Windsor Poetry Slam

By Chelsea Girard

 

Inspired by Vancouver’s annual Canadian Individual Poetry Slam, The Windsor Poetry Slam group hosts a poetry competition every fourth Tuesday at Phog Lounge.

The group aims to craft a friendly competition with a goal of sending local poets to national competitions.

Each event starts with an open mic section, then moves into the competition. The night is solely focused on writing and performances without the use of props, costumes or music.

Matt Loeb, founder and CEO of the Windsor Poetry Slam, said he started the event because he wanted to build a stage and give a voice to Windsorites on a national level.

“We’re one of the fastest growing and most vibrant slams in the country,” said Loeb. “I hope we’ll encourage the growth of local artists but also carve out a spot in the national stage.”

After two rounds of three-minute poetry slams, poets are scored by random members of the audience and the top five poets move on to the second round. In the past,  the Windsor Poetry Slam has featured Canadian Individual Poetry Slam champions such as Andre Prefontaine and IF The Poet, Windsor’s Poet Laureate Marty Gervais and YouTube sensation Sabrina Benaim.

Kat Moscone, 29, leading with 54 points this 2016-2017 season, said the community can gain perspective from the poetry group by hearing pieces from a diverse group. These people will learn what is going on in the lives of the strangers they pass on the streets and be able to relate more on a personal level.

“I had never experienced a community with so much support for one another like this before,” said Moscone. “If different communities throughout Windsor adapted some of the same techniques and attitudes the slam uses, people may find themselves more involved in community activities.”

The Windsor Slam Poetry group is hosting their next event on April 25, at Phog Lounge at 8 p.m.