The Conscious Expressions 4.0 Poetry Slam took place Wednesday night celebrating MVC’s 8th Annual Diversity Summit and Black Student Success Week. The event was a collaboration between Moreno Valley College’s Office of TRIO Programs, Associated Students of Moreno Valley College, Black Student Success Week Workgroup, and the College Development and Engagement Committee.
Conscious Expression began four years ago by Trio to honor and celebrate National Poetry Month. Over the years, it has grown into a dedicated safe space for students and alumni of the Moreno Valley College community to showcase their talents and share the experiences they have faced as people of color.
This year’s lineup included James Coats, Angela Aguirre, J. Boykin, Poetic Moments, and many others. The evening was packed with poetry, live music, comedy, and hip-hop. Host Kandi Kayne opened the event with a powerful spoken word performance that set the tone for the rest of the night.
The next act, MVC alumni Jay Boykin, displayed his saxophone skills through several upbeat performances. The Inland Empire native was raised in a musical family and his journey playing the saxophone started at an earlier age. Boykin showed his prowess on the saxophone as he played the instrumental version of the Backstreet Boys pop hit“Everybody” with a mashup of the Grammy-nominated song “On My Mama” by Victoria Monet. The set was reminiscent of a live concert as people sang, danced and clapped along in the aisles. Boykin kept the audience vibing from the start of his performance until the end.
Poetic Moments, another MVC alum followed Boykin’s performance with three different poetry pieces. The first poem urged the world to give Black women and Black girls the recognition that they deserve. During her second offering, Poetic Moments recalled her experience as a Black and Latina woman in the workforce. Her poem detailed how she navigated through her adversity and became stronger. The last piece focused on students who are forced to move abruptly during the school year due to the economy. In all Poetic Moments pieces were passionate, powerful, and impactful. A return performer she recalled her first time performing at a Conscious Expression event at MVC, “It was in a tiny classroom and we packed that b*tch out and now I’m looking at how massive it has become.”
Overall the event was enjoyable, insightful, and contributed to a growing, vibrant community.
