This is the official blog of Northern Arizona slam poet Christopher Fox Graham. Begun in 2002, and transferred to blogspot in 2006, FoxTheBlog has recorded more than 1.6 million views since 2009. This blog cover's Graham's poetry, the Arizona poetry slam community and offers tips for slam poets from sources around the Internet. Read CFG's full biography here. Looking for just that one poem? You know the one ... click here to find it.
He's been a longtime member of the Austin, Texas, slam scene, specifically 1995 Team Member, 1996 Slam Team Coach, 1997 Team Coach, 1998 National Poetry Slam Organizer and 1999 Team Member.
He spent the next few years running the madness that is PSi.
Objectifying a body part of the opposite sex can sometimes be a difficult thing to do in poetry. Between lovers, behind closed doors, we all often spend hours discussing anatomy, what they like, what they don't how things feel or how things can feel with the right stimulation. That aside, Rock Baby's sheer enthusiasm for breasts is what sells this poem. Imagine performing this poem in a cover reading at your local open mic or poetry slam and you can see the inherent difficulty unless you are so over-the-top with the humor to truly sell it. And yes, in person, Rock Baby is hysterical. I met him at the National Poetry Slam in Chicago in 2003 and I distinctly remember one breakfast morning where he had three tables in stitches talking about the van trip from Texas.
Titty Man By Roderick "Rock Baby" Goudy
Warning, warning This poem is not suitable for those who take life too serious And lack a sense of humor.
Titty man gone wild Titties, titties, titties! I love me some titties Big titties, small titties, skinny titties Tall titties, titties sagging down Titties juicy and round.
I love me some titties Wiggle, wiggle, wiggle I like those titties with a dark nipple in the middle And ohhh! When they jiggle Jiggle, jiggle, jiggle Iggle, iggle, iggle, iggle Iggle, iggle, iggle.
Breasts-ises B-R-E-A-S-T-S--ISES Just another name for those titties You see they come in all shapes and sizes and forms The average person don't know 'em like I know 'em This goes for the ladies, too Who've had titties All their life.
I can tell the difference between a real titty, a fake titty A too-young titty And a titty that's ready and ripe 'Cause I'm a titty man Hell, I could tell your future If you just let me hold those titties in my hands.
You see, it does something to me when I see and hear a bra snap When those titties stand out It makes a brother like me Moan and groan and slooooobber at the mouth Especially when they're naked and pressed up against my chest It makes it difficult to choose the type of titty that I love the best.
It could be old titties, swoll titties, titties hanging loose Titties that look like fruits Titties fully grown Titties made of silicone Tittes that make you always wanna hold her Titties that you can throw over your shoulders.
Titties, difference colors, and I need them Tittes on people who don't need them Mean titties, sad titties Titties that make you wish you had titties Perfect titties squeezed together And pushed to the front.
Now if I had a pair of titties Those would be the type of titties that I'd want Because I looooove me some titties.
I like 'em on the beach In the sand And when it's hot at home I like to lick those titties in front of a fan Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh..
Whether in a regular, laced or fuzzy bra I like those tittes that belongs to super stars And for those ladies with those titties swoll like 2 balloons I like to stick my face between 'em and go.
Bur-bur-bur-burrrrrrrrr!
Because I loooooove me some titties LORD!
A native of Hattiesburg, Miss., Roderick Goudy, aka Rock Baby, is a seasoned performance poet, comic and writer. Widely considered a natural performer with an unique, eclectic and clever style, Goudy has delighted, educated and entertained people of various ages and ethnicities across America, quickly making him a crowd favorite within the "chitin circuit" of spoken word. Appearing twice on HBO’s Russell Simmons’ Def Poetry Jam in 2003 and 2005, Rock Baby offered television explosive performances with his distinct style of comedic poetry.
Ryan Brown won the July 17 Sedona Poetry Slam. As a member of the 2009 Flagstaff National Poetry Slam Team, he (left) invited teammate Frank O'Brien (right) on stage to perform a O'Brien's duo piece as his victory poem. The Flagstaff Team made semi-finals at the National Poetry Slam less than three weeks later.
Brown is a kid from Phoenix who spends most of his time posing as a writer and poet. He now goes to school and lives in Flagstaff, where he is the SlamMaster of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam. Brown represented the Flagstaff Nationals Team at the National Poetry Slam.
O'Brien is a 20-year-old student at Coconino Community College, focusing in the general studies and pre-nursing. Originally from Phoenix, O'Brien entered the slam poetry scene in fall 2007. He traveled to Madison, Wis., in 2008 and to Orlando, Fla., in 2009 as a member of the Flagstaff National Slam Team. O'Brien is now an active poet and administrator of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam in Flagstaff.
Wendy Davis is Creative Director of W-Fun TV, a certified yoga instructor and vocal coach in Sedona. Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #3, Poet #10, July 17, 2009
Norberto "Bert" Cisneros is a Cottonwood poet and jazz trumpet player. He has slammed in Sedona and FlagSlam and regularly reads at the Sedona Poetry Open Mic.
