Saved by poetry

When LeJuane Bowens entered a Fayetteville coffee shop for a poetry open mic night in 2007, he had no clue how his world would change.

With the mission to promote his new poetry book, “So Many Things to Say: A Collection of Poems,” he stepped up to the mic and began to recite one of his pieces. But there was one issue: He hated the way that he sounded.

“To talk about love monotone does not work,” LeJuane explained. From that moment forward, with determination in his heart, LeJuane swore never to let that happen again.

The art of slam

Growing up in the small town of Lima, Ohio, south of Toledo, LeJuane — affectionately known as El’Ja by those closest to him — channeled his energy into writing, music, and dance. LeJuane said he was surrounded by a family of talent, learning the beauty and importance of art from an early age.

But LeJuane said it was the mentors in his life that encouraged him to allow art to consume him.

The first of those mentors was Mrs. Steepleton, his 10th grade English teacher who assigned her class a poetry project. Through this project, LeJuane’s interest in poetry sparked.

“Poetry saved my life in some ways. It helped me become open with myself … I used to think, as a man, it shows weakness to express emotions, but poetry helped me get over that,” LeJuane explained.

He also recalls his 9th grade choir teacher, Dr. O’Neal, who graciously allowed him to stay in choir after almost being kicked out for being a “class clown,” in his own words. LeJuane said that was a huge turning point for him.

“If I had been kicked out [of choir], I don’t know where I would be right now,” LeJuane said.

But it wasn’t until LeJuane enlisted in the U.S. Army in 2000 and was later encouraged by his Chief Warrant Officer 4, Keith Anderson, to publish a book that he started to take poetry seriously.

“He saw some of my work on MySpace and he told me I should publish a book because he had published one,” LeJuane said.

During his last deployment to Iraq in 2007, LeJuane wrote and published his first book, and found himself at that open mic night in 2007 in Fayetteville, ready to kickstart a career that would bring forth endless opportunities.

Bringing poetry to Fayetteville

At the time, written and spoken word poetry were all LeJuane knew until he attended a poetry slam in Greensboro with fellow poet, Anthony Harris. It was at that moment that LeJuane had an epiphany.

“I realized that if they could do it, then I could do it,” LeJuane explained.

While spoken word is the art of reciting a piece of poetry in front of an audience, slam poetry is the same but with a twist.

“Spoken word is a combination of poetry and performance art,” LeJuane explained. “Slam just takes spoken word and places it into a competitive frame.”

Slam poetry was first introduced to the world in the 1980s when American poet, Marc Smith, developed the art form in Chicago, Illinois. What was once meant to be nothing more than an innocent bar game has now led to a global form of competition featuring millions of poets and their original work.

Neil Ray, Fayetteville native and creator of Java Expressions, a spoken word poetry event held at The Coffee Scene every Monday for over 20 years, is who LeJuane deems “The Godfather of Poetry” in Fayetteville.

LeJuane said through their joint passion, he and Neil wanted to put Fayetteville on the map in the world of poetry.

“Neil, I, and a poet by the name of Cardiair Geezus put our heads together and started the Southeastern Regional NC Poetry Festival [SERNC],” LeJuane said.

In 2012, LeJuane and his fellow poets created a weekend-long event consisting of themed open mic nights, writing workshops, and a big slam competition to round out the weekend. After that first year, the event dwindled, but LeJuane saw the potential in it, revitalizing it in 2013 into a four-day festival occurring every September. And LeJuane wanted to make it worth the while of the participating poets.

Through sponsors such as Poetry-N-Motion LLC, Bowens Counseling Services, and Inspired INK, a cash prize of $1,000 is gifted to the winner of the slam competition.

Akia Smith, a local social worker, said it was LeJuane and the SERNC that introduced her to spoken word poetry and broadened her performance abilities beyond what she could imagine.

Akia had been introduced to poetry at an early age, but when she attended one of the SERNC slam events held at Winterbloom Tea in downtown Fayetteville in 2022, she knew she was ready to perform.

“I had some written poetry ready, and I was like, ‘I think I’m ready. I think I’m gonna do it,’” Akia said.

After that first performance, Akia said she felt accomplished and yearned to do more. Little did she know that one of the co-founders of SERNC, LeJuane, would recruit her to his slam poetry team, Detour, one year later.

The road to Detour Slam Team

Seventeen years after his journey began, LeJuane, now a professional poet and educator on the art, stands at the front of a large conference room, tucked away at the back of the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County.

On the first day of his Detour Slam Academy, a workshop focused on teaching others about the history, structure, and process of slam poetry, chatter fills the room as attendees anticipate the wisdom before them.

