Small change in plans: Jamaal St. John cancelled but Boonna Mohammed will be taking his place as guest feature at Toronto Poetry Slam this month. It all goes down June 21, Drake Hotel Underground (1150 Queen St. W.), 7:30pm signup. $5.

It’s gearing up to be a fun night so show up early and stay late. Thanks in advance for supporting spoken word.

See you Saturday.

It’s what you’ve been waiting for — the beautifully delicious SLAM FINALS, featuring the top 8 poets from the season and multi-talented C.R. Avery from Vancouver.

It all goes down at Hugh’s Room, 2261 Dundas St. W, just south of Bloor (free parking at Loblaw’s across the street).
Doors 6pm, slam 8pm. $12 at door.

Hugh’s Room staffers informed me that seating is SOLD OUT and it’s standing room only now, so I highly suggest you arrive waaaay before 8pm to make sure you get a good sightline.

Yes, there’s the bloody TTC strike but I got faith in all the spoken word fans out there. No one has told me they’re cancelling yet, performer or pre-ticket buyer. Business as usual, insanity as unusual.

There’ll be a merch table selling hot hot hot CDs and books so bring extra cash!

Can you feel the power-passion rumbling through your veins? Know what that is? No, not diabetes but the anticipation of seeing some incredible poetry hit the stage tonight. It will be epic.

See you tonight, and look for an update to this space on Sunday or Monday to find out who won (if you’re foolish enough to miss the Finals tonight).

A big FYI for all your slam poetry lovers out there…

TORONTO POETRY SLAM’s massive brain-ticklin orgasmic SEMI FINALS
goes down this SATURDAY MARCH 22 @ the Drake Hotel Underground, 1150 Queen St. W.
$5 cover
Doors 7pm. Slam 8pm.
No open mic. Invitational slam only.

The competing poets are: Idriis, White Noise Machine, Lara, Arianna, Gypsy Eyes, Ziy, Amanda Hiebert, Truth Is, Krystle Mullin, Wade, Macer and Jogi.

Feature guest poet: J.W. Baz from Chicago (multiple finalist at National Poetry Slam, overall kickass wordsmith)

If you have any questions, email info@torontopoetryslam.com

And in case you miss March 22, the big Finals Night is April 26 @ Hugh’s Room.

See ya Saturday.

The final slam of the regular season will be rockin the Drake Hotel Underground stage this Sat. Feb. 16, and we invite you to check out the intense poetic beast that has become Toronto Poetry Slam. It all goes down at 1150 Queen St. W. (downstairs), signup 7:30pm, slam at 8pm. The cover is $5.

We’re very excited to be featuring our first North Carolinan, Q from Charlotte. He’s got a dynamic stage presence and will give us a taste of some southern comfort during his 20-minute set.

Also, there’s be lots of cool stuff going down at the Slam on Saturday: a 50/50 draw so you can wish some cash; a celeb judge or two; random haikus from yours truly; a merch table with tons o’ CDs and chapbooks to take home; and a killer after-party somewhere on Queen St. (you’re just gonna hafta to come to find out where!).

Thanks for supporting spoken word in the city, and see you on Saturday.

Finally, the semi-finalists for the TPS playoffs have confirmed their participation to the June 23 event. After a couple weeks of emailing and phone correspondence, I heard back from everyone and there has been a few changes since the initial announcement. And now the final 12 semi-finalists, with a brief explanation below:

Truth Is
The White Noise Machine
Amanda Hiebert
Krystle Mullin
Jill Binder
Tomy Bewick
Ariana
Joe Dewar
Valentino Assenza
Dane Jah Ras
Electric Jon
Gypsy Eyes

What happened? Boona and That Brown Bastard dropped out of the semi-finals, allowing Electric Jon and Gypsy Eyes to make the cut (they were next in line, mathematically).

It’s shaping up to be an insanely enjoyable semi-finals slam. There’s tons of talent, nice diversity, and a wide range of styles peppering the final 12. Remember, the top 8 move on to July’s playoff finals.

See you on the 23rd!