, we also have people who just decide they want to show up and slam and represent no one but themselves. i understand if you have a poet who is not part of an established scene and has no way to get to a slam to qualify as that slam's champion, fine, that's why we came up with indie poets or storm poets. however, what is happening now is that people are either trying to be a scene's champion and not winning and going to IWPS anyway as a storm poet, or they are not even bothering to try to win their scene's championship and going to IWPS anyway.

why is this? what is this accomplishing?

i can see why someone like seth walker is allowed to become a storm poet because he doesn't really live anywhere right now because he is busy touring all over the country. he is a man without a slam.

however, why is alvin there in the mix? why is taylor mali in the mix? these people both have plenty of opportunity to win the championship at their prospective venues, yet they are going as storm poets instead, apparently circumventing any sort of open slam process.

no disrespect to either of those poets, but what is the purpose of IWPS? is it just an open slam now? anyone from anywhere can pay the money and get in and slam for the top spot? that seems kind of lame to me. i thought this was about determining the champion amongst champions, but it's just another slam now. some people feel the desire to go through the process of slamming openly for the right to represent their scene, and some others just circumvent that process and go storm.

what am i missing here?

to be perfectly honest, i see no reason why we offer poets a chance to slam as storm poets. if you are not a member of a poetry slam scene, then start a slam and have a competition and name a champion. if you didn't make the top spot in your scene's IWPS qualifier, then tough luck, kid. only now, it's not tough luck, if you don't make it, you just go anyway.

ideas?

4

General Discussion / articles about gabrielle bouliane in the buffalo newspapers

« on: February 05, 2010, 01:06:29 AM »

family,

i don't know if everyone has seen these, but can you post links on your facebook for these articles?

http://blogs.buffalonews.com/artsbeat/2010/02/take-it-from-a-girl-whos-already-half-angelgabrielle-bouliane.html

http://www.buffalonews.com/obituaries/story/945274.html

http://www.buffalorising.com/2010/02/bunny-up-for-gabrielle.html

http://www.buffalorising.com/2010/01/lost-but-never-gone-gabrielle-boulaine.html

thanks.

eirik

5

General Discussion / A Handicapper's Guide to NPS 1998... a trip down memory lane...

« on: December 08, 2009, 04:58:18 AM »

rediscovered this article about nps 1998 in austin. reading through all the names makes me smile...

http://www.austinchronicle.com/gyrobase/Issue/story?oid=oid:523749

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General Discussion / 100 poems in a row with no repeats... come join us...

« on: August 23, 2009, 02:48:25 AM »

so, the austin poetry slam has a history of people going as long as they can without repeating.

the first record was set by danny strack. he performed 39 poems in a row without repeating. it took him quite some time. the slam is weekly, and there are three rounds slam, so the most you can do in a week is three if you make it all the way to the third round. that's about 4-5 months with no repeats.

when tony jackson heard about danny's feat, he challenged himself to do the same, and he made it all the way to 40 poems in a row with no repeats.

well, shit... i saw this as a bunch of happy horseshit, so i went and doubled tony's record and did 80 poems in a row with no repeats. it took me about nine months. some weeks, i didn't make it out of the first round, so i could only perform one poem that week. but lots of times, i made the second and third rounds.

danny and i are now racing each other to 100 poems performed in a row with no repeats, and the first person to make it there wins! what do they win? we haven't really thought about that yet, but the audience at the austin poetry slam will certainly hear a whole hell of a lot of poetry from the two of us, lots of old stuff that hasn't been heard in forever, lots of new stuff written on the fly, experimental stuff, golden oldies, greatest hits, and very definitely b-sides.

100 poems in a row without repeating. think you can do it? i freaking challenge you to join us! we start next wednesday.

p.s. and this includes quarter-finals, semi-finals, and finals to make your team, too, so you'd best be holding some shit back to save until then. or else write some new shit!

7

General Discussion / no repeat rule

« on: August 13, 2009, 10:42:37 PM »

from what i've heard, the rule that says poets may not repeat poems in the finals at NPS has been repealed. is that true?

i think it's a wonderful idea as our finals should be a showcase for the best our community has to offer, plus i as a member of the audience want to see what these teams used to get there.

here's an idea... what about a no repeat rule that states that once a poem is performed at nationals, it must be retired from nationals, that was you cannot repeat year after year?

discuss?

