Twentieth Century Poetry

Spoken-Word Poetry

Spoken-word poetry is “poetry that is written on a page but performed for an audience” (North, 2008). This type of performance poetry uses rhythmic language and imagery to tell the performer’s story. Stories may be true from the perspective of the storyteller, or may be stories from the perspective of a character created by the storyteller poet.

Courtesy caughtinthecarousel.com

Beat Poetry

“Beat” poetry, which was coined by poet, Jack Kerouac, started out referring to the “weariness” of society, and later became connected to the musical rhythm of the poetry (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2013). Beat poetry was performed by a poet known as a “beatnik”, who read their poems aloud, and often used rhythm instruments and jazz music as accompaniment. Beat poetry did not use conventional structure, but actually fought against it (Uttley, 2010). A travelling poet for many years, Kerouac became known as the leader of the beat movement, and eventually published, On the Road, the book that would become known as the bible of the beat generation. This was the beginning of “spoken-word” poetry coming into its own.

Kerouac recorded some of his poetry, which incorporated jazz, such as this one below.

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Maya Angelou

A very different poet from that of the beat poets, Maya Angelou, began as an actress, singer, and dancer. Unlike the beat poets’ view of freeing oneself from the rules of society, Angelou was a part of the civil rights movement, working alongside Martin Luther King, Jr. (Mayaangelou.com, 2014).  Angelou, born as Marguerite Johnson, travelled the world as a young person, studying languages and cultures, and gaining education as she travelled. Maya gathered her experiences and published her first book, I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings, which was an autobiography of her life. Because of this powerful work, she has been invited to recite the stories of her life. Angelou sees her success as a storyteller due in large to her understanding of mankind, “seeing us as more alike than we are unalike… if you develop the art of seeing us as more alike than we are unalike, then all stories are understandable” (Beard, 2013).

    

 Angelou was invited by President Bill Clinton to compose and recite a poem during his inauguration in 1993.

“On the Pulse of the Morning”

Rap, Hip-hop, and Spoken-Word Poetry

Russell Simmons

Russell Simmons is known as the godfather of hip-hop, but not for his own performance contributions to the art. Simmons has pioneered the genre through discovering, managing, and producing hip-hop and poetry artists, bringing the craft of the spoken-word to the mainstream of modern culture. Simmons co-founded the hip-hop recording label, Def Jam with business partner in 1984, which launched the careers of many of today’s best-known hip-hop artists, and in 2001, the hip-hop mogul co-founded the HBO television show, “Def Poetry Jam”, which showcased spoken-word poets in poetry slam style each week (mtv.com, n.d.).

  

Hip-Hop and Rap

Hip-hop has its roots in the travelling Griots of West Africa from the 14^th Century, the Negro spirituals of the 1800s, and in the rocksteady beat of ragaee music from the 1960s (Neer, 2007). Hip-hop, in its more modern form, began in the 1970s in the South Bronx. Hip-hop is a cultural movement that combines rap, politics, urban living, and ethnicity (Smily, 2013).     

In the 1970s, Disc Jockeys began playing with the music through using turntables to add sounds to songs. This evolved into DJs contributing poetry over the songs. This was the beginning of rap in the United States. Rap provided a platform for African American and Latino poetry in the 1980s. In the 1990s, rap took a darker turn, with more negative lyrics based on street violence and drug use. (Mork, 2013). Rap has since taken another turn, and includes more humor and less hate. Rap has broadened its scope to include stories from all different cultures, racial backgrounds, and now includes religious subgenres.

Rap artists known especially for their storytelling talents include rappers such as DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (Will Smith); Slick Rick (Richard Walters); and Eminem (Marshall Maters).

DJ Jazzy Jefft & The Fresh Prince won the first Grammy ever for Best Rap Performance in 1989 for "Parents Just Don't Understand".

Slick Rick told a cautionary "bedtime" tale of crime in the 1988 song, "Children's Story". 

Rap artist, Eminem, tells a haunting story of an obsessed fan in his 1999 song, "Stan".