Local movement keeps slam
poetry alive
Friday, July 29, 2005
By MARTINA BRENDEL
JOURNAL STAFF WRITER
Clutching a wrinkled piece of
paper and nervously eyeing
the crowd, Dominick Brown
leaned into the microphone
announced the name of his
poem, "It's a Beautiful Day in
the Hood."
"It's a beautiful day in the
hood, it's a beautiful day in
the hood," he sang.
"It's a beautiful day in my
hood when I don't wake up to
gunshots," Brown said flatly,
launching into an exposé on
the injustices of growing up
poor and black in Newark.
It was Brown's first time
performing at the Cypher
Movement Open Mic and
Slam Venue at Mangoville
Restaurant in Jersey City -
and his poem received a
hearty applause from the
audience.
The Cypher Movement was
founded by Dujuana Neville,
37, of Jersey City, to promote
slam poetry in Hudson
County.
"There's open mics in nearly
every city in Hudson County,
but we're the only slam poetry
venue I know of," said Neville.
She starts each event with a
"cypher" - an improvised
poem drawn from audience
suggestions.
"I would like everyone to see
it. I would like it to be the next
intramural sport in schools,"
she said.
Slam poetry is like a sport in
that the poets receive scores
from members of the
audience, with the highest
scoring poet receiving a prize
at the end of evening.
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The Cypher Movement was
founded by Dujuana Neville,
37, of Jersey City, to promote
slam poetry in Hudson County.
"There's open mics in nearly
every city in Hudson County,
but we're the only slam poetry
venue I know of," said Neville.
She starts each event with a
"cypher" - an improvised
poem drawn from audience
suggestions.
"I would like everyone to see it.
I would like it to be the next
intramural sport in schools,"
she said.
Slam poetry is like a sport in
that the poets receive scores
from members of the
audience, with the highest
scoring poet receiving a prize
at the end of evening.
is form of poetry emerged in
Chicago in the 1980s as a
livelier alternative to open
mics, where poets simply
read their work.
Today, poetry slams are a
commonplace in most
American cities. There is even
a National Poetry Slam, held
each August, which draws
more than 70 slam teams
nationwide.
"For me, slam poetry is a
release," said Mike Bertram,
34, of Rahway, a father of six.
Next month, he will travel to
Albequerque, N.M., to
compete in the National
Poetry Slam with the
Nuyorican 2005 Slam Team.
Bertram said the dirge of slam
venues in New Jersey is what
drove him across the Hudson."
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The upside of fewer venues, he
added, is that New Jersey's slam
poets know one another, and
tend to be friendlier.
"Everybody's really nice" at the
Cypher Movement, said Terrence
Reveles, 27, of Jersey City. "I've
been to places in New York
where people are not clapping
after you go, where there's booing
and stuff."
The upside of fewer venues, he
added, is that New Jersey's slam
poets know one another, and
tend to be friendlier.
"Everybody's really nice" at the
Cypher Movement, said Terrence
Reveles, 27, of Jersey City. "I've
been to places in New York
where people are not clapping
after you go, where there's booing
and stuff."Neville takes special
care to preserve the friendly
atmosphere at the Cypher
Movement, huddling the poets for
a pep talk before each slam and
demanding a healthy applause
from the audience after each
performance.
"My main goal for all the poets in
the house is to make everyone
comfortable," said Neville
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