Big Poppa E
Encyclopedia
Big Poppa E is a performer of slam poetry
. His live performances combine poetry, stand-up comedy, and dramatic monologue in high-energy rants about relationships, pop culture, and hot button issues of the day. He has appeared on three seasons of HBO's Def Poetry
series and is a National Poetry Slam Champion (San Francisco Team '99). Although he now refrains from active slam competition, Big Poppa E has developed a solid reputation as a strong poetry slam host and organizer for events at the National Poetry Slam (NPS), Individual World Poetry Slam (IWPS), and other similar events at universities across the United States.
He is best known for the performance poem The Wussy Boy Manifesto, a humorous rant championing sensitive men that elevates such cultural icons as Duckie from Pretty in Pink
and Lloyd Dobler from Say Anything... to role models. Debuting in 1999, The Wussy Boy Manifesto garnered widespread attention, prompting Ms. Magazine
to name Big Poppa E "an icon for effeminate males" and The Los Angeles Times to proclaim him the "leader of a new men's movement."
He often works with the human rights organization Amnesty International
and the campus organization Men Against Violence, and has hosted numerous politically-themed poetry slam events and workshops at regional and national Amnesty International conferences across the U.S. He has also been featured at events championing women's issues and sexual assault awareness. He has performed with Inga Muscio
, author of Cunt: A Declaration of Independence
, and acclaimed poet and musician Saul Williams
.
, and quickly became a part of the burgeoning youth movement of the early '90s that had erupted. BPE became Arts & Entertainment editor of the student newspaper, The Runner, and frequently wrote about the local band scene. Eventually, he enlisted the help of several friends to begin a music fanzine called Fencepost and organize rock shows featuring local Bakersfield bands (such as Spike 1000, Mento Buru, Cradle of Thorns, and Sexart
).
After transferring to Chico State University in Northern California in 1994 to concentrate on a degree in Journalism, he become a staff writer on the student-run newspaper The Orion. BPE became involved in the poetry slam scene in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1997. He qualified for the San Francisco Poetry Slam Team in 1999 and adopted the stage name Big Poppa E after an audience member shouted it during the performance of a hip-hop inspired poem called Jesus Moshpit.
Just one semester shy of graduation, Big Poppa E was offered a position as the Assistant Arts & Entertainment Editor of the Reno Gazette-Journal
. He worked in that capacity for the summer of 1999, but then his San Francisco Poetry Slam Team tied for first place at the National Poetry Slam
in Chicago, besting 48 teams. Upon returning to his job, he quit, dropped out of school, and began touring full-time as a slam poet, launching a national tour that visited 27 states in 4 months.
He briefly stayed in Seattle, WA after his first tour, but relocated to Austin, Texas
in 2002, where he remains a resident between tours. As a result, Big Poppa E often performs at the Austin Poetry Slam
.
Although he occasionally writes freelance articles for newspapers and magazines (such as Bust Magazine and Poets & Writers
) and frequently takes day jobs, Big Poppa E primarily makes his living by writing and performing his poetry across the United States.
, Google Video
, and MySpace
. The clip detailed the uproar over the poem Oh! Canadian FedEx Lady! after it was performed at an Apple Computer employee talent show in 2005, two days after which Big Poppa was fired for undisclosed reasons.
The poem was a comedic rant about a male worker in the Apple Computer
call center who flirts over the phone with a female Canadian FedEx employee while keeping "rude, mean American customers" on hold.
The story of his firing was picked up in various news sources across the Internet and was used as an example of increased scrutiny of employee blogging and vlogging by companies that has led to firings.
Slam poetry
A poetry slam is a competition at which poets read or recite original work. These performances are then judged on a numeric scale by previously selected members of the audience.-History:...
. His live performances combine poetry, stand-up comedy, and dramatic monologue in high-energy rants about relationships, pop culture, and hot button issues of the day. He has appeared on three seasons of HBO's Def Poetry
Def Poetry
Def Poetry, also known as Russell Simmons Presents Def Poetry or Def Poetry Jam, which was co-founded by Bruce George, Danny Simmons and Deborah Pointer, is an HBO television series produced by hip-hop music entrepreneur Russell Simmons. The series presents performances by established spoken word...
series and is a National Poetry Slam Champion (San Francisco Team '99). Although he now refrains from active slam competition, Big Poppa E has developed a solid reputation as a strong poetry slam host and organizer for events at the National Poetry Slam (NPS), Individual World Poetry Slam (IWPS), and other similar events at universities across the United States.
He is best known for the performance poem The Wussy Boy Manifesto, a humorous rant championing sensitive men that elevates such cultural icons as Duckie from Pretty in Pink
Pretty in Pink
Pretty in Pink is a 1986 American teen romantic comedy-drama film about teenage love and social cliques in 1980s American high schools. It is one of a group of John Hughes films starring Molly Ringwald, and is commonly identified as a "Brat Pack" film...
and Lloyd Dobler from Say Anything... to role models. Debuting in 1999, The Wussy Boy Manifesto garnered widespread attention, prompting Ms. Magazine
Ms. magazine
Ms. is an American feminist magazine co-founded by American feminist and activist Gloria Steinem and founding editor Letty Cottin Pogrebin together with founding editors Patricia Carbine, Joanne Edgar, Nina Finkelstein, and Mary Peacock, that first appeared in 1971 as an insert in New York magazine...
to name Big Poppa E "an icon for effeminate males" and The Los Angeles Times to proclaim him the "leader of a new men's movement."
