The Poet's Corner

This week’s topic: Urban Spoken Word

I am a major fan of poetry be it the classics like Whitman or modern day works like Angelou. But yesterday I started to think of a medium of poetry that is often over looked and it upset me that it rarely gets the credit it deserves, of course I am talking about the urban spoken word style. These works often tell the ugly truth about the existence that is modern day American life in the big city, sometimes with words alone other times accompanied with music. People tend to write these artists and their works off by saying they are mentally weak and anyone can do it. I say nay to that and present an excerpt from the highest form of urban spoken word, gangsta rap, for your consideration.

I have chosen the artist Spice 1 and his work “Born 2 Die”. Now many other choices would have worked, classics like Dr. Dre and his “Nothing but a G thang” or 2 live crew with “Me So Horny” or the quintessential 504 Boy’s “I can tell”. But none of those touch the heart of the inner city quite like Spice 1’s masterpiece. It’s the tale of a tortured man and his twisted mind, with guns that telepathically speak to their owner, copious amounts of blood and technical word play that would make Shakespeare blush with envy. The line “My granddaddy Mr. AR-15, said he was my only family shoot straight and please don’t jam me.” Cuts to the heart of family relationships with such intensity Keats would hang his head in shame. Another example “One for the glock, two for the clip, bullets in your ass make you hop and skip”. Written with such an original lyrical style it makes Dante’s work seem like jingles for a feminine hygiene product. Or my personal favorite the classic line on urban decay “AK spray beat your body as it lay on the concrete, die in one beat of the heart, seven day old ass body smell a little tart”. That’s just the tip of the iceberg with the depths this piece penetrates, it's quite easy to get lost in contemplation when listening.

What says you poetry snobs, still not convinced of the gravity and artistry of these street sages? Then I suggest you strap in to the roller coaster that is “Born 2 Die” and prepare to expand your mind. BEEEOTCH!!!