When I was introduced to the Poejazzi app by my friend and (day job) colleague, I have to admit, I was sceptical at first. I’ve seen plenty of other ‘poetry’ apps come and go (naming no names, of course) and although they look wonderfully cultured on your phone screen, they serve little more than a digital thumbnail image of Yeats and a line or two of Dickinson or Shakespeare, aka nothing more than a simple internet search would.
Poejazzi has been pitched as “London’s premier spoken word and music night” (The Southbank Centre) and over the course of numerous events at both The Southbank Centre and the Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room they have held the mic for countless both well-known and emerging voices. This is certainly a strong foundation to build a digital platform on.
When I first fired up Poejazzi I was pleasantly surprised. The stylish design and the gratifying swipe through icon section to fill you in on everything this quirky little app has to offer is both visually appealing and informative. Scrolling through to the biography section I’m pleased to see some familiar faces, and some exciting new ones. There are fifteen (all repeated twice for some reason) with snippets on their work and more importantly, links to their social media pages.
The ‘poems’ section is rather thin on the ground but there is a sense of urgency about drip feeding of poems each week, not being overloaded with everything all at once; which is exactly how a poetry app should be as it allows you to absorb each piece of work with some breathing room around it. The option to both read and listen to each poem is a refreshing one rarely experienced with such great synchronisation.
With every new app there is always the question of ‘why’? Why should I open it up each day? The answer with Poejazzi is simple: because it holds delicious, energetic, life within its virtual walls and the poetic treats are yours for the unwrapping. It will bring poetry to you in bite size portions almost like a literary advent calendar.
The one point I would leave this on is inspiration. Having your eyes and ears filled to the brim with poetic delights sets thoughts and ideas buzzing through the brain. Just when you’re about to reach for the pad and pen you remember; you’re on a train, a busy one, and you’re pressed up against someone’s armpit. A notes section would be the perfect extra option on the already delicious menu to capture all of your scribblings.
http://www.poejazzi.com/publishing/
Available on iTunes, Google Play and Samsung Apps now.
