During high school, I used to really spend a lot of my time with the creative writing teacher. Because of this, I ended up really coming to love spoken word / slam poetry. Here are just a few spoken word poets who have really moved me as a writer and a person.

1. Sarah Kay - "If I Should Have a Daughter"

I genuinely don't even know what to say about Sarah Kay. My teacher introduced my creative writing class to her one random Wednesday in the spring, and since then I have aspired for my writing to be anything like hers. I attempted a poem like this, but it didn't necessarily work for me the way she makes this one work. While her poem only lasts for about the first three and a half minutes of this video, I think this video is the best way to start this article because she really encapsulates what the spoken word is really about for the other 15 minutes of the video.

2. Shay Alexi Stewart - "Song of the Prettybird"

At first, I had seen this and thought of it as a weird poem. I almost didn't finish it, but then when she started the confused (all I can think of with the part) and repetitive section, I realized how good this was. I was amazed listening to it because Shay wrote an absolutely amazing poem that really knocked my socks off when thinking about the way women are treated now.

3. Sarah Ogutu - "After the Storm"

This is an absolutely beautiful piece. Her raw emotion mixed with the poem itself made this the most powerful. She is the only one who I have seen this emotionally invested in her piece, and I think that really helped with the performance of the poem itself

4. Patrick Roche - "21"

I've seen a lot of attempts at list poems, but this is the only one that I have only ever liked. Patrick gives a narrative that builds a new kind of story. By building the narrative from the end of the story, it gives the audience an understanding of Patrick's life as a child, and a backdrop to the entire narrative itself. Also, his use of his own voice getting more high pitched as he gets younger enforces the innocence of his childhood that has such a terrible undermining story behind it.

5. Shane Koyczan - "To This Day"

This one I had discovered before I took my class with this teacher. While this one strays more from the art of spoken word as it uses more than just Shane's words, they still are there and as powerful as ever. I listened to this just a year or so after coming out for the first time, and although I had an easy time coming out, I couldn't help but imagine what it was like for all the others who didn't have as easy of a time. This one was the first poem I had ever been introduced to, and this is what I had fallen in love with.