Today our poetry news round up takes a look at the Asia Pacific Poetry Slam 2018, the Pages of the Sea project and finally the claim that a Russian poet born 125 years ago was the father of rap.
Asia Pacific Poetry Slam Won by Malaysian Poet
17 competitors from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and the Philippines took part in this years Asia Pacific Poetry Slam. The two-day competition which took place in Singapore saw Azam Rais Rosli named as the winner.
Azam, who is 28 years old, runs his own company in the marketing industry, and turned to poetry when he was a child. He had a stutter and a fear of speaking in front of others which he wanted to overcome. At the age of 10 he began writing his own poetry, but because of his stutter he only shared it with his sister.
Having seen poetry read out loud he was desperate to perform his own poetry and so he pushed himself to get involved with public speaking contests and drama productions. He slowly managed to overcome his fear of being in front of an audience.
His own poetry takes its inspiration from society and the issues occurring around him.
Pages of the Sea
The list of those beaches taking part in the Pages of the Sea project has just grown. Gorleston beach in Norfolk is to join this special tribute for Remembrance Sunday.
The tribute is being orchestrated by the filmmaker Danny Boyle. Members of the public are being invited to mark the centenary of Armistice on 11th November by meeting on the beaches. They will watch as a portrait of a First World War soldier will emerge from the sands before being symbolically washed away by the waves. The idea is that as the image of the soldier disappears those watching will say goodbye to all those who fought for the country during the war. The beeches have been chosen because they are completely public spaces that can be accessed by everyone.
This event as commissioned by the UK arts programme for the centenary of World War One. 14-18 NOW.
At the end of the event people will be encouraged to draw silhouettes in the sand. The poet laureate Carol Ann Duffy has written a new poem for the occasion which will be read as part of the event.
Boyle has visited this beach previously. It was here that he filmed some of the scenes for his Beatles inspired film, which will be released early next year.
Who was the First Rapper?
A rather unusual claim has been made by the rather outspoken culture minister of Russia. He claims that Vladimir Mayakovsky – the famed soviet poet – was in fact the original rapper.
Mayakovsky was born 125 years ago, and famed for his depictions of bourgeois life which were rather satirical. He was a leading Futurist poet and avant-garde. In 1930 he committed suicide.
The minister claims that the current obsession with rap gets on his nerves and that having taken a look at rap with his son he believes that “Mayakovsky was the first rapper.” He further believes that the world will soon be saying that whilst rap has been developed in the US it was an idea that originated in Russia!
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