Posted on Wednesday, February 6, 2013

Passion 4 Christ Movement aka P4CM presents “RHETORIC 2013,” a spoken word and poetry event…

Hello World,

Circa 1997 when “Love Jones” debuted, I became obsessed with spoken word and poetry for a while, traveling to all of the hidden spoken word and poetry joints in the A, dating a man who knew how to spit fire and even crafting a poem or two myself…(I even gave one of my poems to the poetry goddess Nikki Giovanni, and she wrote me back…Read about in “He Just Was Not That Into Me…aka Nikki Giovanni likes me…so there…”) This was all in my early ’20s…While I don’t fancy myself a poet anymore, I still love the art form, and I love to discover new poets whose words and delivery can take you there…

I first discovered Janette McGhee, who is better known as “MissTerious Janette…ikz” (pronounced mysterious genetics), a dynamic Christian spoken word artist and poet who wrote and performed “I Will Wait For You” in 2011. In this poem, she beautifully captured the absolute angst a Christian woman feels as she attempts to wait for the man God will send her rather than just trying to make any ole man the one…She performed this poem in the P4CM (Passion for Christ Movement) Lyricist Lounge…Read about in “Living Single – The Panel Discussion, The Poem & The Show.”

And below is an awesome poem entitled “Ready or Not” by Janette…ikz and Ezekiel performed at a PC4M event. This is the official description of the poem – “Christ is coming back for a bride without spot wrinkle or blemish. This poem by Ezekiel and Janette…ikz asks you if you’ll be Ready or Not. All to often though, we try to do the cleaning and the planning when we Christ should take the lead. We say let him lead and the wedding day will be just as it should be… all for His glory.”

Well, PC4M is preparing for RHETORIC 2013, the ministry’s latest spoken word and poetry event, and are looking for submissions…Below are the details for submitting an audition video if you are interested…

RHETORIC Objective and Guidelines

The objective of P4CM’s RHETORIC (formerly Lyricist Lounge) is to glorify God in and with our craft of spoken word; edify and challenge believers to grow in bearing the image of Jesus in our thinking, our attitudes, our emotions, our speech, and our action; and minister to the lost the hopelessness and consequences of sin and their utter need for Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. It is these objectives–the supremacy of God’s glory, bearing Christ’s image, the Gospel, and the excellence in our craft–that have made our event the largest Christian spoken word event in the world.

RHETORIC Guidelines

All poems are to be in agreement with P4CM’s Faith Statement and not emphasizing controversial doctrines (e.g. predestination) or non-essentials (e.g. spiritual gifts).
All poems are to be free of offensive and obscene language. If approved, you can use normally offensive language that may be purposed in the context of the poem (e.g. Jackie Hill’s poem on being a stud; the use of “nigga” in debunking it’s cultural coolness and showing it’s racially degrading nature; “rape” and its affects; etc). The use of this approved language is never to be promoted, but understood in light of the poem’s context. If an approved offensive term can be changed without affecting the purpose of the poem, then changing it to something non-offensive will be encouraged.
Every poet (open mic and featured) will take a year off in-between RHETORIC performances (e.g. on 2011, off 2012, on 2013, off 2014, etc). If we ever have RHETORIC more than once a year, it would be at least one RHETORIC off (unless otherwise noted).
Poem lengths are as follows: Open mic artists must have poems lasting 5 minutes or less. Featured poets poems are to be between 5 and 10 minutes.
Every poet who performs will need a pastoral reference. This only applies to those poets selected to perform. A pastoral reference is not needed for an audition submission, but be prepared to provide one in case you are selected. This way we have a referral from your pastor (or two or more of their local church leaders instead) saying that your life matches what you are ministering, that you’re active and involved in the life of your church, and under someone’s leadership/authority and accountable.

Creativity

As long as each poet agrees to and are within these guidelines, you have the artistic freedom for selecting and writing a poem to be performed.

Enter Your Audition Video

If you’d like to audition to be an open mic poet or you have a suggestion for a featured poet, email a link to a YouTube or Vimeo video to rhetoric@p4cm.com. We will not open attachments or links to video only on Facebook. Please send us the poem you’d like to perform. We prefer video not audio because it helps us see your potential stage presence so send us your best performance with the best recording with good audio. Do not send an edited video. Please just send a live performance. We plan to finalize our poets by early April and we’re constantly ranking and evaluating them so please submit your poems as soon as you can for consideration. We’ll get back with you after we’ve looked at all of the submissions and go from there.

Any thoughts?

Posted on Sunday, January 20, 2013

A Wedding…He’s the One…(Repost)

(Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in January 2009, and since I won’t be able to make the inauguration of President Obama this time around, I wanted to remind you and me of the first time our nation’s first black president was inaugurated….oh the joy and wonder of it all…and it’s happening again…Glory to God!)

