Dave Thomson, a sophomore BA Theatre major, from Oak Forest, IL is but just another rising star on Millikin’s diverse campus. Thomson creates art from within and expresses it through an art form called spoken word.
“Spoken word is generally perceived as rap without a beat behind it, but I see spoken word as a very aggressive, very emotional, and a very honest form of expression that is generally categorized by the use of rhymes throughout the piece,” says Thomson.
When asked how he first got his start as a spoken word artist, Thomson replied, “I originally started as a song writer, then as time progressed the music turned into more of ‘rap like’ verses. The problem that arose was that I was writing too many verses that had no set structure or composed beat behind them. I started to say them out loud without any music behind them and I said to myself ‘Hey, these sound pretty cool’. And it progressed from there.”
Spoken word is often considered poetry in the artistic world. Most creators of spoken word term themselves as spoken word poets. “Spoken word is both poetry and not poetry at the same time. I consider it poetry because it still maintains the highest level of expression that one can achieve as far as putting ideas into words. Or rather, the highest level of emotional transference from the idea to the expression,” Thomson said. “However I don’t consider it poetry because spoken word is without limitation. There is no obstacle to it. It’s so open and so unstructured that it provides a vast freedom to express yourself in.”
Thomson’s inspiration to start writing at first was a major musical influence. “The band Flobots is one of my biggest inspirations. Most people know them for their song titled ‘Handlebars,’” Thomson said.
When asked why Flobots inspired him so much, Thomson said, “They don’t rely on turntables or set beats that a lot of rap these days does. They don’t use a recurring beat for what they’re rapping over. They set their beats with guitars or violins. It was rap, but it wasn’t.” Thomson believes that the subject material that they bring up in their songs is very intelligent. They are very educated on what is going on in the world. They cover a broader spectrum of subjects. “That’s what I try to do with the stuff that I write,” says Thomson.
Thomson has been writing for over two years now and has a CD that has been recorded. Thomson is currently working on distribution and uploading tracks to Soundcloud. Thomson says “I hope to start putting out CDs within the next couple of weeks.”
“I would love to get into contact with people who are interested in purchasing CDs. I’m in the system; look me up,” says Thomson
Thomson also enjoys Batman, socializing, talking about art, and reading good books. Thomson also enjoys when class is cancelled. “It’s the greatest thing in the world,” he says. On a campus full of talent and artistic abilities, Dave Thomson is an artist just trying to leave his mark on the world and reach someone when they need to hear what he has to say.