Photo by Kyle D. Reinford.
Experiential marketers are now aligning mission-driven campaigns with spoken word artists to bring a powerful, sophisticated and bespoke experience to events.
Given the recent restrictions on meetings and events, the spoken word experience can be a convenient and meaningful tool that raises the event design bar while also raising the overall vibration of attendees.
Spoken word is an art form that is part poetry and part performance mixed with politics, visceral experiences and culture. “Working for an international charity, we knew that it might be difficult to have participants in the room due to recent travel restrictions,” says CMP Kat Kimpton, previous event manager for Search for Common Ground and national markets event manager for the No Kid Hungry campaign. “We were looking for a way to bring firsthand experience and passion into the room without having to rely on ‘just another charity video’ that might get lost in translation in a big room. Spoken word seemed like the perfect fit if we could find someone who could bring the cultural competence, passion and originality to connect our guests to the cause.”
Luckily, Kimpton found Kelly Tsai, a spoken word artist who has performed at the White House, Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, and more.
“I work hard to ensure the poem I create for the [event] stands fully in its artistic integrity. When commissioned, I start from scratch or develop an existing suitable artistic concept,” Tsai says. “My goal as an artist is to touch people's hearts and humanity through the writing and performance of spoken word poetry. I speak truly from my heart to the audience's heart in a poetic, artistic and often personal way. It definitely changes the energy in the room from one where people are being ‘sold to’ or asked to donate, to a room of real human beings sharing in this intimate, energizing, artistic experience together.”
Kimpton says that she had tried other forms of entertainment in the past, but the spoken word experience was authentically poignant, true to the event’s mission and received overwhelmingly positive feedback from participants. “The spoken word was a creative medium that was flexible enough to connect the dichotomy of the international work to the demographics of the audience—all while providing an unforgettable experience,” she says.
The spoken word experience is a chance for experiential marketers to shake up the space and allow participants to connect to the events mission and to each other. Tsai says this is what the experience is all about. “I hope participants feel alive and connected to their power, humanity and spark. At these events, I get to shake people completely out of their norm and provide an emotional reset to understanding why they, and all of us, are here. I want them to feel changed and be able to connect the real human emotion they feel to what's going on in the room in the spirit of the event.”
For more information on Kelly's work, visit kellytsai.com, youtube.com/kztsai, twitter.com/kellytsai_nyc or instagram.com/kellytsai_nyc.
