Slam Lingo
- accompaniment
- Music or other media that's designed to add another facet to a poet's performance. The National Poetry Slam does not allow accompaniment.
- accoutrement
- Anything on or around the stage that's accessible to all performers and is not a prop. Accoutrements include the microphone, chairs, tables, and other furniture, and the aisles between the tables.
- alternate
- A replacement member of a slam team who can fill in for another team member only in the event of an emergency.
- articulation
- The time value a performer assigns to each syllable during the performance of a poem.
- audience
- One of the most essential components of a slam poetry event, the people who witness the event and provide feedback to the performance poets.
- backbeat
- Sounds produced by the human voice to provide a basic 4-beat rhythmic pattern behind verses laid down by rappers.
- block
- A theater term for the process of mapping out the various actors' positions and movements onstage during a scene.
- blog
- A publicly accessible personal journal on the web that enables an individual to voice his or her opinions and insights or keep an online record of experiences.
- bout
- A competition between two or more slam poets or between two or more slam teams. A bout consists of one or more rounds (see round). The winner of a bout typically advances to the next bout to compete with other teams.
- calibration poet
- The first slam poet of the event who is offered up to the audience and judges as a sacrificial lamb before the actual competition begins. Calibration poets help the judges warm up and give the slam poets some idea of what to expect from the judges. The calibration poet typically does not take part in the competition.
- call and response
- A theatrical device that encourages the audience to become part of the performance by saying a particular word or phrase on the performer's queue. For example, the performer might instruct the audience to holler "Top!" whenever she says "... up to the ...." When the poet says, "I'm goin' up to the ..." the audience yells "Top!"
- call time
- A theater term that designates the hour and minute when you're expected to arrive at the theater for the night's performance.
- chapbook
- A small, typically self-published book of poems, ballads, or stories.
- competition
- A theatrical device essential to slam poetry that's designed to rev up the audience and raise the level of the art—both the poetry and the performance.
- concrete poem
- Verse that's arranged on the page in a way that forms a visual image that supports or embellishes its message.
- disclaimer
- A statement, typically recited before a slam event, in which the emcee introduces the event, briefly describes the type of competition the audience is about to witness, explains some of the rules and regulations, and undercuts the seriousness of what's about to take place.
- duo
- Two poets performing a piece together as a team slam.
- elders
- Seasoned slammasters who often are called upon to settle disputes and provide guidance at slam family meetings.
- emcee
- The master of ceremonies at a slam show. The emcee is expected to be impartial (or at least act impartial), keep the show moving at a steady clip, make sure the judges behave themselves (hold up their scores at the same time), and keep the audience engaged between performances.
- Executive Council
- The steering committee of Poetry Slam, Inc. devoted to promoting slam, managing slam family business, and preserving the slam tradition. Members of the executive committee are elected by the SlamMasters Council of Poetry Slam, Inc.
- exquisite corpse
- A poem constructed by a number of poets (often everyone in the room) adding a line to a preceding line having seen only the preceding line.
- feet
- The basic units of measure in a line of poetry that are determined by different combinations of stressed and unstressed syllables.
- format
- The structure that directs the proceedings at a poetry slam. In most cases, poetry slams consist of several bouts in which individuals and/or teams compete for a chance to advance to the next round until one person or team ultimately beats out the others.
- free-stylers
- Improv rappers who duel poetically onstage or in circled groups on street corners over vocally or instrumentally produced rhythms called backbeats. Free-styling has extended into the slam world and even into more traditional poetry realms.
- gag rule
- Teammates of the individual performing poet must not coach the audience to respond in a particular way to the performance. In other words, if you're performing a particular piece, your teammates can't cheer or call out words or phrases in the hopes that the audience will follow their lead.
- Grant Back
- A PSI Program that allows a slam organization without nonprofit status to use the PSI nonprofit status to obtain funding and grants that would not otherwise be available to them.
- group piece
- See team piece.
- host
- (1) Another term for emcee (see emcee). (2) The person who meets, greets, and seats the patrons as they enter the venue.
- host city
- The city selected by the slammasters and contracted by PSI for the staging of the IWPS and/or the NPS.
