HBO Def Poetry 4 "Little Red Books" Kelly Tsai (3X Def Poet)

[kagoon0709]

@LEGENDZ360 I think ultimately she meant any kind of change/revolution takes much struggle and pain..whether it's socialist revolution or not, whether it turns out to be successful (like French Revolution), or not.

[coyotestory]

Enjoyed this powerful Poet. Allow us to fall into her words.

[DanielDeluxe1987]

i dont understand this ?

WTF FUCK IS SHE DOING THERE, SHE SHOULD BE IN THE KITCHEN !!

[TheEditor80]

u can feel this

[bratstarr]

shes HOT

[FUZZYFORKS]

xoxoxoxo

I'd marry her as long as she don't mind me opening up my kungfu dojo =p

[FUZZYFORKS]

xoxoxoxo

I'd marry her as long as she don't mind me opening up my kungfu dojo =p

[RedBear1023]

But Mao did experiment on my family, and he fucked up... D:

[kuro10307]

I love her poem and the message of this poem. She is able to spin her words so provocatively to speak to people about a history and great struggle that many people have faced and are still facing today, as well as use that to warn people that change is indeed hard and that they should be ready.

To everybody who questions her Chinese: She is indeed speaking Mandarin, and the correct pinyin is "zhan(4) qi(3) lai(2). {stand/rise up} And she did pronounce the tones incorrectly at the end.

[LilBlitz116]

@bliss38 C u suck R shut up A die C u fool K asshole E inbred R

[Empre55]

tear jerker

[bliss38]

What's worse than a Whigger? A Chigger.

[AkurnaSkulblaka]

@bliss38 What a troll...

[JUANO510]

AMAZING

[6711dylan]

She's like a Female version of Beau Sia

[Shea354]

Dope

[JazzyZenBrotha]

That was on point

[JeLoLoLo]

Love this piece

[Averyofthemain]

This is an anti-communist piece and good for her

[ed9s]

what's wrong with carrying books under your arm? what's wrong with studying? you should clean up you F*&^%$ mouth. It is so ugly. No, I didn't miss the point. sit down.

[the1fortheages]

@ed9s i hope you're trollin'

[MillerName]

@ed9s Actually, I think you DID miss the point. It's not anti-studying, it's anti-indoctrination.

[hation100]

@ed9s She never said anything against books or studying. She's speaking against communism and indoctrinating people.

[penatbater]

first time i've heard chinese words in def poetry jam! awesome! :))

[creamykinss]

you better work!

[Femcrisis]

<3 This is amazing,

[Johnstonmr]

Kelly, I first saw this poem while showing the Def Poetry episode it was in to my English class. The kids--and I--became instant fans of yours. Well done.

[Zeemike1]

Interisting and thought provoking.

[vornik24]

thejiyo  u use love and ghange everything that bad. simple .

[vornik24]

revolotion and peace don't mix.. what about a revolotion of love?

[thejiyo]

@vornik24 you have to differentiate the revolution she's talking about here from that...and what does that even mean?

this piece was amazing!

[Zabrina84]

wicked wicked wicked. Women of Colour runnin' shit.

[MattickShock]

is it me or did she actually want them to stand up but they didn't get it.

[speranforever]

i think she is using it metaphorically. Stand up meaning rise up...

[MrNeutralized]

nah

[umbarrooki]

haha I agree I think she wanted them too

[whoinventedwhom]

I look forward to hearing the lyrics on this one.

I have a few friends in China and they do definitely typically have different political opinions. The dynamic about what they believe is quite interesting.

Quite different than what i'd expect an "abc" to feel but well, let see. ;-).

[bajabenca]

I love her performance. I also love, how you can be from completely different cultures but understand each others' struggles in varying dynamics.

[Chibi363]

This poem is always my favorite!

I have it on myspace and it's just awesome.

And I used the line "you're bougoise urban----" for a debate in history to make things understandable.

[bajabenca]

Powerful. I love her.

[TENNSUMITSUMA]

1:34 love how she says it

[imevannnn]

i love replaying that part

[sinbadthesailor87]

The books of which Tsai speaks are elementary school level mini textbooks. Almost any ABC whose parents sent them to Saturday Chinese school would recognize them in an instant. Though I dont totally agree with her jump from these texts to Maos little red book, I think Tsai is on to something here. I personally dont think that her message is for or against change, but is rather a cautionary note reminding us that with change comes hardship and in her own words, Weve got to be ready.

