The Last Word Poetry Slam is where stories meet the spotlight. Poets take the stage with nothing but their voice, their truth, and three minutes to move the crowd. No props. No costumes. No excuses.
This year’s slam is open to the public with a $15 entry, and free for All-Access and VIP ticket holders. Come experience the power, rhythm, and fire as poets compete for over $2,000 in prizes — and the chance to walk away with The Last Word.
📍 Location: The Bull Room at American Underground
201 W Main St, Durham, NC 27701
✨ Grab your tickets and be part of the story.
Because when the mic drops — only one poet gets the last word.
For the poetry slammers
Are you ready to take the stage and claim The Last Word?
The Griot & Grey Owl Poetry Slam is calling all poets, storytellers, and truth-tellers to bring their fire to the mic and compete for $2,200 in cash prizes.
This year’s slam features three rounds, 12–15 poets, and a final King of the Hill showdown where every line, every word, every breath could make the difference.
No props. No costumes. Just poetry at its rawest and realest.
Bring your voice. Bring your story.
Because when the mic drops—only one poet gets the last word.
Slam Rules:
- Original Work Only: All poems must be original and written by the performer.
- Time Limit: Each poem must be 3 minutes or less, with a 10-second grace period. After that, points will be deducted.
- No Props, Costumes, or Music: The performance must be just you and your words—no background music, props, or costumes allowed.
- Judging Criteria: Poets will be judged on content, delivery, and overall impact, with scores ranging from 0.0 to 10.0.
- 3 Rounds: There will be three rounds of performances. The highest-scoring poets will advance after each round until one winner is crowned.
- Prizes: Cash prizes will be awarded to the top 3 performers.
- Respect the Stage: All performances must be respectful to fellow poets, judges, and the audience
The Last Word: Poetry Slam Rules & Format
Overview
The Last Word Poetry Slam is a three-round competition featuring 12–15 poets, each bringing their truth, craft, and courage to the mic.
No props. No costumes. No gimmicks — just words, rhythm, and heart.
🕒 Time Limit
Each poet has 3 minutes and 10 seconds to perform.
A 0.5-point deduction will be applied for every 10 seconds over time, up to 4 minutes.
At 4 minutes, the poet is disqualified from that round.
⏱️ If there’s a time discrepancy within 5 seconds, the lowest recorded time will be used.
🏁 Round Structure
Round 1
All 12–15 poets perform in a randomized order.
Judges score each poem from 0.0 to 10.0, allowing decimals.
The top 8 poets advance to Round 2.
Round 2
The 8 advancing poets perform again in order if highest to lowest score.
Judges continue scoring each performance using standard slam rules (0.0–10.0, dropping the highest and lowest scores).
The top 4 poets advance to the final round — The Last Word.
🎤 Round 3 – “The Last Word” (King of the Hill Format)
The final four poets will advance to the King of the Hill round, where only one poet will earn The Last Word.
The performance order will be determined by cumulative score — poets perform from lowest to highest, meaning each poet earns their spot in the lineup.
Each poet performs once in this round.
Format:
Poet A (lowest cumulative score) performs first.
Poet B performs next. Judges select the stronger poem between A and B.
Poet C performs next. Judges compare C’s poem to the previous winning poem (either A or B).
Poet D (highest cumulative score) performs last. Judges compare D’s poem to the previous winning poem to determine the overall winner.
🏆 Results:
The final poet standing after the last matchup is crowned Champion and takes 1st place.
The poet eliminated in the final matchup earns 2nd place.
Of the two poets eliminated earlier, the one with the highest cumulative score from previous rounds is awarded 3rd place.
⚖️ Judging & Scoring
Five judges will be selected from the audience and community.
Judges score each poem on content, delivery, and overall impact.
High and low scores are dropped each round.
Ties: All tied poets in a cutoff position are dropped together.
Content Rule: No hate speech or discriminatory language will be tolerated.
💰 Prizes
🥇 1st Place: $1,000
🥈 2nd Place: $500
🥉 3rd Place: $250
✍🏾 Poem of the Night: $200
🎤 4th–8th Place: $50 each