- Individual World Poetry Slam (IWPS)
- The annual slam competition for individual competitors started in February 2004.
- influence rule
- Performers may not attempt, directly or indirectly, to win the audience's favor before the competition begins. The performers may strike up casual conversations with friends or audience members before the competition begins, but they may not hand out free t-shirts, do stand-up comedy outside the front door, or do anything else to give themselves an edge over their competition.
- judge
- An impartial (not necessarily well-qualified) member of the audience who is chosen by one of the slam organizers to score the poems and the performances of those poems (usually on a scale of 0 to 10).
- judging
- The process of watching, listening to, and rating the performances of the various poets and/or teams during a poetry slam.
- liner notes
- The printed texts inside a CD case. They list the track selections and running times, and give biographical information about the performers.
- listserv
- An automated mailing list on the Internet. Poetry listservs contain the names and e-mail addresses of people who want to receive up-to-date news, announcements, and information about poetry and poetry events. When you send an announcement to a listserv, the listserv automatically broadcasts it, via e-mail, to everyone on the list.
- maximum time
- See time limit.
- mixing
- The process of combining and layering audio clips to produce a final recording.
- National Poetry Slam
- The annual official slam event organized by Poetry Slam, Inc. The National Poetry Slam attracts more than 60 slam teams from all across North America.
- no-repeat rule
- A poem can only be performed once during the preliminary or semi-final rounds and once in the finals.
- NPS
- See National Poetry Slam.
- NPS code of honor
- A statement of proper behavior that slammers agree to adhere to during the National Poetry Slam. The code of honor basically states that you should respect others (and their rights), be a good sport, follow the rules, work for the greater glory of poetry, and not act like a jerk.
- open mike
- A portion of a typical slam event that provides an opportunity for anyone in the audience to perform a poem.
- pantoum
- A Malayan form of accentual-syllabic verse that consists of an indefinite number of quatrain stanzas with the specific restriction that lines two and four of each stanza be repeated in lines one and three of the following stanza.
- performance
- The dramatic recitation and acting out of a poem. Slam poets use voice, gesture, eye contact, and other dramatic tools to engage the audience and communicate their poems as effectively as possible.
- Poetry Alive
- An educational organization founded in Asheville, North Carolina, by Bob Falls. It sends troupes of performance poets to high schools across the country to expose students to the passion of performed poetry.
- poetry slam
- The actual performance poetry event that usually culminates in figurative battle between slam poets.
- Poetry Slam Rule Book
- The stone tablet that contains the laws and bylaws that poets and teams must follow when competing in the National Poetry Slam.
- Poetry Slam, Inc.
- The official organization that tries to provide some semblance of order to the general chaos that slam embraces.
- points
- A number, typically between 0 and 10 applied by judges to a particular poetry performance in an attempt to assign some objective value to the poem and the performance of it.
- Pong Jam
- A musical/poetic jam session in which poets read or recite their poems to musical improvisation.
- praise poets
- South African poets, also known as Imbongi, who have influenced their local politics for time immemorial by creating and maintaining the reputation of tribal chiefs. To this day praise poets, through oral poetry, declaim the political climate and social injustices around them.
- press pack
- A collection of documents, photos, audio clips, video clips, and anything else that represents your work designed to be sent to club owners, organizers, slammasters, and others to convince them to book you for a performance. Press packs are commonly sent to newspaper reporters or magazine writers to provide them with the information they need to compose an article.
- primary author
- A poet who contributed significantly enough to the composition of a group piece to be considered an equal owner of that piece.
- prop
- Any object (other than an accoutrement) that a performer uses during a performance for dramatic effect. This includes necklaces, earrings, pocket change, walking sticks, beer bottles, you name it.
- proscenium
- The area of a modern stage between the curtain and the orchestra pit—the main area where the actors act, the dancers dance, and the slammers slam.
- protest
- A formal complaint filed by one team against another team pointing out a suspected rule infraction during a bout at the National Poetry Slam. Protests are submitted to the protest committee, which reviews the complaint and issues its verdict.
- quartet
- Four poets (the maximum number allowed at a National Poetry Slam) performing a team slam.
- rhymation
- The tedious and sometimes nonsensical practice of rhyming a long, long series of -tion and -sion words. It also applies to common word endings of -ize, -ism, -ary, -etic, -ation, and a dozen others.
