his love for poetry | #14
a breakdown of his progression for memory’s sake.
He loves rap music. For anyone who ever became close enough to him knows that he is all for rap. He would spend countless hours locked up in his room, replaying tracks from his favourite artists and breaking it down line by line, followed by hours of research about the history of the culture, and the backgrounds of the artists just so that he could truly appreciate the poetry that went into the song.
So he started writing too. His early work consisted of countless of poems which could arguably be referred to as lyrics for a rap song. He explored the explicitness of rap — the strong imagery and striking picture painting that would make you feel as if you were there, experiencing the entire scene develop in front of your very own eyes. He explored the numerous layering of meanings in a single line, which was common among the songs he loved.
For a year or two, that was his style. His writing identity. But of course, that would soon change. It progressed to structured poems that rhymed. Simply put, he toned down the explicitness of his word choice, choosing instead milder options. The concepts of the poems shifted, too. Recurring themes of destruction, hatred and violence became themes of lost, detachment and occasionally, love.
Structured poems of such themes made it relatively easier to comprehend for those who weren’t very exposed to poetry. It allowed for a connection between the few people who read his work and himself, which he wanted because of the potential it had in allowing himself to be understood. Even if it was only a handful of people.
Then came the exploration of different genres of music, film and art. He developed an interest in the alternate side of things. His interest in such themes was unexplainable. It seemed as if there was a switch in his mind that flipped and turned him upside down. He threw himself into sadness and darkness and embraced it all. He threw himself into all the lyrics of the different songs he listened to and the imagery from the various films and art pieces he loved and accepted it all, numbing himself of those feelings.
This started a new chapter for his writing, a chapter that hasn’t been closed yet. A style which is filled with free and loose structure, themes of love, death, sadness, and words that may be irrational and upsetting to some.
And yes, all of this could be a homage to the genre of music that he loves — rap.
#14 – je crois que je suis triste.
