Standing up for Youth, Poetry, and Arrested Development Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) January 27, 2005 Written by Anusha Alikhan Photographed by Linus Gelber
	Teen Poet Tahani Salah

A combination of talent and truth makes people listen and stand-up. And so hundreds rose to their feet at the Howard Gilman Opera House in Brooklyn on January 27, 2005 to give tribute to a monumental collaboration between musical pioneers Arrested Development and the fiery teen poets of Urban Word.

In a show that celebrated the power of hip-hop music and the spoken word the fresh voices of New York’s finest teen poets and the music of Arrested Development, and Dead Prez rocked the house. The show was sponsored by the Brooklyn Academy of Music (BAM) as part of its fourth annual Rhythm & BAM series.

Among the poets were the 2005 National Teen Poetry Slam champions from Urban Word’s annual slam poetry competition. The independent organization, formed in 2001, operates programs and workshops for city youth in order to provide them with an uncensored and independent forum in which to speak out.

The show began with a skilful performance by two teen poets who transformed themselves into living boom boxes that could stop, rewind, and fast forward their rhythmic verses with a flick of their tongue.

Arrested Development was the featured act. The beats from their 2002 Reunification CD and 90s favourites, including People Everyday, and Tennessee sent crowds into euphoric nods. One could detect the satisfaction on the faces of every audience member who appeared to be enjoying some deep craving finally fulfilled.

Lead vocalist, Todd “Speech” Thomas took center stage surrounded by band members dressed in bold African colors – yellow for the sun, red for the earth, blue for water and green for life. Vocalist and dancer, Sister Eshe, moved with the music like a flower in the wind, her body pulsing with the energy. A crowd favourite, 73 year old Baba Oje, the band’s spiritual advisor and tambourine, player sat perched on a rocking chair for much of the performance, but did not hesitate to demonstrate his vitality to the cheering crowd by winding to the ground when inspired.

M-1, of the group Dead Prez, known for their intense socio-political hip-hop lyrics about equality, education, and changing the system hosted the show and performed songs from their 2001 album “Let’s Get Free” and the upcoming "RBG: Revolutionary But Gangsta." ” M-1 paid tribute to the stars of the event describing the youth poets as “courageous and outstanding” and Arrested Development as “of the most revolutionary organizations to come out in hip-hop.”

M-1 from Dead Prez	Teen Poet Enamanuel Candelario

In between performances by Arrested Development and Dead Prez, individual teen poets walked boldly into the spotlight to deliver their message. They spoke of war, abandonment, and prostitution. They condemned indifference, slavery, and inaction. Their voices stood up- crisp and clear, their bodies responding to the verses – a fist for strength, a glance away for despair.

One poet, Tahani Salah, painted a picture of the perils of war, “Before you could ever say I’m sorry the mothers of our holy land are stabbed, raped, and murdered. And before you could ever learn of her, or I, ever get to her- she has fallen.” Another poet, Maya Williams, chastised her peers for ignoring the lessons of the past, “I’m in the heavens above watching my descendents below, but
t seems as if they have forgotten what their ancestors fought for, they have to believe having their feet, hands, and limbs chopped off wasn’t much…humph….perhaps we spoiled them a bit too much.”

Patrons listened in silence, some shutting their eyes to feel the full impact of the words, others transfixed by the controlled voices, their heads swaying to the rhythm of the smooth soulful prose. Following each performance the audience erupted into a tirade of applause and roaring cheers. The room seemed to rock with the energy of the words released, the deliverance of every personal message and the glory of each brave voice.

At the show’s end all the performers gathered on stage for a grand party bopping to Dead Prez’s, 2001 hit “Hip-Hop.” The poets, today’s activists, beamed with purpose, dancing to words that mattered to them. The signature beats of the Arrested Development’s orchestra mixed with Dead Prez rhymes as Speech joined M-1 in a fusion finale. And the audience stayed standing.