Son of a nightclub singer, Kingman slam poet Mikel Weisser. spent his teens as a hitchhiker. Since then Weisser has gone on to receive a masters in literature and a masters in secondary education, published hundreds of freelance magazine and newspaper articles and political comedy columns, along with seven books of poetry and short fiction. A former homeless shelter administrator, contestant on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," and survivor of his first wife's suicide, Weisser teaches junior high history and English in Bullhead City. He and his wife, Beth, have turned their So-Hi, Ariz., property into a peace sign theme park. Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #3, Poet #7, July 17, 2009.
Gary Every's career has followed many diverse paths including geology exploration, carpenter, chef, piano player, punk rocker, dishwasher, photographer, mountain bike instructor, soccer coach, bonfire storyteller and just a general bad example to society as a whole.
It is perhaps as an author that Mr. Every has gained the most fame. Published nearly a thousand times, he has four books to his credit and more on the way.
Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #3, Poet #6, July 17, 2009.
Frank O'Brien is a 20-year-old student at Coconino Community College, focusing in the general studies and pre-nursing. Originally from Phoenix, O'Brien entered the slam poetry scene in fall 2007. He traveled to Madison, Wis., in 2008 and to Orlando, Fla., in 2009 as a member of the Flagstaff National Slam Team. O'Brien is now an active poet and administrator of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam in Flagstaff. Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #3, Poet #3.
Ed Mabrey is a two-time Haiku National Slam Champion and 2007-2008 Individual World Poetry Slam Champion. He has been a member of and coached several winning Rust Belt Regional Poetry Slam Teams out of Columbus, Ohio. Mabrey has released two books, "From the Page to the Stage and Back Again" to critical acclaim and "Revoked:My GhettoPass(ivity)" which was a limited release item.Maybrey has released two CDs of his own work, and has been on projects with other artists and DJs.
Ryan Brown is a kid from Phoenix who spends most of his time posing as a writer and poet. He now goes to school and lives in Flagstaff, where he is the SlamMaster of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam. Ryan Brown represented the Flagstaff Nationals Team at the National Poetry Slam.
Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #3, Poet #1, July 17, 2009.
For the past two weekends, my friend Nika Levikov has trekked down the hill from Flagstaff to Sedona for poetry events. She read a few poems at the GumptionFest IV pre-party at Ken's Creekside, then read the Cabaret Tent at GumptionFest IV Day One on Saturday.
This last weekend, she came down to keep score at the Sept. 11 slam I hosted at Studio Live.
We hiked to Devil's Bridge the next day.
Among the components of our friendship is critiquing each other's poetry. My favorite slam poem of hers is the identity poem "My Country," which I was glad she performed at both GumptionFest and as a calibration poem at the July 17 slam.
My Country By Nika Levikov
Babushka likes to tell me about communism the days when Ukraine was Russia. The Soviet Union, a name that has prevented me from understanding who I really am. Who I really am? and sometimes I fear that stories are the only things left to give me an insight. Papa would always tell me how he dreamed of leaving. life was rough and somewhere out there America, was an easier path and that was really all he said, his words flowed from his mouth like Matryoshka dolls, never opened and the layers upon layers of stories he chose not to speak of. And here I am, sitting in front of these faces trying to explain why I must go there.
Dedushka laughs, aside from my youth he says, there is an identity that stays with you before any Russian label. And they aren’t ready for you yet. They aren’t ready for you Jew. They can see it in your face, it’s written in your hair and can’t you see how the letters are bolded across your jawline? Jew, and they will hate you for it.
But I’m wondering how long can you hide me from the ignorance of other’s. How long papa, will you shelter me from the judgment that has slept under your very pillow since the day you learned the meaning? And can’t you see, mama I’m not afraid anymore. my only fear is never getting the chance to understand, to see you streets where I am certain the sun still casts your shadow.
I want to go there and feel your sweat, papa that leaked from your hands as you stood in line for days, waiting for your freedom.
I have heard other stories and I am convinced that my eyes will burn from shattered hearts still hanging on windowsills and my ears will scream, from the sound of tattered orange flags still flapping from the signs that say “welcome”. but I am also convinced, that beauty thrives here still, in the language whose voice cascaded over every Russian text, in the dance that has always broken free from Russian song.
mother, I come for you and I do not forget you. my family, born from you my traditions, my tongue awakened by your distant breathes.
I want to see you. I want to sleep in your skin till the culture of my ancestors becomes the air I’m breathing. in you, rests a side of my family I have never known and please, let me get on my knees, bury my hands in their soil and say “esvenee, esvenee mena” sorry, for not having come sooner.
mother, I may not have been raised under your skies, but I don’t think it’s too late to start learning. to learn about your language, your song, your food, and your independence. I know that you will accept me regardless of the blood that flows with rituals of a different kind. you have always been a part of me. so I guess this isn’t an act of rebellion against my family, this isn’t for the justification that I am who I am, I say to the world, to my family, this, is for my country.