Hello World!!!

I know the hearts of the single ladies are palpitating as they read this post…Let me stop the madness right now! No, this is not a post about me meeting “The One” per se. But this is a post about the wedding of sorts that took place less than a week ago on Jan. 20.

As you may have guessed, yes, I am referring to the swearing in of our 44th president, Barack H. Obama. And by the grace of God, I was among that number that bombarded the mall to nearly witness the miracle. (By nearly, I mean I was there but I saw the ceremony via a JumboTron.) While I was in our nation’s capital, I was able to take part in many events. Thanks to the hook up of my girl, I, I was able to attend the “Refresh The World” Symposium at Howard University. Movie director Spike Lee was one of the sponsors, along with Pepsi, of the event. It was off the chain, but more about that later!!!

Rev. Jesse Jackson was one of the panelists in the “Refreshing Black America – The Impact of Barack Obama” discussion. CNN commentator Roland Martin served as the moderator for this discussion. The other panelists were Princeton University professor Dr. Cornel West, National Action Network President Rev. Al Sharpton, CNN contributor and political analyst Donna Brazile, “Washington Times” deputy editorial director Tara Wall and CNN contributor and political analyst Amy Holmes. I told you it was off the chain, but again, more about that later… 🙂

But back to Rev. Jackson. He mentioned that the whole rise of President Obama was similar to a great romance. It started off with the introduction. For many of us, that was Obama’s primary win in Iowa although I do remember his wonderful speech at the Democratic National Convention years earlier. The election cycle was the courtship phase. His election in November was Obama’s proposal to us, and we happily said, “Yes!” or rather, “Yes, we can!” And the inauguration activities represent a grand wedding celebration. When he offered that analogy, it clicked! Yes, that’s exactly what it felt like in DC last week. It felt like we were all basking in love as we braved the bone-chilling temperatures (at one point, me and my girls had to walk a few blocks from a Metro station to our hotel one night…It was so cold I had to tell myself that if the ancestors braved the Middle Passage, surely I could make it although the wind and cold were steadily turning my hands into frostbitten claws) and overwhelming crowds to usher in history.

The morning of the inauguration at approximately 6 a.m. , throngs of people were nearly shutting down the Metro station as we began our trek to the mall. As we made our way through the station, a voice that sounded like Miss Sophia from V-103 in Atlanta greeted us over the Metro PA system. “Good Morning everybody,” the voice said. “Obama not getting up for five more hours so y’all be patient and be courteous. We want y’all to be patient, courteous and smile.” Of course, everyone laughed, and whatever tension was in the air melted even as the frigid air greeted us as we rode the escalator up to exit the station.

I imagine that God was pleased as people of all races didn’t mind bumping up against one another to show support for our new president. I saw as many white people as I saw black people. I saw Indians and Asians. I saw the very young and the very old. I saw people who were wheelchair bound. I heard accents from across the world. While at the mall, I got separated from my friends and so for many hours, I was alone among the million. As I waited for the hours to pass in the cold before the inauguration ceremony began, I spotted a nearly inconsolable little boy to my right. I know he was crying because it was so cold. His tears probably froze on his little face. I wanted to cry too. It was that cold. I mean at one point, I thought about fainting right there…I thought maybe if I lost consciousness, I couldn’t feel the cold. I consoled myself by saying, “this is for Barack” and other similar statements. Surely, this is what being in love feels like…you find yourself doing things you wouldn’t ordinarily do to show your support and love. Please believe this Island girl wouldn’t brave the cold for just any ole body.

And did I mention that I was drugged up on TheraFlu and ibuprofen the whole time? Yes, I was feverish the whole week. But every morning I was there, I drug my body out of bed, wore thermal underwear for the first time along with other layers of clothing, took some swigs of TheraFlu, popped some pills and went on my way. (Actually, a whole week later, I’m still not quite right so y’all pray for me.)

Now, I know Barack ain’t the Savior! Dr. Cornel West made sure that everyone in the symposium knew that with his eloquent quips and quotes. One of my favorite quotes was when he said Obama has been able to “neutralize white anxiety while capitalize on black solidarity.” West also warned us not to confuse “the cross with the flag.” Of course since the symposium was held on MLK day, he mentioned that at the time of his death, Dr. King had the same approval rating as Bush had at the end of his presidency. I believe West was referring to King’s approval rating among blacks. As you probably know, King was waging a war on poverty when he was assassinated meanwhile blacks had gotten well-adjusted to being well-adjusted, said West. I think he was saying that if Obama really intends to enact true change, his decisions will not please everybody…y’all know how the saying goes. ( “You can’t please everybody all of the time.”)

