Poet's Lounge: The Truth Behind the Pen

By Laura Baker
Online Forty-Niner
Contributing writer

On Thursday night, the Program Council held the first Poet's Lounge of the semester in the Southwest Terrace, showcasing the talents of young poets who spoke words from their hearts and souls.

Whether the students were reciting poems that were parallel to tragedy in their lives or just reading an idea they put on paper, the crowd had respect for each person who got up on stage.

Not only did they have an audience of around 130 people gathered to watch, but they also had the J. Evans Project playing behind them. The J. Evans Project did a great job, and it was amazing to see four men with a trombone, organ, guitar, and set of drums coming up with great beats and maintaining rhythm with each performer's different style of reciting.

Patrick, the first reader to go on stage, recited a poem that listed all the reasons he writes poetry. "I write poetry because you can't put a price tag on truth," he said. It seemed that many poets who attended this Poet's Lounge were passionate about the things in life that are overlooked and often ignored, and each poet in some way or another revealed a truth about them.

Sean J. Cumberland, a freshman on campus, said that he started writing poetry about two years ago. According to Cumberland, he gains his inspiration from society and by observing the world. On whether he ever gets nervous performing in front of so many people, Cumberland said, "Well, I just put myself out there and hope for a positive reaction."

Senior Carlos Mendez said he was there because he "got hooked on Def Comedy Jam" and was hoping that this Poet's Lounge would be similar. Well, he was in luck, because one of the performers, single-name poet Shihan, appeared on Def Comedy Jam the week prior to the Poet's Lounge. Many people had poems written down in journals, and opted to read from them.

Shihan, on the other hand, didn't have anything written down or memorized. He got up on stage and did what many underground hip-hop artists do — he just started flowing.

Shihan, spitting out one word after the other and using all kinds of literary devices, made perfect sense while just popping off thoughts scattered in his brilliant mind. There was no doubt he impressed everyone. The last line, which was perhaps the best line of his performance was, "My mama used to say to me, ‘Boy, don't write in the dark. You're gonna hurt your eyes like that.' And I'd say, ‘Mom, even if I did go blind while writing, at least the last thing I saw before I reached total darkness was truth.'"

For those of you who seek truth in the world, it is definitely recommended to attend one of these readings. Lee Horswill, a senior event organizer, said that the Poet's Lounges are held at least once a month, and people should be on the lookout at the end of October for any upcoming lounges. If you don't want to wait that long for a fun event the Program Council has many other options and students can call (562) 985-8480 for more information.