[sinbadthesailor87]

Tell that to the families who suffered through the Great Leap Forward, a time in which btwn 14-43 million people died. Nowadays I see classmates decorate their dorm rooms with recreations to Delacroix posters proclaiming, "Vive la Révolution!" and comm. prop. saying, "We will be Chairman Mao's little red soldiers." Such enthusiasm for relics of days gone by is understandable for I, too, share in their interest. But we have to remember that for better or worse, great change comes at a great cost

[ShardedFire]

yea but life sure as hell wasnt great before mao

[bowenbcp]

was it worth the 43 million that died?

[ShardedFire]

for order in the chaos of the corrupted officials in china and the chaos that is the split nation?

hell yes it was worth it

peace doesnt come cheap my friend

[tehjefe]

and if you dont throw in your buck o five, who will?

[womanofmanyfaces]

experiencing change is different than reading about it. It's easy for one person to scream for revolution than to live through it. Most people who advocate change never really pay notice to how many deaths it cost. That's all she's saying. Don't get all Mao over here

[dannidandannikins]

ShardedFire: Your comment reveals your detestable nature and complete, wilful ignorance. You say the deaths of 43 million people is a price worth paying for the maoist revolution, because 'peace doesn't come cheap'. As though the end result of a communist revolution is peaceful rather than -as is largely the point of this poem -a totalitarian regime of thought control. If you were one of those 43million killed by mao, or the son/daughter of one of his victims, how would you feel then? Sicko.

[NiloticHeir]

terrific

[mercutio26]

if you knew the history of "the red book"...you would understand the poem better...the red book was created by the dictator mao,and many chinese had to study and read it...it damaged them greatly...

[TheGreenSphinx]

Thank you for droppin' knowledge w/o flogging the ignorant. That's teaching!

[zameena1234]

how cute !! they exchange mikes heheh !!

[metroidsax]

Good integration from the words of the story into her poetry. It's interesting how she took a child's story book, then applying the words to more serious matters, thus showing us how the context revealed the true nature of the words and even the different meaning that the same phrases had in each context. skillz

[crazyg00dkilla]

shes terrible..

[metroidsax]

What do you think was terrible?

[7dontyouknow7]

I like the quality of how her performance would read very well on paper. I like her spirit.

[smiflatrice]

WOW

this reminds me of a sarcastic childrens story

[Dormoy]

Awesome...

[whenshesawake]

awesome poem, but not so awesome accent. dang.

[tjello]

she has a really bad white accent on her chinese

[chirpwi]

you are awesome!

[chirpwi]

you're great!

[NYhope07]

i remember this

gotta love poetry

[inmemoryofk]

I think she is not really Chinese from mainland but from Taipei, Tsai is a common name in Taiwan

[ladyofire]

Beautifully said!

[leehan92]

wtf is she saying

[bobnos]

suprised no one actually "sunchi lai" lol.. stand up... i think she was expecting them to get their asses up and clap and not sit down lol...

woops lol.. maybe it went over their heads? lol..

[NYhope07]

Zan Chi Li

[bobnos]

thanks.. sorry i dont know the spelling but yeah... Zan Chi Li god dammit lol...

[NYhope07]

lol its fine I'm mixed with Chinese and I can never get that shit right xDD

[bobnos]

she doesnt really say what language it is? .. just says "chineese chool"

im guessing Cantonese?.. am i correct?

[NYhope07]

Cantonese I believe

[usilika]

it's actually mandarin. =] just to let you know.

[bobnos]

thanks

[McOath]

Good shit, definitly a nice thinking point. BeninSJ picked out my favourite line already.

[OctoBox]

what cup size requires a bra?

[Qugie]

A. However it's not for the Breast at that point it's for the Nipple. A Cup Breast are not Sexy but A Cup Breast with Big Dark Nipples are :)

Which is why a Bra is needed

[Alexvideoclip]

When I see all the guy's comments about women's breasts, I think mothers should breast-feed their sons for a bit longer time.

[OctoBox]

*Line starts Here*

[AveryAct1]

love her

[eheister2006]

Get a day job, this is boring

[BenInSJ]

"Did you know that communism is not theoretical for everyone?"

This line and the section it's in are really good, and it makes me wish the rest of the poem and her inflection were just as good. She makes a great point against pseudointellectual revolutionary-chic types with their Ché Guevarra T-shirts, but she kind of loses structure and ends it with a half-hearted attempt to encourage a similarly meaningless revolution.

[kaiser0soze]

Good stuff

[cheeseplease86]

Wow. I like how she did the "delete" , "insert" thing. In the end, it's nice how she just wants people to stand up and make a change. :) Awesome. :)

[BuddhaBLADE]

amazing

[ELCaNGRi773]

i use to date a girl like this.. i told her it was over and dont call me no more.. she said "is it over kuz u want it to be over, or it is kuz the man wants to spilt us apart" i said.. "its kuz u crazy bitch!"

