Poetry seems daunting to many of us. Years of staring at print in classrooms made us feel that way. The answer to our struggles to love verse might be the genre of spoken word. We spoke to two of its most acclaimed exponents – British legend Benjamin Zephaniah and slam-winning Steven Connell – on the eve of their performance at 2 Kolegas this Saturday (March 13) as part of the Bookworm International Literary Festival.

On motivation
SC: Pieces might come out of a feeling like love or anger, or may be rooted in a specific event such as the death of my grandfather, getting cut off in traffic, or something I overheard on the bus. My job on some level asks me to be open to the life that is happening around me, on the outside or within, and allow myself the freedom to be moved.

On poetry’s accessibility
BZ: People in the “industry” see young people as not interested because poetry books aren’t selling. They are not buying books by dead poets but people are writing and performing. It’s about getting people interested. Dub poetry is connected to Shelley and the Romantics but my teacher could not turn me on to that. In Britain and the States there’s a lot going on in live venues. The slam poetry and spoken word scene is thriving.

On poetry as printed word or oral tradition
BZ: There is an image cultivated about poetry, certainly in Europe, that is artificial. The poem is seen as intellectually superior. The poet is to be listened to, the crowd is hushed, the poet leaves. In other cultures this is totally different. In West Africa, the Griot is a wandering poet. People join in with the ones they know, perform their own poem s back and scream and shout. In Pakistan, the Mashaira is where poets gather to perform their works. If the crowd likes it you’ll have to perform your poet again. In Zimbabwe I performed in the street, a crowd formed and they started performing their own poetry back. Poetry has the wrong image. It’s an oral tradition in Asia and Africa. It’s older than the 15th Century and the printing press, when it left the streets and hit the bookshelves.

SC: It’s certainly being challenged though I suppose I challenge how widely held that viewpoint is. I wonder. Certainly some academics would say that poetry should be relegated to the page, just as most slam poets would reject that notion with every breath in them. I think everyone finds their own way in. In the same way some people are visual learners and some are aural learners, there are some people who have to intellectualize something to access it, just as some people need to be emotionally invested or they won’t engage. The reality is both are poetry, both are valid, both are critical to who we are. The written word only has one facet to concern itself with- the word. The spoken word is concerned with the word, the rhythm, the energy, the tone of voice, the body. With all that in play, there are times when the spoken word isn’t as well written because it is only one facet for some artists and for some, it is less important. For the academic, the word is all they have, and so they are most concerned with it. This often means that incredible writing is rendered dull when read aloud because of their inability or unwillingness to connect. Personally, I am as concerned with the words as I am with my ability to get those words across. The foundation is the word. That’s where it starts. But without the voice, the word is often rendered lifeless and inert.

On Slams
BZ: Deep down I don’t like Slams, poetry’s not a competition. But it gets the kids doing it, it removes their inhibitions and they’re up n front of the audience.  The downside is that the crowd can be swayed by good rhymes and metaphors so the heartfelt or more profound may not win. It has its own problems. There are great epic poems and there are great short poems but there is a time limit for a slam.

SC: It’s all things to all people. Overall, I’d say it’s largely positive as it has probably been hugely responsible for creating legions of new fans of spoken word and language and it has opened many doors to new and exciting opportunities It’s a game and keeping that perspective is a distinguishing factor in whether it is positive or negative. If you have fun and use it to challenge you and push you and don’t let the game aspects hurt you, Slam is a wonderful thing. And it’s a lot of fun, and when it’s really good, it can be transcendent.

On their audience
BZ: I’m in a privileged position. When I feel the need to say something  I don’t think about who I am saying it to I just say it. I just want to connect with people. We have issues in common. That’s the one thing, all over the world.
SC: I think on some level being an artist in any form requires that you create for yourself initially. That said, at some point in the process you are conscious of who will be seeing it and there is a hope that the work will resonate or delight or inspire or incite, whatever the particular piece is after, and sometimes that it will do different things to different people.
In the same way there are different demands that come into question for a piece that is to be read rather then heard. Sometimes the skills that are required to get paid well for the job are not the same as the skills required to do the job well. Doing it for a living while ensuring it is something worth giving my life to is a delicate balance.
I take great pride in being able to write pieces that can rock in clubs and concert halls, and reverberate across all spectrums, be it age, race, gender, or class.

On writing
SC: I think anything you do repeatedly will, over time, give you guidance as to how to do it better. The more you write, the more you learn how to write and if you keep at it, you sharpen the muscles and train the mind. I think writing for a living will force you to open up to what brings poems forth inside you and as you learn where they come from, you learn where to go to get them. It’s like moving into a new house in a new town. At first you can’t find your way around, nothing looks familiar, you don’t know any shortcuts, etc. But after a few years of driving around the town, you know it cold. You know the best way to get wherever you want to go and you get there a lot easier and a lot quicker. And unlike when you were new, there is no anxiety about what if you can’t find your way. That’s what it is to put effort into something every day, for a long time. Creating in general, and for a living certainly, means setting out without knowing where you are going, but confidant you will get there.

On the poet’s role
SC: A poet’s job is to be unafraid to tell the truth about something. A poet’s job can be to make us think, to make us feel, to inspire us and move us and propel us into action, whether that action is to tell someone we love them, go to the gym, or vote. We try to find the words to bring us together or speak to the forces that are tearing us apart. We give speech to the moments that render us speechless.

Steve Connell & Benjamin Zephaniah appear at 2 Kolegas this Saturday, March 13 at 9pm. RMB 60.