Loud Poet Grand Slam Final at Baillie Gifford Sculpture Court

I Am Loud Productions are officially partnering with Edinburgh International Book Festival for the Loud Poets: Grand Slam Final. With poetry being such an important part of Scottish heritage, with famous bairds including the likes of Rabbie Burns, the event promises to be a festival highlight, combining fist-thumping music with side-tickling and reflective poetry. Hosted by Kevin Mclean with musical accompaniment from Jack Hinks, there will also be a special performance from the winner of over 10 slam titles, Vanessa Kisuule. Having qualified through a series of Scotland-wide Slams, the 12 competing poets this year will be Gray Crosbie, Angie Strachan, Chelsie Nash, Susi Briggs, Tom Bird, Natalie Jayne Clark, Jack Hunter, Lynsey Gilmour, Jo Gilbert, Callum O'Dwyer, Georgia Bartlett-McNeil and Jo Hunter. The slammers will compete to win a £3,000 prize and the coveted title of Loud Poets Slam Champion. 

Bex Bidgood, Marketing Manager and Producer for I Am Loud Productions, comments Poetry in Scotland is some of the best in the world, and partnering with EIBF allows us to take these incredible spoken word artists, and provide them with an opportunity to really show what they can do. We're so grateful to Creative Scotland and the National Lottery for funding our slam series, and allowing us to work to build a scene that showcases the power of the Scottish spoken word. Each regional heat has allowed us to showcase some incredibly talented performers - but not everyone can qualify for the final. The 12 qualifying slam poets are some of the best in the Scottish spoken word scene, and we have such a diverse lineup of performers. I have no clue who will come out as our Loud Poets Slam Champion but I cannot wait to see how it plays out at the final.  

From their monthly shows, Loud Poets went on to produce multiple live shows with the team performing across the UK and around the world at the Edinburgh, Brighton, Prague Fringe festivals, Edinburgh’s Hidden Door Festival and London’s VAULT Festival.  

The Loud Poets slam series has won the Best Regular Spoken Word Night award at the 2023 Saboteur Awards. Aiming to creatively present spoken word poetry in engaging and entertaining ways, I Am Loud productions featured some of the biggest names in the spoken word scene including Shane Koyczan, Harry Baker, Hannah Lavery, Rick Dove and Joelle Taylor. 

Founded in 2014, I Am Loud Productions started as a monthly poetry night - Loud Poets. The company has moved into digital and audio production with the I Am Loud team leading digital production for several literary festivals including the 2021 Saboteur Award-winning StAnza Poetry Festival, Winchester Poetry Festival and the Scottish International Storytelling Festival. The aim is to push the boundaries of traditional poetry, platforming the best Scottish talent.