I was especially pleased with how Donna Brazile made sure to mention that Obama didn’t get to the presidency all by his lonesome. She gratuitously “big upped” Rev. Jackson for paving the path with his presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988. I so love it when we black women publicly lavish praise on our black men. It’s not done enough. In fact, her words showed a generosity of spirit that officially made me a fan of hers. My favorite moment of the symposium was at the end when the song “Happy Birthday” by Stevie Wonder blared throughout the auditorium. Rather than leave the auditorium peacefully, Dr. West, in his too tight pants, began shakin’ it fast. Donna Brazile, who reminded me of myself at that moment, got up and began dancing on his behind – not closely of course- while shaking a white handkerchief in the air. Roland Martin, an Alpha man, began doing steps. And of course, the audience, including me, began dancing in the aisles. I felt the love. I felt the love. I felt the love.

I like to think that Jesus Christ was a romantic too. After all, his first miracle was performed at a wedding. Hopefully, God will bless our union with President Obama. And so now it feels like we’re honeymooning…Although, I’ve never been married, I’ve been told that the honeymoon doesn’t last forever. At some point, real life sets in…but for right now, I’m just happy that Obama is “The One.”

Any thoughts?

For those of you who were there, please share your thoughts. I couldn’t possibly share everything…

Posted on Sunday, January 25, 2009

A Wedding…He’s the One…

cold Hello World!!!

Rev. Jesse Jackson was one of the panelists in the “Refreshing Black America – The Impact of Barack Obama” discussion. CNN commentator Roland Martin served as the moderator for this discussion. The other panelists were Princeton University professor Dr. Cornel West, National Action Network President Rev. Al Sharpton, CNN contributor and political analyst Donna Brazile, “Washington Times” deputy editorial director Tara Wall and CNN contributor contributor and political analyst Amy Holmes. I told you it was off the chain, but again, more about that later… 🙂 on-the-train

But back to Rev. Jackson. He mentioned that the whole rise of President Obama was similar to a great romance. It started off with the introduction. For many of us, that was Obama’s primary win in Iowa. Although I do remember his wonderful speech at the Democratic National Convention years earlier. The election cycle was the courtship phase. His election in November was Obama’s proposal to us, and we happily said, “Yes!” Or rather, “Yes, we can!” And the inauguration activities represent a grand wedding celebration. When he offered that analogy, it clicked! Yes, that’s exactly what it felt like in DC last week. It felt like we were all basking in love as we braved the bone-chilling temperatures (at one point, me and my girls had to walk a few blocks from a Metro station to our hotel one night…It was so cold I had to tell myself that if the ancestors braved the Middle Passage, surely I could make it although the wind and cold were steadily turning my hands into frost-bitten claws) and overwhelming crowds to usher in history.

I imagine that God was pleased as people of all races didn’t mind bumping up against one another to show support for our new president. I saw as many white people as I saw black people. I saw Indians and Asians. I saw the very young and the very old. I saw people who were wheelchair bound. I heard accents from across the world. While at the mall, I got separated from my friends and so for many hours, I was alone among the million. As I waited for the hours to pass in the cold before the inaguration ceremony began, I spotted a nearly inconsolable little boy to my right. I know he was crying because it was so cold. His tears probably froze on his little face. I wanted to cry too. It was that cold. I mean at one point, I thought about fainting right there…I thought maybe if I lost conciousness, I couldn’t feel the cold. I consoled myself by saying, “this is for Barack” and other similar statements. Surely, this is what being in love feels like…you find yourself doing things you wouldn’t ordinarily do to show your support and love. Please believe this Island girl wouldn’t brave the cold for just any ole body.

And did I mention that I was drugged up on TheraFlu and ibuprofen the whole time. Yes, I was feverish the whole week. But every morning I was there, I drug my body out of bed, wore thermal underwear for the first time along with other layers of clothing, took some swigs of TheraFlu, popped some pills and went on my way. (Actually, a whole week later, I’m still not quite right so y’all pray for me.)

I was especially pleased with how Donna Brazile made sure to mention that Obama didn’t get to the presidency attheball all by his lonesome. She gratuitously “big upped” Rev. Jackson for paving the path with his presidential campaigns in 1984 and 1988. I so love it when we black women publicly lavish praise on our black men. It’s not done enough. In fact, her words showed a generousity of spirit that officially made me a fan of hers. My favorite moment of the symposium was at the end when the song “Happy Birthday to Ya” by Stevie Wonder blared throughout the auditorium. Rather than leave the auditorium peacefully, Dr. West, in his too tight pants, began shakin’ it fast. Donna Brazile, who reminded me of myself at that moment, got up and began dancing on his behind – not closely of course- while shaking a white hankerchief in the air. Roland Martin, an Alpha man, began doing steps. And of course, the audience, including me, began dancing in the aisles. I felt the love. I felt the love. I felt the love.