Sara Nelson

English 112B

Professor Mary Warner

November 29, 2011

Annotated Bibliography

The Strivers Row – Poetry

My purpose in presenting the theme of poetry is to introduce a more contemporary form, which is that of spoken word. Overall, my annotated bibliography will concentrate on the spoken-word group, �The Strivers Row�.

In high school, I learned from a professor that poetry is meant to be read aloud. However, that still did not solve the problem of my dislike for poetry. It wasn�t until years later, when I came across a video of Joshua Bennett performing at the White House, did I come to enjoy poetry through the form of spoken-word. And with Joshua Bennett, came my discovery of The Strivers Row.

The Strivers Row, as described on their webpage, is �an artist management and booking agency specializing but no limited to representing spoken word artists�. I believe that The Strivers Row will one day be as recognized as the individuals such as those in the Bloomsbury or Beat poetry groups. The Strivers Row is comprised of five poets: Joshua Bennett, Alysia Harris, Miles Hodges, Jasmine Mans, and Carvens Lissaint. Each poet has their own awesome feat and all reside in the tri-state area.

All five of these poets have their own unique voice and prestigious accomplishments ranging from creating their own one-man plays, winning scholarships for their poetry, appearing on the HBO spoken-word documentary entitled �Brave New Voices�, and becoming poetry champions in contests.

Each and every one of these artists has sparked my love and enjoyment for poetry. I hope by introducing this spoken-word group, others would perhaps come to also enjoy poetry in a less traditional way.
Annotated Bibliography

Bennett, Joshua, and Alysia Harris. ""Freak Show"" YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. Prodigc,

25 May 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XvZWzmzQM-M>.

"Freak Show" is a metaphor of seeing life as a circus and yourself as a freak show. It describes acts in a circus and relates it back to the feeling of self-consciousness. Also satirizes the circus business. I picked this poem because it's another duet poem in which the poem is recited and split by two people. In video form, the hand gestures and movements are also very powerful along with the voice.

Bennett, Joshua. ""Tamara's Opus"" YouTube - Broadcast

Yourself. Whitehouse, 2 Nov. 2009. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_U5BwD8zOeM>.

"Tamara's Opus" is a piece about Bennett�s deaf sister. It is nostalgic on the two growing up as kids and his understanding of what it means to be death. In the end, he apologizes for not having a stronger relationship with his sister. I chose this poem because it is the same poem that led me to run across The Strivers Row. The poem is very beautiful in it's poetic devices it uses to describe his deaf sister's life. Also, this poem was impressive enough to be performed for the President at the white house.

Bennett, Joshua, perf. "Balaenoptera." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's

List Vol. 2. The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 02 Feb. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/balaenoptera>.

"Balaenoptera" is about a young mans love for his lover. The poem discusses all examples of his love. The poem circles around the theme of a whale, and how his love for her is as big as a whale's heart. Again, music is heavily used in the performance of this spoken word performance. The poem is a well-constructed "lovey-dovey" poem. The way it is constructed makes it complex.

Bennett, Joshua, and Alysia Harris, perfs. "Wings #2." Rec. 13 Jan.

2011. The Dean's List Vol. 1. The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 16 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/from-head-to-toe>.

"Wings #2" is a poem about war. Descriptive of the battlefront scene, Harris and Bennett use the metaphor of an eagle throughout the poem. The poem is clearly against the war. I chose this poem because it is a performance between two poets, Bennett and Harris. Some lines are said at the same time, others are said individually. The emotion in this poem also has an intense energy.

Harris, Alysia, perf. "Parade." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's List Vol. 1.

The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 16 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/parade>.

"Parade" talks about the after math of slavery. The knowledge of being a slave descendents is discussed along with the loss of identity. Anger is very present in this poem. I chose this poem because it demonstrates how poetry can be used to show another side of history. This poem can serve as a secondary source for the attitudes towards slavery. It brings up how present of an issue this still is, and the voice of anger is well crafted.

Harris, Alysia. ""That Girl". YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. HBO, 10 Apr. 2009. Web. 29 Nov.

2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_t7UsbvF4qY>.

�That Girl� talks about the dignity of a girl in reference to being used for sex. It talks about overcoming being a girl on the side instead of getting the treatment she truly deserves. In the end, it is concluded that she would rather spend her nights crying than ever be �that girl�. I chose this poem because it is very relatable, as shown by the comments the video performance has on YouTube. I think it evokes a lot of emotion as well and is extremely powerful.

