One day, I was browsing YouTube and stumbled across a video from Button Poetry, a channel that posts slam poetry videos. I had heard of spoken word poetry before, but I never understood how powerful it was until I watched the video. One video led to another, and before I knew it, hours had passed. Performance poetry is one of the most expressive, beautiful and thought-provoking forms of art, often touching on subjects we are afraid to talk about publically but struggle with privately.

Here is a list of my personal favorite performance poetry videos, to be watched when you're feeling in need of a little inspiration. Topics covered include but not limited to body image, depression, girl power, love, and so much more.

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1. Jesse Parent – "To the Boys Who May One Day Date My Daughter"

One of the first poetry videos I ever watched, this one makes me smile every time I watch it. As a daughter, I was moved by the love expressed in the poem, and whenever I feel homesick and miss my dad I like to watch this video as a little pick-me-up.

2. Neil Hilborn – "OCD" (Rustbelt 2013)

An incredibly touching poem, Hilborn openly expresses vulnerability and gives insight onto what everyday is like for him, living with OCD. A poem with a sadder tone, “OCD" is a beautifully honest poem on what it's like to lose love.

3. Sabrina Benaim – “Explaining Depression to my Mother"

This is the most emotional spoken word I've ever watched, and as someone who has dealt with depression firsthand, this personally hits home for me. Benaim so perfectly describes what living with depression is like.

4. Lily Myers – "Shrinking Women" (CUPSI 2013)

An incredibly thought-provoking poem, this poem was actually shown in one of my classes last semester. The role of women in society is always a discussion, and Meyer offers some new thoughts.

5. Dylan Garity – "Friend Zone" (Button Poetry First Readings)

This video serves as a great reminder that genuine and good guys are a real thing. It's easy to lose sight of that as it seems like in recent years women and men seem to always be on different sides. This poem is a wonderful example of a guy encouraging other guys to be better.

6. Megan Maughan – "5 Reasons to Date a Girl With an Eating Disorder"

This video is in response to an article entitled “5 Reasons to Date a Girl With an Eating Disorder." The article caught a lot of attention and this poem sheds light onto what it's like to have an eating disorder and is a rebuttal to the article.

Article the poem is in response to.

7. Desireé Dallagiacomo – "Thighs" (WOWPS 2014)

Fat-shaming has always been an issue in society, but this poem is a different take on the problem. A different tone from traditional spoken word, Dallagiacomo speaks up for girls everywhere, regardless of size and adds a little sass to it.