With all of the newfound hoopla surrounding emerging, random “national holidays”, there’s one that comes about in the month of April that may have bypassed many: National Poetry Month!
Even though the celebration has been around since 1996, organized by the Academy of American Poets, most people have forgotten the essence of poetry reading and performances in popular urban culture.
How nostalgic was it to turn our televisions on back in the day to watch HBO’s Def Poetry Jam, and be able to witness some of our favorite musicians and actors like we’d never seen them before. Since the show’s ending in 2007, there hasn’t been much programming catered towards the form of art. And unlike the 90’s, we don’t gather our girls and seek out weekday, poetry club nights at our favorite spot.
[That Larenz Tate “Love Jones” fantasy is entirely out of the window!]
Although poetry has become somewhat of a lost art, there is still an underground scene of eclectic individuals voicing their deepest emotions in the form of spoken and written word.
Our Creative Minds team wants to celebrate National Poetry Month by showcasing a few amazing poets from the past and around our local area.
Check them out and let us know what you think in the comments below.
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