8

General Discussion / banning interaction with the audience as a "prop violation" is absurd

« on: July 31, 2009, 06:34:10 PM »

i think the notion that the entire audience can be used as a prop is absolutely laughable. the klute has put an agenda item on the slam masters meeting that would BAN physical interaction with the audience, and i think this is the most ridiculous thing i have ever heard.

how in the world can you limit audience interaction?

have any of you seen how fucking amazing sonya renee's piece about the game TAG is? she starts from the audience, the gets in people's faces, she hold out her hand to be slapped, which then spurs the audience member to raise their hand, and then they slap high fives during the piece. how in the world can this type of thrilling performance be BANNED as a fucking prop foul?

how can the entire audience be a prop?

now, i can understand banning poets from groping audience members inappropriately or hurting people or hitting them or knocking over tables or something dangerous like that, but it would fall under some kind of rule about personal conduct, not a prop foul.

any rule that would cause an entire audience to be labelled a prop is foolish and limits what it is that we are supposed to be doing, and that is interacting and MOVING an audience.

if you pass some kind of rule that says merely touching an audience member during a performance suddenly makes them into a prop, then what's next? are we not allowed to do call-and-response pieces because it would make the entire audience part of an illegal team piece? if we are not allowed to interact with the audience, then does that also ban starting a poem from the middle of the audience? does that mean any attempt to leave the stage will be considered a prop foul since it causes the entire room to be a prop?

this is fucking ludicrous!

if there is some kind of rule, let it be that not be touched in a threatening manner, and let this be some sort of improper conduct foul, but the idea of limiting interaction with the audience for fear of being slapped with a prop foul is utter horseshit.

the only thing even remotely close to this that makes sense is the banning of secretly instructing audience members beforehand to do something specific during a poem to make it appear as though it we spontaneous. this is something i can understand. but limiting spontaneous interaction with the entire audience for fear of getting a prop foul? nonsense.
a
ideas?a

9

General Discussion / gee, thanks marc and taylor for the "press"...

« on: July 29, 2009, 12:23:12 AM »

sigh...

http://southflorida.metromix.com/events/article/slamming-the-competition/1356501/content

it pains me to think of how hard so many people have been working to put this show together, only to see marc smith and taylor mali talk such shit on it and make it seem like it's full of lame star-fuckers and full of angry people shouting at each other.

i mean, granted, those are elements of our community, but do you have to make that the focus of your interview when we are trying to put butts in seats? i mean, goddamn, shit in your own backyard... why you gotta shit in ours?

10

General Discussion / Nekkid Swim Off on the Beach later after Wednesday bouts!!!

« on: July 20, 2009, 02:36:11 AM »

yo, we are merely a few blocks from the beach, so i say let's organize a gigantic nekkid swim in the ocean late wednesday / early thursday after the bouts and the late night show.

NEKKID OCEAN SWIMMING!!!

who is with me?

11

General Discussion / Big Poppa E taking photos of poets at NPS 2009!

« on: June 24, 2009, 06:31:36 PM »

hey family!

i have been taking poet portaits for quite some time, and i hope to take a ton of photos at NPS 2009. my goal is to have a big exhibition of poet portraits for NPS 2010.

if you or your team would like portraits taken, please get with me some time during nps 2009. i will be roaming a lot and asking for photos, but if you really want to get with me, float me an email and make arrangements. it only takes about five minutes per team.

hit me back-channel at eirikott@yahoo.com.

bpe

12

General Discussion / new york times article: "has slam gone soft?"

« on: June 08, 2009, 02:27:43 PM »

check this out:

http://www.thepoetryblog.net/ 2009/06/05/ slam-is-dead- they-say/

i think this post is largely bullshit.

while this critique has, at various times throughout our history, shown some truth, the larger reality is one of beauty and passion and a love for communication. yes, you have to sometimes look beyond the people who all sound like they are auditioning for def poetry, but beyond that is an amazing poetry about being human and yearning for a deeper communication.

poetry slam has not stopped growing and is not stuck in def poetry mode. there is a deeper poetry coming up that is less about pointing fingers and more about rejoicing in the US, less about me me me and more about US.

look at shannon leigh's work. look at danny sherrard. look at anis mojgani. look at rachel mckibbens. there are many poets on the scene right now playing an active part in the continuing evolution of our community, and these poets are not limited by the bullshit that has threatened to define what we do in the past.

