Poets set Tartwort Poetry Slam Ablaze

Zimbabwean poets Robson Isaac Shoes Lambada and Michael Mabwe set the Tartwort Poetry Slam on fire on 13 July 2012. They appeared as guest performers at a slam that had 15 local poets competing in front of an audience of more than 200 poetry lovers at a restaurant and bar named Cuba Nova in Muenster, Germany.

The poets belted out their protest pieces to the audience with energy and eloquence that sent the whole house into frenzy as they went through their verse. They performed pieces from their new album, “All Protocols Observed” which they launched in Harare on 14 June 2012 at the Jazz 105. Shoes Lambada recited “Dollar for two” as an opener to the slam. This poem celebrates the stabilization of prices as a result of the dollarization of the Zimbabwean economy through the introduction of the multi-currency regime.

 “Never in my life did I hear of a for-two in commerce

Never in my life did I hear of a for-two in business

The only of a for-two I ever heard was in sickness

 Two paracetamols twice a day

 Two salbutamols for two patients in May” recited Shoes Lambada. 

The poem went on to observe a phenomenon where we have many products costing $0.50. However, the poem mourns the unavailability of coins. Instead of being given a coin when you buy a product for $0.50 you are requested to buy them as a pair hence the pricing of all $0.50 products as dollar for two.

“…Crispy, chocolate creams curled by courteous cookers all for dollar for two

 twenty packed cancerous cigarettes tested and toasted all for dollar for two

pink pants for a poor partner professionally and purposefully in Peru butterfly printed all for dollar for two

Shake-shake beer bets brewed better than any brown beverage all for dollar for two” went on Shoes Lambada. 

Michael recited his famous “Animalistic Behaviour” just before the start of the second round of the slam. The well thought out poem observes similarities between the behaviour of animals and humans when they are faced with challenges. 

“ …some will develop into rabbits as they continue with their habits,

they see themselves filled filled with wisdom, but when faced with challenges they simply run away

some will develop into ostriches

 in the face of challenges they bury their heads into the soil forgetting that the rest of the body is exposed,

equally stupid are those who develop into tortoises

 in the face of challenges they hide their heads into their shells forgetting that the shell is also part of the body” retorted Michael Mabwe.

The poetry slam had 25 poets performing. The Tartwort poetry slam is slightly different from the popular House of Hunger poetry slam we have ion Zimbabwe. In the House of Hunger poetry slam, we have only 5 judges picked randomly from the audience whereas at the Tartwort slam everyone who pays their money to watch the poets is given a judging sheet and judges every poet. At the end of each round, the judging sheets are collected and the results are collated to determine the winners.

The duo is due to launch their album to the global market on today (14 July 2012) at the Schiller Gymnasium also in Muenster, Germany at the Annual Inter-Cultural Summer Party. This annual event is hosted by The Global Experience and the first Zimbabwean to perform at this function was the late mbira prince, Takunda Mafika in 2010. In 2011, Takunda Mafika also performed at the event together with Shoes Lambada. We are so glad to have social entrepreneurs from Zimbabwe performing at this year’s closing event of the Youth Forum on Digital Participation, We invited Michael and Rob because we partnered with the Zimbabwe Poets for Human Rights. We do hope to maintain this relationship as we seek continuously seek to improve our communities through digital means.” commented Carina Schmidt who is The Global Experience Director.