[torontonemesis]

lol I would love to date a girl like this. Normal people are boring!

[forgottonusername]

She's smart... you just don't understand the content. Smart is sexy.

[Sintaisong]

oh shit thats funny shit haha!

[lostintravise]

Maybe it was "over" because you type like a -- implicitly stating that you are a -- buffoon.

[siajilish]

You've got to admit she's got a good voice for narration.

I love the finish. Love Kelly! :-D

[rantingloser]

the true point of her poem are the last verses.

i mean, you could argue that shes concentrating on the communist practice in china, but the central idea, is that peace AND revolution is impossible. the ones who ask for it must understand that the change it brings is hard, but that the best they can do if they long for freedom, is be ready to "stand up" [the last words of her poem].

if you know your history, even vaguely, the poem makes sense.

real talk man.

[salamanjack]

what the hell is she talking about?

[ByAnyOtherName86]

Chinas dictator MAO wrote a book (little red book) that book became the curriculum that was taught in China for many years and it really hurt their education! Mao died in 1963 and China has been trying to do damage control (and it's working!!!!!) look it up it's really interesting!

[ByAnyOtherName86]

oops. it's 1976

[pri32us]

dumbshit.

[MasterGiffica25]

the woman's said what she has to say, not a bad poem by the way, so stop your your bickering. her opinions are hers and your opinions are yours. just enjoy the damn poem!

[tookool4school]

that was great

[squisheefishee]

yes, but ktsai also has it second hand. she's not a direct source either... so that doesn't stand up for her.

[KyamTroung]

overall we all think we know; with our opinions, books read, museums seen and other second hand info. but thats just it! we dont have to go to sleep at night and live with the memories constantly being replayed in our minds.

its just secondhand.

[squisheefishee]

this would be so much better if you

a) knew a bit more about the cultural revolution

b) actually experienced some of what you talk about, which you obviously haven't

c) gave a shit, which i cant tell.

zen qilai, zenqilai.

[KyamTroung]

you shudn't assume she doesn't know how it was. its not like you were there.

[squisheefishee]

i guess how i meant was that she could have added more passion. it felt a bit hollow, but im not going to argue this.

[KyamTroung]

ah i see. well i supoose you need to kno the mindset more. i mean the whole "being utterly controlled" idea.

wow! so quit to tap out? that sucks.

[squisheefishee]

oh please, i actually live in china and go to a chinese high school and have spent years studying what went on during this period in utter detail from both the chinese perspective and a foreign perspective, and know what the entire 'being utterly controlled' idea is like. which, as of right now, isnt that oppressive her right now. obviously your biased foreign opinion is too blinded by the media to see what is actually going on. but i dont get off on forum fights, so find something else to do.

[KyamTroung]

haha didn't think yuo could let that go. actually lady i have a job. and dont assume u kno my opinion is foreign. besides its just an opinion no different from yours. the fact of the matter then was that times were shitty and the people were looking for someone to chnage that, no matte who that was. no matter where your from people aren't that different. its human nature you have to understand. to see beyond just was happend there. but what happens everywhere.

[squisheefishee]

oh please, are you serious? i live in beijing with a chinese family [for the past year] and go to a chinese highschool where i've been studying with chinese teachers the cultural revolution, both the foreign perspective and acutal chinese perspective. your foreign-biased opinions on being 'utterly controlled' are ridiculous and misplaced, you should try to figure out wtf you're talking about.

not that i'm going to have a fight with some twelve year old who gets off on forum chats. dont attack me

[01keeper01]

WOW! Unfortunately some people have taken this thread as their own personal battleground. Beautiful performance. Just started watching your vids and must admit that I'm quickly becoming a fan. All in 15 minutes.

[eunibrows]

if think this poem could've been a lot more powerful if her chinese was better and on the right tones xP

nevertheless, great poem.

[y0nNeTte]

goosebumps...that was great i'm too tired to go into why i loved it it just hit a chord within me... love the parallels between chinese as if each phrase werre a chapter

[diversetanjent]

stand Up!. . . amazing artist

[datewithdivinity]

"Change hurts, living it is hard. We've got to be ready, if we decide to."

[mangarda]

I thought it was "...if we decide to (stand up)."

