Poetry with the Blues! Logo

  • Spoken Word with the Blues!

    Come join us for a night of Spoken Word, where you can freely express yourself and your work, or join our competition for our GRAND PRIZE!

  • Date / Time

    July 19, 2025 : 7:00 - 9:00 PM

  • Location

    416 S. University Ave. Suite 110, Little Rock, Arkansas, 72205

  • Prizes

    • $250 pre-loaded debit card for competition winner 

     Light refreshments will be provided

  • Competition Rules

    1. Memorization is not required or necessary. The poet may choose to bring a sheet of paper, chapbook, or even read their peice off of their phone.
    2. Each poem must be of the poet’s own creation.
    3. Each poet gets three minutes (plus a ten-second grace period) to read one poem. If poet goes over time, will be disqualified from grand prize
    4. All styles are welcomed and encouraged: acapella hip-hop, theatrical monologues, literary poetry, sound poetry, dub poetry, rants, haikus, power raps, etc. Whatever you would have fun doing!
    5. All participants wishing to compete or express must be 18 years of age or older 

  • Judges

    There will be five judges for the competition round of the night. Judges will look for the criteria listed below.

    In the event of a tie - there will be a sudden death round, where a random topic is given to the contestants. They will have 10 minutes to come up with their spoken word and the winner will be decided on who the judges felt had the most cohesive and creative freestyle. 

  • Poem (4 points):
    • Originality: _____/1 – The poet’s piece must be your own authentic thoughts.

    • Creativity: _____/1 – The poet’s ability to bring originality, innovation, and imagination to their poem.

    • Imagery: _____/1 – The poem clearly conveys an idea and a point of view.

    • Impact: _____/1 – The poem captures and conveys human emotion and experience.

    Interpretation (2 points):
    • Understanding of Theme: _____/1 – The poet effectively conveys the central idea, message, or concept of their poem.

    • Emotional Depth: _____/1 – The poet conveys energy and emotion that is consistent with and enhances the ideas and mood of the poem.

    Performance (4 points):
    • Body Language/Delivery: _____/2 - The poet’s body movements, facial expressions, and gestures are consistent with and enhance the ideas and mood of the poem.

    • Voice Modulation: _____/1 - The poet projects their voice.

    • Engagement with Audience: _____/1 - The poet effectively performs for the audience.

  • Questions about the event

    Call 501-396-8675 or 229-299-6473

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