Keywords
social activism, SLAM, SLAM poetry, performance writing, multicultural writing
Submission Type
Research
Preview
The roots of SLAM poetry are historically situated in traditional poetry, the poetry of the Beats, and in Hip-Hop music. SLAM taps into the rhyme scheme and versification of traditional poetry but also creates its own hybrid of convention and form that is based in modem poetry. SLAM reaches back into the poetry of the Beats and revives an unconventional use of rhyme scheme, syntax, and grammar. Hip-Hop, which arrived at the tail end of Disco in the late 70's, broke the musical and rhythmic beats in Disco music and birthed the notion of Hip-Hop as a subgenre of music. Music rapper TL Rock sang a song entitled, "It's Yours" and when Def Jam broke down the beats of the song, he almost single handedly helped disco morph into Hip-Hop and initiated the birth of the movement (Williams, 2001). In the late 80's, Hip-Hop stopped acting as party music and became a dominant force in the music world-a form of sharing socio-politico issues-and laid the foundation for what was to later become SLAM poetry.
Recommended Citation
Miller, Stacy
(2004)
"SLAM! Poetry as a Genre for Social Activism,"
The Utah English Journal: Vol. 32, Article 4.
Available at:
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/uej/vol32/iss1/4