[aqueen2]

This is just one perspective on Chinese revolution, but for many people they long for that kind of change in the world. Obviously there were flaws in the Chinese Revolution, as there were in Athenian democracy, but I think in time people will see how best to synthesize the findings of the communist movement and bring forward a truly liberating movement for the people

[asylani]

I wrote a paper on Mao... he did some terrible things to the asian people. Its sad that americans dont know much about him. I think we should learn more about tyrannts as methods of prevention for future generations.

[thatonecoolkiddo]

Tsun chi lai.

So true.

We need to stand up.

We need to be ready

[Zimah1]

SUPER DOPE!

[dmarc]

Real talk... Good stuff even if you don't understand Chinese, but it hits closer to the heart if you do.

[ThisIsMyPassion]

That was pure genius. Truly a brilliant and moving piece.

[Dementedhamster6]

I love all of your poems! I hope to see your shows live soon since im headed to NY.

[Sean537]

Listening to her poetry and interviews has encouraged me to continue writing and to question those people,places, values, and practices that go against what I feel inside. I am inspired by her courage! I will write, read and continue to speak out... Continue Kelly Tsai... Peace ...One Love... and Big Up to Brooklyn ...Sean

[streetlights09]

truth man

[7Mystery]

!!!TSUN CHI LAI!!!

[maakheru001]

!!!TSUN CHI LAI!!!

[phoenix781]

uhh.... dont get 1 thing

[quitejaded]

She's saying that Communism is bad, but people act like they are revolutionists and bash people like Bush and celebrities instead of real evils.

[BSG123]

You don't think Bush is a "real evil"?

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

[quitejaded]

Right... Bush, a man about to leave office and almost being forced to pull out of his war, is a bigger evil than the evils in Darfur. You're so right. What was I thinking?

[BSG123]

I never said he was a "bigger" evil than anything, and I never even mentioned Darfur so please learn to read closely. Bush and those close to him are responsible for the senseless killings of millions of people. How can you not call that a "real evil"? That man is evil incarnate, and nothing you say will make me think otherwise.

[BSG123]

And you said the words, not me. "HIS WAR", not our war, not Americas war. HIS.

[quitejaded]

There are a lot of "evil incarnates" in leaders and ordinary people.

I just agree with this writer when she implies that there are unspoken evils in the world that do not get the attention they deserve because people are caught up with Bush or whoever they want to bash today.

Yeah, I know this is not america's war. We haven't had an "America's war" for a long time. I'm not phased.

[BSG123]

If the poem is about Communism than how is that an unspoken evil? It's not like people don't know it exists! lol and I know a lot of people and leaders are evil incarnate, and Bush is one of them. He has more sway over peoples lives than the creepy guy next door you must admit.

[quitejaded]

Yes, people know about it from what their teachers told them in history class about the Red Scare. Who thinks about how things work now in our own times? There are a lot of unspoken evils that are current but not popularized. Bashing bush or whoever is popularized. And so other things are not given attention.

[BSG123]

Well seeing as Bush is the leader of or friggin COUNTRY of course he's an easy target to critisize! If I was living in a Communist nation then I would be bashing that leader too. But we are not the world's babysitter, you have a problem you should fix it your damn self unless you are unable to I say. You will not change my mind on this matter. Besides, there are people in Communist nations who see Communism as being fair, not unjust. It's all opinion.

[quitejaded]

Ironically, bashing Bush hasn't solved any problems, has it?

I'm just saying I agree with the writer in that people only bash what is popularized and ignore worse matters.

[BSG123]

But that's where you're wrong. It's your opinion that Bush isn't a worthy problem. Ask the people who have lost loved ones and they'll likely say he's the devil on earth. It's all perception. And Democrats took over most of the places in the House and Congress because so many are fed up with Bush. He has the lowest approval ratings of any President ever. Next year we going to have a Democrat in the White House.

You must be a Republican.

[Crimson250]

daaam

im left speechless

[4citi]

Kool

[iworkuen]

somebody needs to take her bourgie urban ass out to the fields to see what kind of hunger leads to the gun

and yes, the "indoctrinated" do look like me. And to tell you the truth, i have nothing to lose, but a world to win.

[Kztsai]

mother's side from shanghai and fled to taiwan. father's side from tainan taiwan.

[jlnWind]

great speech kztsai

really interesting ideas made, specially on the

concept of change

[msmmsm30]

I think she is Taiwanese (her roots are not under Mao, unless her parents fled to Taiwan). However, she is correct that Communism under Mao resulted in the problems she highlighted, and others.

[idunnoheehee]

wow the this chick knows her roots..impressive

[qpropaganda]

hiya...

[Taharca]

ta shi hen hao!!!

[kikila50]

she's dope!!!

[mstarfriend]

Thank You for uploading more, its greatly appreciated!!! Thanks