LeJuane’s mission for the academy: teach others about slam poetry while also recruiting members for his slam poetry team, Detour. The Detour Slam Team, created in 2019 by LeJuane, was never meant to be permanent. He created Detour with the plan to compete just one time at the Southern Fried Poetry Slam since it was in Fayetteville that year.

The Southern Fried Poetry Slam, an annual festival dedicated to celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach, made its debut in the southeastern region of the United States in 1993.

The festival showcases poets traveling from around the nation to compete to become the best slam poetry team in the country. In 2019, the festival made its way to Fayetteville and LeJuane wanted to be a part of it.

After the Detour Slam Team ranked 11th in the region during that first year at the Southern Fried Poetry Festival, LeJuane said he realized the team could be something special.

Five years later, during the 2024 Southern Fried Poetry Festival, the Detour Slam Team ranked 6th in the nation. And it was the work of one Detour member, Keith Sowell, that wowed the crowd the most.

Akia Smith recalls the energy at Southern Fried Poetry Slam when the team presented Keith’s piece, “Black Arts Museum.”

“At first it was really quiet,” Akia said, remembering the nerves they felt, “but it went amazingly, and everyone was shouting to the judges, ‘10, 10, 10.’”

Although Detour placed 6th overall, “Black Arts Museum” was voted unanimously the best poem at the festival.

“It really boosted my confidence to see that I could perform poetry in front of all of these poets that I had admired for so long,” Akia said.

This is exactly what LeJuane hopes members gain through the Detour Slam Team; to use it as a stepping stone to further their futures, while also growing emotionally and intellectually.

Keith said that LeJuane’s coaching goes beyond performance and poetry.

“He makes the process feel like home. He cares about us as a team because that’s crucial for the quality of our work,” Keith explained.

LeJuane said his goal with poetry is simply to be honest and genuine.

“I’ve been in it long enough that I’ve worn both the villain hat and the hero hat,” LeJuane said. “I like it when I wear the hero hat.”

What’s to come

The Detour Slam Academy is still accepting applicants with a fee of $20 per class. Upcoming classes will occur Oct. 26 and Nov. 16, with a big slam finale featuring attendees putting all their hard work to the test on Dec. 21.

LeJuane asks that attendees come to at least two classes in order to participate in the December slam event, but all are welcome to observe, regardless.

To keep up with LeJuane and the Fayetteville poetry scene, visit Poetry-N-Motion LLC and Poetry in Fayetteville on Facebook.

When LeJuane Bowens entered a Fayetteville coffee shop for a poetry open mic night in 2007, he had no clue how his world would change.

With the mission to promote his new poetry book, “So Many Things to Say: A Collection of Poems,” he stepped up to the mic and began to recite one of his pieces. But there was one issue: He hated the way that he sounded.

“To talk about love monotone does not work,” LeJuane explained. From that moment forward, with determination in his heart, LeJuane swore never to let that happen again.

The art of slam

Growing up in the small town of Lima, Ohio, south of Toledo, LeJuane — affectionately known as El’Ja by those closest to him — channeled his energy into writing, music, and dance. LeJuane said he was surrounded by a family of talent, learning the beauty and importance of art from an early age.

But LeJuane said it was the mentors in his life that encouraged him to allow art to consume him.

The first of those mentors was Mrs. Steepleton, his 10th grade English teacher who assigned her class a poetry project. Through this project, LeJuane’s interest in poetry sparked.

“Poetry saved my life in some ways. It helped me become open with myself … I used to think, as a man, it shows weakness to express emotions, but poetry helped me get over that,” LeJuane explained.

He also recalls his 9th grade choir teacher, Dr. O’Neal, who graciously allowed him to stay in choir after almost being kicked out for being a “class clown,” in his own words. LeJuane said that was a huge turning point for him.

“If I had been kicked out [of choir], I don’t know where I would be right now,” LeJuane said.

But it wasn’t until LeJuane enlisted in the U.S. Army in 2000 and was later encouraged by his Chief Warrant Officer 4, Keith Anderson, to publish a book that he started to take poetry seriously.

“He saw some of my work on MySpace and he told me I should publish a book because he had published one,” LeJuane said.

During his last deployment to Iraq in 2007, LeJuane wrote and published his first book, and found himself at that open mic night in 2007 in Fayetteville, ready to kickstart a career that would bring forth endless opportunities.

Bringing poetry to Fayetteville

At the time, written and spoken word poetry were all LeJuane knew until he attended a poetry slam in Greensboro with fellow poet, Anthony Harris. It was at that moment that LeJuane had an epiphany.

“I realized that if they could do it, then I could do it,” LeJuane explained.

While spoken word is the art of reciting a piece of poetry in front of an audience, slam poetry is the same but with a twist.

“Spoken word is a combination of poetry and performance art,” LeJuane explained. “Slam just takes spoken word and places it into a competitive frame.”

