“How are you doing?”….”How are you doing, REALLY?”  The first question we ask each other on a daily basis out of habit.  It’s an automatic conversation starter for most.  But, the second is the follow-up question we’ve learned to ask since March.  The shutdowns and changes across the country have had significant effects on our mental health.  And for most of us, the answers to this second question are not always positive.  We’ve heard the response “Surviving”  or “Struggling” quite frequently.

How Do We Deal with These Feelings?

So how have we dealt with these feelings we’ve been having?  For spoken word artists and creative artists, the answer is easy….write, create, express yourself through your art.  There is therapeutic value in this process.  Writers can find an escape from reality by creating a world completely unique to our own, or they can verbalize their true feelings by stream of consciousness writing or just by putting their feelings down in prose.  Not even a pandemic can prevent us from utilizing storytelling as way to release our emotions.

Spoken word artists just take that craft and verbalize it, further expressing their feelings with tone and emotion that can’t be felt on paper.  The poetic performance art of the spoken word is one of the most captivating forms of poetry. You get a chance to really feel what the artist is feeling as they perform their art form live. Have you tried your hand at it?  Ever consider hosting or attending an Open Mic (they’re not just limited to musicians, you know?)

August is National Wellness Month and our entertainment booking agency, Neon Entertainment, would love to help you provide an opportunity for students on your campus to improve their mental wellness.  Offer them a creative outlet to deal with all of these emotions.  One where they can realize that their mental state is not taboo as they listen to their peers and our spoken word professionals share their own mindsets, and are encouraged to do the same. 

Resulting in better campus wellness. Our roster is home to numerous options for you to choose from in regards to spoken word poetry artists. When it comes to campus event ideas the spoken word can prove to be the most impactful option.

Jaylene Clark OwensJaylene Clark Owens is a highly acclaimed poet and award-winning actress. She is a published author of “AfroPoetic”, which was given a rating of 5 out 5 on goodreads.com. She has performed on some of the world’s biggest stages, including the famous Apollo theater in which she won first place in an Amateur Night Competition for her brilliant poetry. Jaylene has toured to over 20 schools across the country to share her art and makes a giant impact on everyone who attends here spoken word poetry events. Not only is she a poet and successful actress, but she is also the Executive Director of Harlem KW Project, in which she founded with 3 other women.

Aman Batra

With her work being published and featured on All Def Poetry, Button Poetry, Vibe, BeSe, and The Huffington Post, Aman Batra has been making a name for herself for several years. She had a TedX Talk published earlier this year. She has even been published in the Los Angeles Press and LA County Arts Commission. Aman graduated from UCLA with a BA in Creative Writing. Starting out doing her live poetry in small coffee shops, now she is doing large events at prestigious colleges like UCLA. Offering a great college event experience, she is one of the most sought after artists in the spoken word environment.

Lady Caress

Lady Caress is a public speaker and poet with over 10 years of experience in mastering her art. That is an understatement though. Being a nationally known artist, she has a very unique style of comedy, music, theatrics, and even beatboxing in her performances. She is even the 2010 National Poetry Champion at Pi Kappa Delta, and is not afraid to step out of her selected realm of spoken word and performances. Winning numerous awards over the years she is a top choice for a spoken word speaker at your college.

The great thing about all these artists is that they are part of Neon Entertainments’ spoken words artists. The spoken word is a brilliant way to help young adults and college students engage with their peers. Also, giving them a chance to see how this form of expression impacts other people. The is a college event is one of importance and shares how powerful someone’s voice can be. The best campus event ideas come from Neon Entertainment. We offer the most unique form of entertainment which educates just as much.