Free Verse Tex t by K e l l i G rat z images by G e o f f M au
Eleven years after Kealoha Wong departed from routine and convention, his ability to translate nature and science into thought is as strong as ever. Since then, Hawai‘i’s first poet laureate has been a part of reviving the culture and art of slam poetry here in Hawai‘i and around the world. -To watch him perform, underneath the enchanted lights of the stage or the shimmering rays of the Hawaiian sun, is something of an experience. I still remember the first time I saw him perform at Studio1 in Chinatown. The fluxional nature of his words seemed to mask the stuttering, shouting and hooting going on all around me. The commanding language and pulsing rhythm drew me in immediately. He was truly a conductor of his own concerto. Just as he was in awe of his first slam poetry experience a few years prior, I too was captivated by the bold performance art. Throughout his life, Steven Kealohapau‘ole Hong-Ming Wong has simultaneously honored both the realm of science and the spheres of prose. After graduating from Massachusetts
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Institute of Technology (MIT) in nuclear engineering, with a minor in writing, he worked as a management consultant in San Francisco. “I was a machine!” he says with a laugh. “It got to the point where I was feeling almost trapped. Doing the same things day in and day out. At first I was really scared to quit everything and come back home to start this new leaf, but I knew that I had to at least try.” As a true creator, the power of the written word has always captivated the now 35-year-old artist, but it wasn’t until he was back home that his writing ascended into a category of its own, never stagnant and ever changing. His work reveals the necessity of speech, and how words, when used right, can exceed mere productions and become their own entities. His loaded poems, most notably “Dictonomy” and “Recess” still live on through the people he has inspired and influenced over the years. This is why it was no surprise when he was deemed Hawai‘i’s first Poet Laureate this past May. “I’ve been doing this for about 10 years or so, and I’m just really thrilled that people still want to hear what I have to say,” he begins. “When I was approached by the governor to be Hawai‘i’s Poet Laureate, they were explaining to me the details of the job, and I thought to myself, This is what I already do so it should be no problem. Just to be recognized is a real honor.”