granted, lots of these young people try to mimic their favourite artists, but, to be perfectly honest, if they are mimicking buddy wakefield and andrea gibson, i am pretty damned cool with that. once they begin to find their own voices, then they will grow past the mimickry, but its up to the elders of slam to help them along their way.

that's one of the big reasons i still come to slams and still play a very active role in our national poetry slam community. i've been at this since '92, and i can offer incite that perhaps can steer someone away from a path of self-congratulations and one of community.

as for slam history... i think it's unfortunate that there has not been a focus on archiving our community and acknowledging those who have come before and made this whole revolution possible. why has there not been a more concerted effort at this? what's more, why do most slam poets do this for a while, make a name for themselves, then abandon their community as if they don't need it anymore? i'm trying to change that myself with my own actions, and i love it when poets like mike mcgee volunteer to be bout managers and hosts at nationals. that's giving back to our community, and it provides a sort of mentorship for the younger poets coming up.

slam is what you make of it, and if you allow it to be bullshit, then you really must include yourself in the blame.

my two cents.

i just came from southern fried regionals, and i know for a fact this shit is about community and supporting our fellow poets more than anything else. in scene after scene across america, there are poets doing this NOT to get on def poetry and NOT to advance their own names, but to be a part of a vibrant and lovely community.

like any family, yeah, we got issues, but we figure them out.

peace,

big poppa e

13

General Discussion / Side Events: Do We Still Need Racially-Specific Readings? Discuss...

« on: May 15, 2009, 04:53:56 PM »

 have thought a long time about the state of side events at nationals, and i think it's time for a change, a big change in the way we put together shows.

up to this point, it seems that side events have been EXCLUSIVE rather than INCLUSIVE, and i think that needs to change. we seem to pick side events that represent a smaller and smaller chunk of the NPS community, and i think we need to go in the opposite direction by picking events that represent a larger chunk of the community.

here's my main question: why do we need an african-american slam? an asian slam? a native-american slam?

in my experience, EVERY slam is an african-american slam. EVERY slam is an asian slam, a native-american slam, a whatever ethnic background you come from slam.

one of the strongest elements of this whole community is its inclusiveness, so every slam across the whole nation is a showcase of people exploring their race and ethnicity, so why do we need to have an african-american slam? i mean, i can see if there was some kind of problem getting black people on the mic at slams across america, but that is SO not the case. therefore, why have it? if you want to see black people on the mic talking about issues surrounding the black community, you don't need to create a special open mic at nationals... no, you simply have to show up to ANY slam in america.

same thing for any other racial or ethnic background. this community champions anyone who explores these issues.

the only exception that i see is for women. there is still a big issue about getting women on the mic in venues across the country, so i see a need for continuing to have a womens reading. same thing for a queer reading.

but for racial issues? i don't see the need any more.

rather than cut the community into smaller and smaller segments -- offering a latino reading or a asian-pacific islander reading -- why not create showcases that highlight thematic elements that are share by ALL of our community.

the nerd slam is a great example of that. nerd comes in all colors. we are all nerds, and we all have nerdy pieces, and this slam brings us together as a community rather than splitting us off into our own racially-specific subgroups.

same thing the hip-hop slam, which rejoices in the fact that hip-hop has spread throughout our community and the world, welcoming people of all walks of life who have been impacted by this amazing form of expression.

and the same goes for the haiku slam. i love that EVERYONE can perform there. you don't need a certain skin colour or racial profile, you simply need haiku.

here are some show i'd love to see:

comedy slam
poems of witness slam (political slam)
hip hop slam
womens slam
queer slam
remembrance slam

these kinds of events bring people together rather than slice us into smaller chunks along racial lines.

it's an idea.

what do you think?

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General Discussion / Amnesty International Slam in Milwaukee, WI, March 23-25!!!

« on: March 06, 2007, 01:32:14 PM »

hello!

this is big poppa e in austin, texas, and i have the pleasure of hosting a poetry slam during the annual amnesty international national meeting in milwaukee on saturday, march 24.

$1000 in cash money prizes, with top four splitting the cash. first place $500. goes down from there.

this should be an excellent slam in front of an amazing crowd of activists from all over the country, and they like it all... yes, your political stuff will go over like gangbusters, but also remember these folks have been having some heavy duty discussions about the ills of the world, so they need to laugh, too!

hit me at poetryslam@yahoo.com to sign up ASAP, and i will send you the info!