The Austin

Poetry Slam A poetry slam is a competitive art event in which poets perform spoken word poetry before a live audience and a panel of judges. While formats can vary, slams are often loud and lively, with audience participation, cheering and dramatic delivery. ...

(APS) is one of the longest running poetry venues in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

. Founded in 1994 by Wammo of the Asylum Street Spankers and helmed for 15 years by former Poetry Slam, Inc. president, Mike Henry, Austin Slam is renowned for memorable and often raucous performances by many of the best poets in the

slam poetry A poetry slam is a competitive art event in which poets perform spoken word poetry before a live audience and a panel of judges. While formats can vary, slams are often loud and lively, with audience participation, cheering and dramatic delivery. ...

world. Austin Slam is best known nationally for hosting the

National Poetry Slam The National Poetry Slam (NPS) is a performance poetry competition where teams from across the United States, Canada, and, occasionally, Europe and Australia, participate in a large-scale poetry slam. The event occurs in early August every year an ...

(NPS) in 1998, 2006, & 2007, and for Austin teams' national finals stage performances in 1996, 2003, & 2008. Since its inception, many nationally known poets have been regulars and team members at APS, these include Ernie Cline (writer of '' Fanboys''), Ragan Fox (host of Fox in the City),

Big Poppa E Big Poppa E is an American performer of slam poetry. His live performances combine poetry, stand-up comedy, and dramatic monologue. Performance poetry He participated in the 10th Annual Poetry Slam in Chicago as part of the San Francisco team. ...

, Karyna McGlynn, Susan B.A. Somers-Willett, Danny Strack, Andy Buck, Genevieve Van Cleve, Da'shade Moonbeam, Christopher Michael, Shannon Leigh, Tony Jackson, Christopher Lee, Krissi Reeves, Emily Shafer, Phil West, Sonya Feher, Faylita Hicks, Love Robinson, Peter Nevland, Danny Solis, David Hendler, Zell Miller III, Hilary Thomas, Matthew John Conely, Ruff Draft, The Minister Sin, Erin Livingston, Jacob "Ohio Jake" Rakovan, Jeff & Tonie Knight, and far too many others to list. In addition, touring poets regularly stop by. Notable featured poets have included Jess Howard,

Buddy Wakefield Kenneth Zane Beasley III (born June 4, 1974), known as Buddy Wakefield, is an American spoken word artist, a three-time poetry slam world champion, and the most toured performance poet in history. His works have been released by Strange Famous Re ...

, Derrick C. Brown, Taylor Mali,

Mighty Mike McGee Michael Matthew McGee (born January 12, 1976), more commonly known as Mighty Mike McGee, is an American slam poet. Biography McGee is the oldest of eight children from several marriages. He has spent most of his life in and around San Jo ...

, Cristin O'Keefe Aptowicz,

Andrea Gibson Andrea Gibson (born August 13, 1975) is an American poet and activist from Calais, Maine, who has lived in Boulder, Colorado since 1999. Gibson's poetry focuses on gender norms, politics, social reform, and LGBTQ topics. Personal life Gibson ...

, and many others. The Austin Slam has made its home in a variety of venues throughout Austin over the years, including the Electric Lounge, Mojo's Daily Grind, Gaby n Mo's, The Mercury, Ego's Bar, the Scoot Inn, the ND, Progress Coffee and most recently in 2011, The United States Art Authority. In addition to the weekly show, APS has hosted other readings around Austin, including for the Blanton Art Museum and for SXSW. The slam has also released several compilations of local work throughout the years, including Tina's Fine Ass Lingere, a 2007 team CD, and a 2008 DVD recording of the slam-off at the Long Center. The Austin Poetry Slam continues every Tuesday at 8pm at the Spider House Ballroom. The current slammaster is Danny Strack.

History

* Hosted the 1998, 2006, and 2007 National Poetry Slam ---- ----

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://www.austinslam.com Poetry slams Culture of Austin, Texas