Son of a nightclub singer, Kingman slam poet Mikel Weisser. spent his teens as a hitchhiker. Since then Weisser has gone on to receive a masters in literature and a masters in secondary education, published hundreds of freelance magazine and newspaper articles and political comedy columns, along with seven books of poetry and short fiction. A former homeless shelter administrator, contestant on "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," and survivor of his first wife's suicide, Weisser teaches junior high history and English in Bullhead City. He and his wife, Beth, have turned their So-Hi, Ariz., property into a peace sign theme park. Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #2, Poet #11, July 17, 2009.
This poem was my particular favorite at this slam because of its lyricism, because it captures our seemingly futile despiration to halt genocide despite seeing it and because my mother was in the audience. I almost imagined he was writing it about her because she sometimes still scares the bejeezus out of me.
Ed Mabrey is a two-time Haiku National Slam Champion and 2007-2008 Individual World Poetry Slam Champion. He has been a member of and coached several winning Rust Belt Regional Poetry Slam Teams out of Columbus, Ohio. Mabrey has released two books, "From the Page to the Stage and Back Again" to critical acclaim and "Revoked:My GhettoPass(ivity)" which was a limited release item.Maybrey has released two CDs of his own work, and has been on projects with other artists and DJs.
Gary Every's career has followed many diverse paths including geology exploration, carpenter, chef, piano player, punk rocker, dishwasher, photographer, mountain bike instructor, soccer coach, bonfire storyteller and just a general bad example to society as a whole.
It is perhaps as an author that Mr. Every has gained the most fame. Published nearly a thousand times, he has four books to his credit and more on the way.
Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #2, Poet #8, July 17, 2009.
Frank O'Brien is a 20-year-old student at Coconino Community College, focusing in the general studies and pre-nursing. Originally from Phoenix, O'Brien entered the slam poetry scene in fall 2007. He traveled to Madison, Wis., in 2008 and to Orlando, Fla., in 2009 as a member of the Flagstaff National Slam Team. O'Brien is now an active poet and administrator of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam in Flagstaff. Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #2, Poet #7.
Wendy Davis is Creative Director of W-Fun TV, a certified yoga instructor and vocal coach in Sedona. Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #2, Poet #6, July 17, 2009
Norberto "Bert" Cisneros is a Cottonwood poet and jazz trumpet player. He has slammed in Sedona and FlagSlam and regularly reads at the Sedona Poetry Open Mic.
Ryan Brown is a kid from Phoenix who spends most of his time posing as a writer and poet. He now goes to school and lives in Flagstaff, where he is the SlamMaster of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam. Ryan Brown represented the Flagstaff Nationals Team at the National Poetry Slam.
Sedona Poetry Slam, Round #2, Poet #4, July 17, 2009.
Mike Henry, the subject of this awesome little animation is the former president of Poetry Slam Inc., the organization governing the National Poetry Slam, the International World Poetry Slam (iWPS).
Norberto "Bert" Cisneros is a Cottonwood poet and jazz trumpet player. He has slammed in Sedona and FlagSlam and regularly reads at the Sedona Poetry Open Mic.
Son of a nightclub singer, Kingman slam poet Mikel Weisser. spent his teens as a hitchhiker. Since then Weisser has gone on to receive a masters in literature and a masters in secondary education, published hundreds of freelance magazine and newspaper articles and political comedy columns, along with seven books of poetry and short fiction.
Gary Every's career has followed many diverse paths including geology exploration, carpenter, chef, piano player, punk rocker, dishwasher, photographer, mountain bike instructor, soccer coach, bonfire storyteller and just a general bad example to society as a whole.
Frank O'Brien is a 20-year-old student at Coconino Community College, focusing in the general studies and pre-nursing. Originally from Phoenix, O'Brien entered the slam poetry scene in fall 2007. He traveled to Madison, Wis., in 2008 and to Orlando, Fla., in 2009 as a member of the Flagstaff National Slam Team.
Ed Mabrey is a two-time Haiku National Slam Champion and 2007-2008 Individual World Poetry Slam Champion.
Ryan Brown is a kid from Phoenix who spends most of his time posing as a writer and poet. He now goes to school and lives in Flagstaff, where he is the SlamMaster of the FlagSlam Poetry Slam. Ryan Brown represented the Flagstaff Nationals Team at the National Poetry Slam.
For the past two weekends, my friend Nika Levikov has trekked down the hill from Flagstaff to Sedona for poetry events. She read a few poems at the GumptionFest IV pre-party at Ken's Creekside, then read the Cabaret Tent at GumptionFest IV Day One on Saturday.
We hiked to Devil's Bridge the next day.
Gary Every's career has followed many diverse paths including geology exploration, carpenter, chef, piano player, punk rocker, dishwasher, photographer, mountain bike instructor, soccer coach, bonfire storyteller and just a general bad example to society as a whole.
Norberto "Bert" Cisneros is a Cottonwood poet and jazz trumpet player. He has slammed in Sedona and FlagSlam and regularly reads at the Sedona Poetry Open Mic.