Slam
Slam poetry is of the same form as a speech competition. This movement was very lively and energetic and also one of the most vital in the area of poetry performance. The structure of the traditional slam was started by construction worker and poet Marc Smith in 1986 at a reading series in a Chicago jazz club. The competition quickly spread across the country, finding a notable home in New York City at the Nuyorican Poets Café. This movement took place in the 1990s and continues to take place in the current time period. A slam competition is simply when poets perform original work alone or in a team in front of an audience which serves as the judge. Poetry began as an oral tradition and was brought back to life by slam and this movement. The work is judged as much on the manner and enthusiasm of its performance as its content or style. The Slam movement has truly revitalized interest in poetry performance for everyone who chooses to participate.
Beau Sia is an American slam poe born in 1976. Sia was born in Ohio but raised in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. He is of Chinese-Filipino descent. Sia discovered spoken word poetry on MTV as a teenager. When not participating in his high school's swim team, he spent time at Oklahoma City's only open mic night.
Poem: Money
By: Beau Sia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qdhCGxej2c
Poem Summary:
The poem Money by Beau Sia is about all the things that he would do with money. It may seem silly but it is actully saying and exaggerting what people can get away with if they have money and how people can do what they want. Sia shows how he would do what ever he wants and do silly things and waste money just because he could. This is sometimes how people are in the real world. This shows how people have dreams and want and need money for certain reasons but also how some people don't need a lot of money because they will take advantage of it.
Poem: Money
By: Beau Sia
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qdhCGxej2c
Poem Summary:
The poem Money by Beau Sia is about all the things that he would do with money. It may seem silly but it is actully saying and exaggerting what people can get away with if they have money and how people can do what they want. Sia shows how he would do what ever he wants and do silly things and waste money just because he could. This is sometimes how people are in the real world. This shows how people have dreams and want and need money for certain reasons but also how some people don't need a lot of money because they will take advantage of it.
Literary Elements
The entire poem is free verse and full of hyperboles. This poem is a huge exaggeration of the truth of what could actually happen in real life but it expresses the point of the poem a lot better. It shows how of course he could hang out with Chewbacca from Star Wars if he had enough money because he's not real but he is simply making the point that in a way with money almost anything is possible and that many people do things for no reason when they feel powerful with money.