Giving Life, Power to Rhythm and Words

Under the pressure of his introduction as "part poet, part musician, part actor and part god," Saul Williams did not crumble -- he captivated a full house of about 500 during his Oct. 28 free performance at the Hoff Theater.

Williams entertained and enlightened the crowd with his powerful poetry performance that was punctuated with congenial, down-to-earth dialogue with the audience.

"I already had so much respect and admiration for him, [but after the performance] I started to see him as more of a human person," said Jonathan Tucker, a Maryland alumnus also known as DJ Phenomejon, one of the emcees for the Terpoets hosted event. "He used to be like a myth, like no one could reach his level. But he's just a guy. You can actually sit and talk to him. He's a rock star, but he won't treat you like he's one."

Following a series of opening acts, including a witty, lighthearted love poem entitled "Pick Me" by Tucker and several pieces by Def Poetry Jam performers Poemcees, Williams revealed his humble nature, stating that he would open up the floor for questions throughout the night because he "didn't want to hear himself speak for that long."

Williams then dove into his performance, a poetically and rhythmically charged set of poems laced with fast-paced wordplay, intense imagery and themes of social activism, nature and human sexuality. He then answered a slew of audience questions about everything from his fascination with the moon, to his unusual Feb. 29 birthday, to his thoughts on religion and more.

"[Saul Williams] is very well-read," said Jazz Lewis, a senior government and politics major.

Lewis admits he was not entirely familiar with Williams' body of work prior to the performance.

"He regurgitated information from the tip of his tongue, and it shows that he's on top of his game," said Lewis.

Lewis, who made it a point to investigate some of Williams' favorite writers, including Persian poet Hafiz, also noted that the crowd consisted of the university's more activism friendly, socially aware student body.

"The comedy show [with Demetri Martin] was the same night as Saul Williams' performance, and the university definitely promoted the comedy show more," said Lewis. "I think the people who came [to the Williams performance] are the students who want a full college experience, going to interesting events and meeting people of all cultures."