Interview: Holly Painter

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I cannot remember the last time I felt as welcomed as I did when I walked into Bryan Prince Bookseller on the evening of Feb. 7 for Hot Damn It’s a Queer Slam. The slam poetry circuit that tours around Ontario had made its way to Hamilton, and people had braved the cold to be there, with some even driving from the farthest reaches of the province to attend.

Among these was Holly Painter, a spoken word artist from London, Ont. who used to be a supply teacher and is now a full-time public speaker and Director of London Poetry Slam. If you ever get a chance to watch Holly perform live, take it. Her poetry is mesmerizing even through a computer screen, but there is something indescribable about hearing her in person.

I sat down with Holly before the event. It was still early, and the bookstore was empty save us. Several people would later remark that the walls lined with books were what they imagined heaven to look like. Yet for the time being, it was just Holly and I, talking about her work.

When asked to name her spoken word inspirations, Holly named Shane Koyczan, telling me a story of how she opened for one of his shows early in her career as a performer.

“I will always remember that because I was still really new in terms of performing and he was a big inspiration for me, and he knew he would be getting ready for his show and would miss our performance, but it was really cool because he asked us to perform for him in his greenroom. That is something I try to replicate myself, this idea of really listening.”

Holly remembers the moment she got her first dose of slam poetry.

“I got hooked right away. It was the environment of the poetry slam. Everyone was there to support each other, to hear each other. Having not been able to find those spaces as a young person, I gravitated towards that.”

Having worked with youth her entire life, Holly recognizes “the impact [spoken word] can have for people in general, but especially for young people that are searching for a voice. And not just to hear what people say in their poetry and how they open up but also to see the reactions from their classmates, who are so supportive and encouraging. I share very openly my story of coming out and I speak about it through my poetry, and to see other students use poetry to open up is incredibly powerful, to think that I had some sort of role in that.”

It didn’t take me long into the performance before I saw exactly what Holly was talking about when she said that her biggest inspiration comes from the youth she works with. For youth to be able to stand in front of a crowd and speak openly and without fear of judgment was inspirational. Hot Damn It’s A Queer Slam continues to help those in the LGBQT community, and makes power of spoken word as social change apparent.

That night, Bryan Prince Bookseller became a haven. One of the performers talked about this gift of confidence that slam poetry gives to the speaker, explaining that words build spines. For those searching for a place of acceptance, poetry slams are not a bad place to look.

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