Buddy Wakefield

Buddy Wakefield

Buddy Wakefield is a spoken word and slam poetry performer from Shreveport, United States. Born in 1974, he is a two-time Individual World Poetry Slam champion and appears on NPR, the BBC and HBO’s Def Poetry Jam.

Competition and recognition

Wakefield wins the Individual World Poetry Slam Finals in 2004 and defends the title at the International Poetry Festival in Rotterdam, where he performs against the national champions of seven European countries. He wins the Individual World Poetry Slam Championship again in 2005. His work is performed and heard on major broadcast platforms, including NPR, the BBC and HBO.

Performance and touring

He tours internationally and shares stages with a wide range of performance poets, including Saul Williams, Sage Francis, Utah Phillips, Derrick Brown and Marc Bamuthi Joseph. Venues associated with his performances include Comedy Central’s Hudson Theater, Oran Mor in Scotland, San Quentin State Penitentiary and CBGB’s. He tours full time and spends much of the early 2000s performing at major poetry venues across North America.

Other work and organisations

Wakefield leaves a job as an executive assistant at a biomedical firm in Gig Harbor, Washington, in 2001, gives away or sells what he owns, and moves into a car before beginning a life of touring and performance. He also manages The Bullhorn Collective, a talent agency he founds, which includes 30 slam poets and performance poets. He serves on the board of Youth Speaks Seattle and is part of Team Seattle for the 2006 National Poetry Slam Finals.