Spoken Word Explained

These days poetry is a lot more than Shakespeare sonnets and posh accents. Led by ambassadors such as George the Poet and Polarbear, the world of spoken word is set to explode! Here's your lowdown on the scene...

'Spoken word' is a tricky one to define. On the surface, it's just poetry that's written to be performed, but in reality it’s so much more. Spoken word can be delivered in a variety of styles and can even involve collaboration and experimentation with other art forms, including music, theatre and dance. It can be used to tell your own stories or to explore the stories of others.

Hip hop and spoken word do cross over a lot, with both sharing influences and audiences, and following similar themes in the topics they cover. Some spoken word artists even incorporate raps and hip hop beats into their work.

The main way that they differ is that spoken word tends to be a lot more straight to the point, avoiding complicated metaphors in favour of stripped back and straight to the point lyrics.

Spoken word first kicked off with the American Beat Poet movement that took place in the 1940s and 1950s. This saw a group of authors in New York using their work to exploring and influence the American culture of the time.

Venting their frustrations with society, these poets started a tradition that has continued for many years, moving into the 1970s with punk poets like the UK's John Cooper Clarke and famed dub poet Linton Kwesi Johnson, all the way up to today, where new social issues have brought upon a completely new era of spoken word.

Who’s big in the scene today?

LionHeart, GREEdS, Talia Randall, Deci4Life - there is SO much great British talent out there right now! Here are our profiles for some of the biggest names...

George the Poet

Who: George Mpanga aka George The Poet
Where: North London
How: Began rapping at 15 year and later adapted his rap to poetry

3 Things to note:

• Studied politics, psychology and sociology at Cambridge university
• Finished no. 5 on the BBC Sound of 2015 poll
• Ambassador for IDEA - Prince Andrew’s digital business idea charity

Find out more: @georgethepoet on Twitter // www.iamgeorgethepoet.co.uk

Kate Tempest

Who: Kate Tempest – spoken word artist, playwright and poet
Where: South east London
How: Started out as a rapper, toured the spoken word circuit

3 things to note:

• Nominated for the Mercury Music Prize 2014
• Debut novel will be published in 2016
• Won 2 poetry slams at the renowned Nuyorican Poets Café in New York

Find out more: @katetempest on Twitter // www.katetempest.co.uk

It gives people a voice

You don't need a big fancy studio to lay down a track - unlike regular music, spoken word requires just two things - you and your voice.

As it's so easy to launch yourself into spoken word, we've been able to hear unique stories from people and communities that might not normally reach the spotlight.

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Jack Rooke is a stand-up poet from London who mixes spoken word with his unique style of comedy. In this video he tackles the issue of bereavement, explaining how finding humour in his darkest moment helped him work through everything.

There are no rules

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Rhyme, or don't rhyme; do it fast, or do it slow - it's your call!

Joshua Idehen uses this freedom in My Love to catch the audience's attention, changing the rhythm and style while he tells his story. The beauty of spoken word is you never really know what you're going to get!

It can make you sit up and pay attention

While spoken word poetry can just involve telling stories, it generally tries to provoke some sort of reaction.

Without the distraction of big beats and fancy sets, a spoken word audience really has to take on board the words being said.

Performers such as Amaal Said use this to their advantage, cutting through silences to speak about the challenges and triumphs of being a young Muslim woman of colour growing up in the 21st century.

Speaking about this difference, George the Poet told an interviewer at The Guardian:

“I’d observed, as an MC and as a grime rapper, how people always glazed over the quality of the lyrics and lyricism of a lot of grime and rap and that always bothered me. So I always thought, well, if I take away the beat, slow down the delivery and give people the chance the digest every lyric, it might be received differently. People took it as poetry mainly because it always had strong social messages.”

Suli Breaks is another big name on the scene at the moment. The twenty-something from London shot to internet fame with his poem Why I Hate School But Love Education, with his video reaching over 6.5 million views.