New Expressions
SALMA DREW | MARCH 2, 2018 | NEWS
On Friday, Jan. 27, 2018, The Expressionists, Stanton College Preparatory School’s spoken word poetry club, hosted a rap battle during both lunches in honor of Literacy Week. Students from Stanton gathered around the participants in the senior courtyard to watch and cheer students on as they attempted to beat the other participants. Everyone who participated received a doughnut, and the winners received a Barnes & Noble gift card. The event was hosted by the Expressionists in order to bring awareness to literacy week to the students at Stanton.
“We were asked by the administration to put on some kind of event on Friday for literacy week,” said junior Nikki Kershner, the club’s secretary. “We decided on a rap battle because it seemed like something people would be enthusiastic about.”
Finalists of the event included freshmen Yash Agrawal and Freeman Kellam, who were to face off in one final rap battle to decide on the winner. The winner of the battle, Yash Agrawal, was announced as crowds cheered.
According to junior Camila Gonzalez, the club’s historian, the participants and watchers of the event were enthusiastic. Gonzalez said the club chose a rap battle over more traditional forms of poetry to bring the students of Stanton together.
“It was mainly just to find another way to engage people. If you ask most people if they like poetry, or if they would be willing to write poetry, they would say, ‘no I don’t really like poetry, or I can’t write poetry,’ but a rap is a totally different thing,” said Gonzalez. “People have a different mindset when it comes to rap, so I think it was just another way to get people more engaged.”
Members of The Expressionists felt the event was successful since it drew large audiences during both lunches, and has led the club’s officers to believe there will be many more events like it in the future.
“[Events such as rap battle] spread the word about The Expressionists, and people seemed to really enjoy it,” said Kershner. “It was fun to watch and participate in!”
“If you ask most people if they like poetry, or if they would be willing to write poetry, they would say, ‘no I don’t really like poetry, or I can’t write poetry,’ but a rap is a totally different thing”
In addition, this event has caused The Expressionists to consider opening the club to more options other than traditional spoken word poetry. For example, the Expressionists will be making some changes to their monthly open-mic events , which are held during lunch.
“I know we are definitely going to have more open mics, and we are definitely going to try to have more rap battles,” said Gonzalez. “I think we are even going to try to integrate more rap into our open mics as well as poetry and everything in between.”
In the end, The Expressionist rap battle proved to be an enjoyable experience for students, whether they participated or cheered in the audience. The event accomplished the club’s goal of celebrating and advocating for literacy, albeit in an unconventional way. The success of the rap battle success is opening new doors to the future of the Expressionists, as it has inspired them to include more forms of spoken expression into their club.
Their next open-mic event is set to take place March 2, 2018, during both lunches. All students are invited to perform a work of poetry, spoken word, rap or song.