He often works with the human rights organization Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
and the campus organization Men Against Violence, and has hosted numerous politically-themed poetry slam events and workshops at regional and national Amnesty International conferences across the U.S. He has also been featured at events championing women's issues and sexual assault awareness. He has performed with Inga Muscio
Inga Muscio
Inga Muscio, , is a feminist, anti-racist writer and public speaker.She became famous after the publication of her 1998 Seal Press book Cunt: A Declaration of Independence, which called for women to break down boundaries between themselves and their bodies, and each other.She is also the author of...
, author of Cunt: A Declaration of Independence
Cunt: A Declaration of Independence
Cunt is a 1998 feminist book by Inga Muscio that called for a breakdown in the boundaries between women and in sexuality. In it, the writer hopes to reverse the negative connotations behind female genital euphemisms. The books traverses such subjects as menstruation, rape, and competition between...
, and acclaimed poet and musician Saul Williams
Saul Williams
Saul Stacey Williams is an American poet, writer, actor and musician known for his blend of poetry and alternative hip hop and for his leading role in the 1998 independent film Slam.-Biography:...
.
Biography
Big Poppa E was born in Bakersfield, CA. He took classes at California State University, BakersfieldCalifornia State University, Bakersfield
California State University, Bakersfield is a public university located in Bakersfield, California, United States which was founded in 1965. CSUB opened in 1970 on a campus, becoming the 19th school in the California State University system...
, and quickly became a part of the burgeoning youth movement of the early '90s that had erupted. BPE became Arts & Entertainment editor of the student newspaper, The Runner, and frequently wrote about the local band scene. Eventually, he enlisted the help of several friends to begin a music fanzine called Fencepost and organize rock shows featuring local Bakersfield bands (such as Spike 1000, Mento Buru, Cradle of Thorns, and Sexart
Sexart
Sex Art was an American alternative metal band that formed c. 1989. They are best known for being the band that Jonathan Davis was in, before being found by Korn's guitarists while Sex Art was performing in a bar in Bakersfield, California. David DeRoo played bass, Ray "Chaka" Solis, Ryan Shuck...
).
After transferring to Chico State University in Northern California in 1994 to concentrate on a degree in Journalism, he become a staff writer on the student-run newspaper The Orion. BPE became involved in the poetry slam scene in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1997. He qualified for the San Francisco Poetry Slam Team in 1999 and adopted the stage name Big Poppa E after an audience member shouted it during the performance of a hip-hop inspired poem called Jesus Moshpit.
Just one semester shy of graduation, Big Poppa E was offered a position as the Assistant Arts & Entertainment Editor of the Reno Gazette-Journal
Reno Gazette-Journal
The Reno Gazette-Journal is the main daily newspaper for Reno, Nevada. It came into being when the Nevada State Journal and the Reno Evening Gazette were combined in 1983...
. He worked in that capacity for the summer of 1999, but then his San Francisco Poetry Slam Team tied for first place at the National Poetry Slam
National Poetry Slam
The National Poetry Slam is a performance poetry competition where teams from across the United States, Canada, and France participate in a large-scale poetry slam. The event occurs in early August every year and takes place in a different US city....
in Chicago, besting 48 teams. Upon returning to his job, he quit, dropped out of school, and began touring full-time as a slam poet, launching a national tour that visited 27 states in 4 months.
He briefly stayed in Seattle, WA after his first tour, but relocated to Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
in 2002, where he remains a resident between tours. As a result, Big Poppa E often performs at the Austin Poetry Slam
Austin Poetry Slam
The Austin Poetry Slam is one of the longest running poetry venues in Texas. Founded in 1994 by Wammo of the Asylum Street Spankers and helmed for 15 years by former Poetry Slam, Inc. president, Mike Henry, Austin Slam is renowned for memorable and often raucous performances by many of the best...
.
Although he occasionally writes freelance articles for newspapers and magazines (such as Bust Magazine and Poets & Writers
Poets & Writers
Poets & Writers, Inc. is one of the largest nonprofit literary organization in the United States serving poets, fiction writers, and creative nonfiction writers...
) and frequently takes day jobs, Big Poppa E primarily makes his living by writing and performing his poetry across the United States.
Apple Computer
Big Poppa E's viral video Why I Got Fired From Apple Computer received well over a million hits on YouTubeYouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
, Google Video
Google Video
Google Videos is a video search engine, and formerly a free video sharing website, from Google Inc. Before removing user-uploaded content, the service allowed selected videos to be remotely embedded on other websites and provided the necessary HTML code alongside the media, similar to YouTube...
, and MySpace
MySpace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
. The clip detailed the uproar over the poem Oh! Canadian FedEx Lady! after it was performed at an Apple Computer employee talent show in 2005, two days after which Big Poppa was fired for undisclosed reasons.
The poem was a comedic rant about a male worker in the Apple Computer
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
call center who flirts over the phone with a female Canadian FedEx employee while keeping "rude, mean American customers" on hold.
The story of his firing was picked up in various news sources across the Internet and was used as an example of increased scrutiny of employee blogging and vlogging by companies that has led to firings.
Publications
- Big Poppa E's Greatest Hits ISBN 978-0-615-14948-6
- Big Poppa E's Greatest Misses
CD Releases
External links
Additional Articles
- Slam-Dunked: Poets Duke It Out - Washington Post
- Part Art, Part Hip-Hop And Part Circus; Slammers Shake Up an Interest in Poetry - New York Times
- Big Poppa E - Chico News & Review
- Any subject is fair game for poet Big Poppa E - Colorado Springs Gazette
- The Poetry of a New Generation - National Public Radio, Savvy Traveler
- FronteraFest Short Fringe: Week 3 Review - Austin ChronicleAustin ChronicleThe Austin Chronicle is an alternative weekly, tabloid-style newspaper published every Thursday in Austin, Texas, United States. The paper is distributed through free news-stands, often at local eateries or coffee houses frequented by its targeted demographic...
- Poetry tour is slam-dunk - Providence Journal