The Rise Londonwide Youth Slam Championship 2007


You can’t keep it quiet!

The atmosphere was electrifying at Stratford Circus on Thursday night as the young people of East London got an exciting opportunity to present their raw talent in the Rise Londonwide Youth Slam Championship 2007. Seventeen acts raised the roof expressing what it means to be a young Londoner today as there were cheers and whoops of approval in the packed out theatre.

The recent spate of gun and knife crime featured in many of the performances and the evening kicked off with a blazing poly-vocal piece by SIC SENSE (Benjamin Francis, Connor Doughty, Charlie Tennant, George Anntwi-Berchie, Ethan-Che Leui’I and Jordan Mondesir-Clarke -below) making reference to the brutal murders of Eugene Attram and Billy Cox. “Put down your gun… Are you dizzy, are you dumb?: Why are you opening a gun?”

Fifteen year old Daze Oshide (below) continued the theme explaining “I just never forget to bring my friend fear about…..Packing a barrel of lead into someone’s head, what’s that about?”



Jamal Msebele (above), the son of performance poet Sifundo Msebele, also paid tribute to those who have died in his hard-hitting poem ‘Walking The Skyline’. 


                                                     He lies 
                                                     broken 
                                                     as I watch helpless 
                                                     They treat his head like a speedbag 
                                                     (CRACK)
                                                     his nose breaks
                                                     blood drops 
                                                     like sap from the bark of a tree.

However, despite the terrible and dangerous themes of street crime, drugs and unwanted teenage pregnancies, hope and optimism was abundant. “All you gotta do is focus your mind”, and  “Twelve years old, I want to be a star” rapped Muazzin Aziz, Jabedul Islam and Joseph Jean Baptiste (below).  “We have a better tomorrow, there’s always hope” sang out Daze. The passion of the performances matched the passion of the language and each performer held audiences captivated with their responses to life in London.

Even better, hear them in person at the semi finals at the GLA on Thursday 5 and 6 June at 7pm.