Comments for Rock Star Poet

Comment on Shane Koyczan Introduced Me to Performance Poetry by Adam Snider

Adam Snider — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 21:35:53 +0000

Great to hear that you’ll be introducing your students to Shane Koyczan! That’s awesome, Elaine.

Comment on Shane Koyczan Introduced Me to Performance Poetry by Elaine

Elaine — Sat, 13 Feb 2010 18:16:17 +0000

Last summer, when I discovered that I was going to be teaching English 8, I remembered a poet I had heard on ZED many years ago. I started searching for him online, as I hadn’t caught his name (probably because I was so blown away by his art), but didn’t have enough detail to find him. QUELLE SURPRISE last night to see him on tv at the ceremonies!!! Now I can introduce the kids to poetry that’s relevant.

Comment on Beyond Dead White Guys: Oscar Brown Jr. by Adam Snider

Adam Snider — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 05:08:06 +0000

Thanks for the comment, Linda. I’ll take a look again and see if I can find a video that doesn’t have audio problems. I’ll check out your version, too.

Comment on Beyond Dead White Guys: Oscar Brown Jr. by Linda Kosut

Linda Kosut — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 04:14:02 +0000

Hi – I am a fan, a singer and great afficionado of OBJ’s work. In fact, I have not only performed The Beach, but recorded it as Oscar did – using his arrangement – interspersed in his lyrical version of Monk’s ‘Round Midnight – all about aging and time.

There is also a version of OBJ doing The Beach that was fairly clear, I thought. You can check out my version at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZMjMLUUNWc&feature=channel_page

Comment on We Need More Def Poetry Jams by Rock Star Poet » Blog Archive » Beyond Dead White Guys: Oscar Brown Jr.

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 08:27:03 +0000

[...] Oscar Brown Jr. has appeared on Rock Star Poet before. I included a video of one of his Def Poetry Jam performances in my post about that television show. [...]

Comment on Taylor Mali is a Rock Star Poet by Adam Snider

Adam Snider — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 21:33:13 +0000

Gerry, I definitely understand your point, and I actually do share some of your concern. I suppose, to some extent, the “rock star poet” term is a bit of shorthand to explain a bigger concept.

That said, I would argue that you’re confusing “rock star” with “pop star,” at least when you say that very few rock stars write their own material. I’d say that pop stars—and I’m talking about pop as a genre (Britney Spears, et al), rather than simply popular music—tend to be talented performers who let others write their music for them.

Rock stars, I’d argue, are more likely to write their own material (whether or not that material is worth the attention it gets is another issue).

Further to all of this, I don’t think that commercial viability and artistic worth are mutually exclusive—at least, they shouldn’t have to be.

Anyway, thanks for commenting. I’m planning a post about this whole concept of the rock star poet for the not-too-distant future, so I hope you’ll check back and let me know what you think after I’ve provided a more in-depth explanation of what I’m trying to get at with this blog. You may still feel that same at that point, but that’s fine. I welcome differing opinions, and I’d love to hear from you in the future.

Comment on Taylor Mali is a Rock Star Poet by Gerry

Gerry — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 08:45:08 +0000

Colluding the two terms ‘Rock Star’ and ‘Poet’ is doing more harm than good. ‘Rock Star’ is a term that has come to denote an artist that is appraised for commercial ability rather than praiseworthy insight into the human condition. Further consider that very few ‘Rock Stars’ in the current application of the term compose their own material. This is not to say that populism should be shunned, or that obscurity is the hallmark of a more insightful artist. Simply, ‘Rock Star’ is a very poor term to describe any artist. The term is too engaged with excess and celebrity to offer anything constructive when used to describe an artist’s output.

Comment on Are Rappers Poets? by Rock Star Poet » Blog Archive » Cadence Weapon is a Rock Star Poet

Rock Star Poet » Blog Archive » Cadence Weapon is a Rock Star Poet — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 14:53:05 +0000

[...] Roland Pemberton—aka: Cadence Weapon—is Edmonton’s Poet Laureate, and a rock star poet. He’s also a rapper. [...]