Harris, Alysia, perf. "Joy." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's List Vol. 2.

The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 02 Feb. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/parade>.

"Joy" talks about a woman's strength to be happy without an man in her life. The poem talks about the pride of being a woman. Also addressed is the journey to being able to get back up on your feet after a breakup. I picked this poem because I believe it has a very positive message. Also the way Harris structures her poem narrows down to the focus of a single woman being strong.

Harris, Alysia, perf. "Death Poem." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's List

Vol. 2. The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 02 Feb. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/death-poem>.

"Death Poem" is a somewhat morbid poem discussing death. Death is discussed in the ceremony of burial and all the details that happen to the body after it is placed in the ground. Moreover, the poem is about a love that last long after death. I chose this poem because it shows how something so distasteful can be made into a beautiful piece of poetry. The theme of death is also used in an untraditional way that makes it unique. It encourages one to explore the world and see things from a different viewpoint.

Harris, Alysia, and Jasmine Mans. ""Black and Blue"" YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. The

Strivers Row, 30 June 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dImk4xk3htw>.

"Black and Blue" is a poem about abuse. The poem discuses the outcome of physical abuse and concentrates on the abuser's fault. This poem is great because it addresses the issue of physical abuse. It has a lot of emotion and the background music written for the piece is fantastic. The metaphors used in the poem are quite amazing as well.

Hodges, Miles, perf. "From Head to Toe." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's List

Vol. 1. The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 16 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/from-head-to-toe>.

"From Head to Toe" is about a lover. Hodges, as the title suggests, describes a lover from head to toe. The description of the lover is not limited to physical description, but is rich with metaphors and anecdotes. I chose this poem because it demonstrates how spoken word poetry works with music in the background. Hodge's soft voice flows nicely with the music written for the poem. The poem also nicely demonstrates how to "show, and not tell" in poetry.

Hodges, Miles, perf. "What's In a Man." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's

List Vol. 2. The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 02 Feb. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/whats-in-a-man-2>.

"What's In a Man" is about the journey of a young man becoming into an honorable man. Immaturity grows into maturity and responsibility. A man transforms into a player to one who understand love. I picked this poem because it is powerful. Although some words are explicit, they work in the poem.

Lissaint, Carvens, perf. "Praise." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's List Vol. 1.

The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 16 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/praise>.

"Praise" is about spirituality. Lissaint talks about all the things in life that he believes deserve praise, no matter how big or small. The poem is a celebration of life. I chose this poem because the whole time, Lissaint is so engaged in his poetry that he's yelling it. You can feel the energy through the recording, and that's how spoken word poetry should be. The poem is easy to understand through the passion in delivery.

Mans, Jasmine, perf. "Ex-Lover." Rec. 13 Jan. 2011. The Dean's List Vol. 1.

The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 16 Jan. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/ex-lover>.

�Ex-Lover" is a poem about heartbreak. The poem tells a story about how Mans would comfort a future daughter in heartbreak. Mans then continues to talk about her own past lover, a woman. I chose this poem because it encases a relevant topic of today, homosexuality. Also, Man's voice truly does come through in anger and hurt that is familiar with heartbreak. It demonstrates a true raw emotion that I think is the essence of good poetry.

Mans, Jasmine, perf. "The Miseducation of Barbie." Rec. 13 Jan.

2011. The Dean's List Vol. 2. The Strivers Row. Bandcamp, Inc, 2011. Bandcamp. Bandcamp, Inc., 02 Feb. 2011. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://thestriversrow.bandcamp.com/track/the-miseducation-of-barbie>.

"The Miseducation of Barbie" is about the dignity of a woman. Mans is insulting the musical artist Nicki Minaj in retrospect to the image she sets for young girls. The poem is full of sarcasm. I chose this poem because it is inspiring. It addresses the issue with the media and lack of role models of today. It also demonstrates how to be prideful of yourself without condoning to what the media illustrates how you should be.

Mans, Jasmine. "Jasmine Mans at the 2008 Urban Word NYC Teen

Poetry Slam Finals. �YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. Lisarussellnyc, 21 Nov. 2008. Web. 29 Nov. 2011. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7n-x_GjxfA>.

The poem is about a rape victim. It talks about the after-effects a rape victim deals with, including depression and suicidal thoughts. In the end, it is revealed that the speaker of the poem was raped by her father. The emotion of this poem is so powerful it almost brings tears. It also deals with the issue of rape. Overall, it is a creative poem with a power line at the end.