- rotation
- The order in which poets on a particular team perform—who goes first, second, third, and fourth. The team captain, with input from the team members, usually decides on the rotation. There are many "rotation" strategies for maximizing a team's points.
- round
- A set of performances in which one or more members of each competing team gets a chance to perform. The standard time limit for each team in a round is three minutes, but some competitions include one-minute rounds, four-minute rounds, and even fifteen-minute rounds.
- round robin
- A term we started using in Chicago to describe a series of very short poems performed one right after another by several poets planted at different locations in the audience.
- sampling
- The incorporation of another poet's words into a poem. Slam poets commonly play off another poet's words, and this is acceptable. However, stealing the words outright is disdainful, not to mention criminal.
- scan
- To determine the kind and number of feet in each poetic line. See also feet.
- score card
- The device held up by the judges to display their scores to the audience, poets, and emcee. Score cards at a slam range from reusable wooden paddles that have numbered cards on rings that judges flip over to form a score to cocktail napkins marked up with ink pens.
- score creep
- The tendency of scores to rise as a competition progresses.
- score tracking
- The process by which judges record the scores of the various performances. In most cases, the judges write the scores on a paper form given to them before the competition starts. The tracking sheet is used to verify the official scores.
- scoring
- The ridiculous practice of assigning a numerical value to a poetry performance. Traditional slams call for scores between 0 and 10 or down to negative infinity.
- scout
- To scan the audience for impartial, not necessarily well-qualified, judges. Organizers and emcees scout for judges who are not affiliated with any of the performers in the competition.
- show
- All the components and events that comprise a particular poetry slam. The organizer of a slam is its visionary.
- slam
- (n) (1) A term that describes a type of performance poetry show that usually culminates in a poetic competition. (2) A performance poetry competition.
- slam
- (v) To perform a poem in front of a live audience and quite often in a competitive arena.
- slam family
- The entire membership of Poetry Slam, Inc. (PSI) and anyone else who wants to hang around slams and slammers.
- slammaster
- A person who organizes a local slam community and tries to keep the slam going. On the national level, the slammaster contacts Poetry Slam, Inc. to enter the slam's team in the National Poetry Slam.
- SlamMasters Council
- This strongest and most important body in the PSI structure is comprised of slammasters who run the various certified slams around the country. The SlamMasters Council meets twice a year to set rules, resolve conflicts, and define the future course of slam.
- SlamMasters Council meetings
- Biannual gatherings of slammasters from around the country to discuss issues relating to the rules of slam, its current condition, and its future evolution.
- slam poetry
- A term that describes any spoken word poetry composed and rehearsed for presentation in front of a live audience and quite often in a competitive arena.
- So What!
- Marc Smith's handle, which reminds all involved, including Marc Smith himself, that slam is a level playing field on which everyone is equally important.
- Spirit of Slam Award
- An honor bestowed upon a performer or slammaster at the nationals who has done something exceptional to promote the spirit of slam poetry.
- spoken word poetry
- Verse that's composed primarily to be recited or performed rather than read in silence, even though it might be excellent in print, as well.
- Storm Poet
- A performance poet not affiliated with any team who competes individually at a National Poetry Slam. Storm poets are named after well-known Asheville slammer, Pat Storm, who has passed on from the material world.
- team
- A group of slam poets who compete at a slam event against other teams. At the National Poetry Slam, each team has four members plus an alternate. See also alternate.
- team piece
- A poem performed by two, three, or all four members of a slam team.
- three-minute rule
- A limitation at the National Poetry Slam and most local slams that prevents a performance from running past the amount of time that most of the audience can tolerate. Poets are allowed to run over by 10 seconds, but beyond that, a half point is deducted for every 10 seconds the performance runs over.
- time limit
- A restriction on the amount of time a poet's performance can last. See also three-minute rule.
- venue
- A place where a performance takes place; for example, a specific tavern, club, or concerthall.
- virgin virgin
- A person who has never performed his or her poetry onstage in front of a live audience.
- youth slam
- A performance poetry competition for young performance poets, typically between the ages of 13 and 19 years old.
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