My name is missmaven, and this is my first post, as I usually perform backstage editing for themaven himself. I’ll give anything that combines poetry and hip-hop a second, third, or fourteenth look.

Def Poetry Jam is a television show featuring performance poetry from well-known hip hop artists and less-well known poets. One of Russell Simmons’ older projects, Def Poetry aired on HBO from 2002-2007, with a brief stint on Broadway. Though the show hasn’t seen much action in the past two years, the collection of Def Poetry Jam videos available on youtube.com will make you laugh, cry, and walk away from the computer wishing you could rhyme this well.

Two of missmaven’s favorites:

Danny Hoch’s post-9/11 commentary, “Corner Talk, September” and Rives’ “Sign Language”