What the hell is Sing Lit Body Slam?
I arrive at Grapple MAX on a warm weekend afternoon. Immediately I feel like a fish out of water; wrestling mats and weights are scattered all around the lot, with a huge wrestling ring taking up centerstage. I instinctively cradle my untoned arms closer to my body.
Relief is to be found in a corner, where folding tables have been set up and taken over by a group of writers — more specifically, the group of writers feverishly bringing Sing Lit Body Slam to life. As I near, I catch words like “Yishun” and “Sang Nila Utama” floating around. I try not to let my utter confusion show on my face.
At 3.30pm, the writers leave their tables, the wrestlers leave their equipment, and everyone gathers onto a wrestling mat, barefoot and cross-legged. Joshua Ip, Station Director of Sing Lit Station, addresses the group and gives a rundown on what the hell is going on, which I will now briefly reproduce.
What the hell is Sing Lit Body Slam?
A body slam is when a wrestler literally picks their opponent up and then slams them down onto the ground. A poetry slam is an intense competition of spoken word poetry before a panel of bloodthirsty audience and judges.
Sing Lit Body Slam is an amalgamation of both, born from the brains of Greg “Glorious” Ho, founder of Grapple MAX, and Joshua Ip. Greg and Joshua, former secondary school ex-classmates, came up with the idea one night and decided it might just be wacky enough to work.
In 2017, the first Sing Lit Body Slam was born and staged in Aliwal Arts Centre. Building upon its success, the second Sing Lit Body Slam will be happening this year on the 29th and 30th November. There will be 5 wrestling matches, accompanied by 5 stories being narrated by poets.
Poetry… and wrestling…?
“Neither poetry nor professional wrestling is considered mainstream in Singapore,” Joshua explains. “When you tell someone you do either of these things, their first reaction is usually, ‘Huh?’”
Yet Joshua and Greg recognised a common attitude in both poets and wrestlers, a stubborn screw-the-world-because-I’m-good-at-what-I-do streak. They were also each founders of an up-and-coming organisation, floating under the radar but full of energy and youth.
Despite all their similarities, neither poets nor wrestlers knew much each other’s work; the same applied for their fans. Sing Lit Body Slam thus aimed to bring these two disparate worlds together under one roof.
Some may think that this marriage is degrading to the original medium. “They may think it’s over the top, or too much too soon, or crazy,” Joshua says. “But we have utmost respect for each other as artists.”
While conducting interviews, I find this to be true. The poets are full of admiration for the wrestlers, as well as wrestling as a sport. Interestingly, they even consider wrestling to be an art form.
“It’s art,” says Joses Ho, a poet who has returned to participate in Sing Lit Body Slam for its second iteration. “Every wrestling match has an arc, has artistic tension.”
Stephanie Chan agrees as well: “Wrestlers are great at storytelling.”
Sure, it may not be considered traditional art, but Sing Lit Body Slam is all about breaking gatekeeping rules. While conceptualising and writing the show, the poets and wrestlers work closely together. As Sing Lit Body Slam is staged in front of a live audience, the wrestlers also teach the poets to plan and stage for audience participation (if you think you’ve seen audience participation at poetry readings, wrestling matches will blow your mind).
What has changed from the first Sing Lit Body Slam?
“The wrestling has definitely leveled up,” Joses tells me. A few days ago, he’d just watched a Grapple MAX showcase, and came away completely awed. “It’s been two years since the first show, and during that time, the wrestlers have been undergoing even more training and growth.”
The participating poets have also decided to fully memorise their lines! They’ve also shifted their work styles; the writers have been working more closely together this time, operating like a writer’s room as opposed to combining solo pieces. New writers have hopped on to the team, including Melizarani T. Selva, a Malaysian poet and wrestling fan.
Welcome to insanity
“Does it make sense?” Joshua says, standing in the middle of the group gathered on the wrestling mat. “No.” The glee in his voice is evident.
All in all, Sing Lit Body Slam promises to be an event where literally anything can happen. Come prepared for crazy showmanship and nonsensical storylines.