Slam poetry was first introduced to the world in the 1980s when American poet, Marc Smith, developed the art form in Chicago, Illinois. What was once meant to be nothing more than an innocent bar game has now led to a global form of competition featuring millions of poets and their original work.

Neil Ray, Fayetteville native and creator of Java Expressions, a spoken word poetry event held at The Coffee Scene every Monday for over 20 years, is who LeJuane deems “The Godfather of Poetry” in Fayetteville.

LeJuane said through their joint passion, he and Neil wanted to put Fayetteville on the map in the world of poetry.

“Neil, I, and a poet by the name of Cardiair Geezus put our heads together and started the Southeastern Regional NC Poetry Festival [SERNC],” LeJuane said.

In 2012, LeJuane and his fellow poets created a weekend-long event consisting of themed open mic nights, writing workshops, and a big slam competition to round out the weekend. After that first year, the event dwindled, but LeJuane saw the potential in it, revitalizing it in 2013 into a four-day festival occurring every September. And LeJuane wanted to make it worth the while of the participating poets.

Through sponsors such as Poetry-N-Motion LLC, Bowens Counseling Services, and Inspired INK, a cash prize of $1,000 is gifted to the winner of the slam competition.

Akia Smith, a local social worker, said it was LeJuane and the SERNC that introduced her to spoken word poetry and broadened her performance abilities beyond what she could imagine.

Akia had been introduced to poetry at an early age, but when she attended one of the SERNC slam events held at Winterbloom Tea in downtown Fayetteville in 2022, she knew she was ready to perform.

“I had some written poetry ready, and I was like, ‘I think I’m ready. I think I’m gonna do it,’” Akia said.

After that first performance, Akia said she felt accomplished and yearned to do more. Little did she know that one of the co-founders of SERNC, LeJuane, would recruit her to his slam poetry team, Detour, one year later.

The road to Detour Slam Team

Seventeen years after his journey began, LeJuane, now a professional poet and educator on the art, stands at the front of a large conference room, tucked away at the back of the Arts Council of Fayetteville/Cumberland County.

On the first day of his Detour Slam Academy, a workshop focused on teaching others about the history, structure, and process of slam poetry, chatter fills the room as attendees anticipate the wisdom before them.

LeJuane’s mission for the academy: teach others about slam poetry while also recruiting members for his slam poetry team, Detour. The Detour Slam Team, created in 2019 by LeJuane, was never meant to be permanent. He created Detour with the plan to compete just one time at the Southern Fried Poetry Slam since it was in Fayetteville that year.

The Southern Fried Poetry Slam, an annual festival dedicated to celebrating poetry, spoken word, and community outreach, made its debut in the southeastern region of the United States in 1993.

The festival showcases poets traveling from around the nation to compete to become the best slam poetry team in the country. In 2019, the festival made its way to Fayetteville and LeJuane wanted to be a part of it.

After the Detour Slam Team ranked 11th in the region during that first year at the Southern Fried Poetry Festival, LeJuane said he realized the team could be something special.

Five years later, during the 2024 Southern Fried Poetry Festival, the Detour Slam Team ranked 6th in the nation. And it was the work of one Detour member, Keith Sowell, that wowed the crowd the most.

Akia Smith recalls the energy at Southern Fried Poetry Slam when the team presented Keith’s piece, “Black Arts Museum.”

“At first it was really quiet,” Akia said, remembering the nerves they felt, “but it went amazingly, and everyone was shouting to the judges, ‘10, 10, 10.’”

Although Detour placed 6th overall, “Black Arts Museum” was voted unanimously the best poem at the festival.

“It really boosted my confidence to see that I could perform poetry in front of all of these poets that I had admired for so long,” Akia said.

This is exactly what LeJuane hopes members gain through the Detour Slam Team; to use it as a stepping stone to further their futures, while also growing emotionally and intellectually.

Keith said that LeJuane’s coaching goes beyond performance and poetry.

“He makes the process feel like home. He cares about us as a team because that’s crucial for the quality of our work,” Keith explained.

LeJuane said his goal with poetry is simply to be honest and genuine.

“I’ve been in it long enough that I’ve worn both the villain hat and the hero hat,” LeJuane said. “I like it when I wear the hero hat.”

What’s to come

The Detour Slam Academy is still accepting applicants with a fee of $20 per class. Upcoming classes will occur Oct. 26 and Nov. 16, with a big slam finale featuring attendees putting all their hard work to the test on Dec. 21.

LeJuane asks that attendees come to at least two classes in order to participate in the December slam event, but all are welcome to observe, regardless.

To keep up with LeJuane and the Fayetteville poetry scene, visit Poetry-N-Motion LLC and Poetry in Fayetteville on Facebook.

Read CityView Magazine’s “Arts & Culture” October 2024 e-edition here.