Slammin’
‘Def Jam’ poet Mayda Del Valle spices up poetry in TDU
By Jason Wilson, contributing writer
Posted on September 11, 2006

Brian Harvey. David Lawrence. Brittany Brooks. Sean Branigan. Joy Petway. Jared Singer.

Do these names sound familiar? Well, maybe you don’t recognize them now, but give it some time and things could change. Flip on HBO in a couple of years and you just might see these six JMU students performing slam poetry on Russell Simmon’s “Def Poetry Jam.” That seems like a big claim, but if you were in TDU last Thursday night to see them perform their original poetry, you might not doubt it. 

Last Thursday, JMU welcomed Mayda Del Valle, an award-winning slam poet who has been featured on Broadway and HBO as part of the “Def Poetry Jam.” The evening kicked off TDU’s weekly poetry open mic night and filled the house.

Renee Cramer, UPB’s Director of Contemporary Issues, worked with TDU’s program coordinator, Shari Scofield, to bring the guest poet.

“I just wanted to bring a variety to poetry night at TDU,” said Cramer. “Usually it’s just JMU poets who perform, and I thought [Del Valle] would be an inspiration to them.” If audience reactions are any judge, Del Valle certainly did inspire — both JMU’s poets and the rest of the listeners.

“It was a lot of fun,” Singer said of the experience. “I try and perform whenever possible — whenever people will listen I’ll do it, and opening for her was an honor.”

The evening began like any typical night in TDU, the hum of conversation and intermittent laughter broken up by the occasional sounds of a game of pool. Groups of students sitting around the tables eating dinner and socializing, computers open in the laps of the more studious. The only clue that the night was going to be anything other than typical was the large UPB banner strung up at the back of the stage. But even that didn’t explain anything.

Given the very normal feel in TDU, it should come as no surprise that part of the audience wasn’t even aware there would be a performance.

“I was just here for a meeting, didn’t even know it was going on, and it was really good,” said JMU sophomore Evanise Lexima. “I really enjoyed it a lot.”

Del Valle’s performance ran the gamut of topics. From heated tirades about being American and Puerto Rican to sensual love poems to sad and angry breakups to hip-hop culture and her love for poetry, Valle had something to offer everyone. Not only were her poems great, but her sense of humor kept everyone laughing in between poems as well.

“She’s really good, really entertaining,” Singer said. “Her interlude stuff is as good as her poetry.” After her first poem, she sarcastically asked how many people were there for extra credit in English class, laughing dubiously when no one raised a hand.

Her second poem, titled “Seduce Me,” which was “for all the women who’ve suffered bad pick-up lines and survived,” required a disclaimer. She related the story of a fan-turned-stalker who took the line “write me a poem” a little too literally and actually came to her house the morning after the show to deliver a love poem describing how fate had brought them together. She ended the story with a warning: “So if there’s any freaky mother f****** out there tonight, don’t stalk me, because I’m Puerto Rican and I’ll cut you.”

Another poem described giving a back rub to a lover, but any lovey-dovey feelings the crowd may have been experiencing were cut down immediately when the poem ended and Del Valle said, “He’s not getting any more back rubs, and you’ll hear why in another couple poems.” Soon after, she performed a heart-wrenching breakup poem.

At other times, her interludes moved from the comedic to the inspirational. Before a poem called “Armor,” she gave everyone some life advice. “A lot of times what we ask for from others is what we’re not giving ourselves,” she said. “Just think about it.”

After the show she did a short question-and-answer session and dished out even more advice.

“My biggest obstacle is myself, I’m my own worst critic,” she said. “I think any artist is. You gotta get over yourself and your own fear. I think a lot of times we hold a lot of self-defeating thoughts in our minds. Monitor how often you stop yourself from doing something because you think it’ll be stupid.”

All in all, Del Valle gave the TDU audience the perfect mix of entertainment. Her jokes got laughs, her sadder poems evoked emotional responses, her thought-provoking poems did just that, and everyone cheered when she finished, many taking out money to buy her book of poetry. 

“It was pretty awesome,” said sophomore Joshua Brown, who also stumbled upon the performance by accident.

As for the student poets, they also made an impression on the audience. The first to go onstage was Harvey, who performed a piece on an elementary school friend who got the nickname “John the Gay” because of his active imagination and tendency to wear a Kimono, which the other kids took for a dress. Harvey’s admiration for his friend came through in the line “John was a moonbeam in daylight.”

Second up was Lawrence, who tackled the trials of conversing with the opposite sex, saying, “This one is for all the guys who don’t have the courage to come up to the ladies, and all the ladies waiting for the guys to get courage.” He charmed the audience with lines like “I know I’m nothing more than a warm spot on a stool” then proceeding to walk down into the audience to kneel in front of a girl and show his courage.

Brooks’ poems were a little more serious, her first poem describing an attempted molestation at age 7. One line told how her faith and poetry helped her deal with the trauma: “My bible in my left hand, my pen in my right.” Another of her poems explored people’s tendency to cover up their true selves.          

“As I walk through the valley of my disguise I ask why do I fear me?” said one line. “How can I be honest with you / when I can’t even walk through the valley of my own truth?”

Branigan lightened things up again with a poem about losing Pluto as a planet, which the crowd loved.

Pettway’s performance was not only vocal but physical as she swayed and waved her arms in rhythm with her lines. Her topics included religion and the evils and suffering in the world as well as the ever-written-about love.

The last student to perform before Del Valle took the stage was Singer, who began his first poem in the rear of the crowd, singing the drum beat to Queen’s “We Will Rock You” and weaving through the audience toward the stage, relaying the “lessons Queen taught us.” Another of his poems also explored childhood and imagination, describing how he feels like less of a man now than he did then.

“When I was younger I already was a doctor, an astronaut, a ninja,” said Singer. “I was just waiting for the papers to prove it.”

For a school without a very big poetry program, let alone a slam-poetry program, these six JMU poets really showed their talent. Not that they needed to prove it, three of them already made it onto a regional four-person slam team and placed fourth in a national collegiate slam competition last year.

For the semester debut of TDU’s poetry night, the combination of a published, professional slam poet and six Dukes who’ve already taken their talent on the competition road and not only survived but excelled, the night was a huge success.

So if you want to see them before they get on HBO, head down to TDU some Thursday night. And remember those names, because the next time you see them, they’ll probably be scrolling down the credits screen on your TV.