Jason Reynolds, Samira Ahmed, L. D. Lewis, Ray Stoeve, Laura Silverman, Sofia Quintero, Keah Brown, Darcie Little Badger, Yamile Saied Méndez, Bethany C. Morrow The song ‘Home’ is inspired by someone very close to me and I wrote this song to show how home doesn’t necessarily need to be a physical place, home can be a person and therefore home can be wherever you are with that person. What has been the best part of the Take the Mic experience so far? I’m not very good at understanding poems and that was the case here. It was very short and I didn’t know what the author was trying to say. But I will leave it unrated because it’s just not my thing and not a fault of the poem itself. I think people should vote for me because I don’t only write original and authentic songs, but I am passionate about music and passionate about the art that surrounds every type of song. I think I can bring something new and different to New Zealand’s music industry and write songs that are both relatable and filled with emotion. I’d love to have a platform to release my music and follow my dreams of becoming a singer/songwriter. What’s your ultimate music goal?

Central themes emerge in this collection of short stories by a diverse and representative group of authors: courage, bravery, and a refusal to be silenced.

To use voice typing, you'll need to be connected to the internet, have a working microphone, and have your cursor in a text box. Includes competition entry, personal written critique from two professional industry judges, professional video recording and photography of each performance. Take the mic has several short stories about people’s lives. This book features short stories, poems, and sometimes art. Some are about saving people others are about racism and prejudice.

Neutrality helps the oppressor, never the victim. Silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented." The story of a young indigenous girl, this is about her standing up for herself and not allowing anyone to disrespect her. It may feel like a very small thing but I thought what Grace does is very powerful and I loved it. There is also the underlying theme of wanting to find the one place you can call home and what it would actually feel like to have one. Very very moving. I was always drawn to music as it was a way that I could express myself and put my feelings and emotions into words when I struggled to make sense of them. I also have always loved the way music allows you to be creative and free in your crafting and creative process, whichI love. These things have always drawn me towards music and kept me going in my songwriting and performing. Who’s your biggest musical inspiration? The stories and poems featured in Take the Mic are each thought-provoking, emotional, hopeful and at times heartbreaking in their own rights. Everything in Take the Mic reflects the world we live in and it is definitely an engaging, beautifully written collection for all ages. It should be at the top of everyone's TBR list, because it will certainly strikes a chord in its readers.Video Audition: The Take the Mic team will review all video auditions and select Contestants for the live performances. Entry to the competition is not guaranteed on application. Favorites were by Dr. Darcie Little Badger ("Grace" and "Homecoming," which bookended the... well... book), Yamile Saied Méndez ("Aurora Rising"), Laura Silverman ("Ruth"), and Ray Stove ("Parker Outside the Box"). As You were by Bethany Morrow- a band girl leaves practice with her crush in her car. She (Ebony) gets pulled over by a policeman is so scared. She lies face down for a search and sets her pants. When she gets up it’s a prom posal. All the band members are there and excited- only they don’t understand how humiliating that situation was. She denies the proposal despite her previous crush on Josiah. (White boy) A somewhat-recovering expat living in the American Northeast (with one foot still firmly planted in Quebec), Bethany C Morrow writes speculative fiction for both the adult and the young adult market.

This brings the first story in the collection a full circle with Grace finding a home, finally feeling connected to her indigenous land and also shutting down any debate about her heritage in the process. I thought the scene where her mom tells her that the best way of being part of the resistance is to love yourself, was simple but very meaningful. A great and powerful way to end the book. The Judges’ decision is final, and audience voting will not disrupt the fair nature of the scoring. Fighting the Blues - 1 star - I have no idea why this was in here. It was a short comic that was basically a motivational poster. Very sweet message, but not executed well. The Grand Final: Top placing Contestants from previous rounds will battle it out to see who will take home the Grand Prize. This might just be a small comic strip but it’s message is very universal - a lot of things that happen around you can bring you down but it’s important to remember that you are not alone and you shouldn’t give up. And the art really captured that essence of despair.The trans mentor had to get a certain amount of community service hours before she could graduate. She applied to be a trans mentor since she is trans herself and understand what its like. She was a mentor to a young trans boy. She played games with him and most importantly the boy caught her how to skate. Ruth - 3 stars - I am obviously a massive book lover, and I regularly access lists for specific book tastes. This story was important as a stand up for your self and your beliefs. But i didn't feel overly connected to Ruth. I believed in her cause, but I didn't learn much about her as a character. The song I chose to take the mic is a song from High School Musical The Musical the Series. I wanted to sing this song because it was related to what I was going through at the start of this year! Even though this was not my own song, I got the chance to add my own spin to it with the assistance of the Take the Mic Musical Director. This song asks the question of whether the decision you made was the right one, and what life would have been like if you made a different decision. The song resonated with me because there were so many different choices I had to make after high school, and I thought a lot about how different my life could be depending on how I chose. What has been the best part of the Take the Mic experience so far? As the world around us gets increasingly divided and marginalized people have to fight for their rights even harder every day, this is a very powerful collection of poems and stories about young people who are also fighting to get their voices heard. There are a lot of important themes and messages discussed in this book but the one thing I found very relevant and impactful was that protesting physically at a march or a rally isn’t the only form of resistance, and everyone should try to do whatever they can in their sphere of influence; but sometimes, it’s okay to take a break when you are exhausted and spend some time on self care without feeling guilty that you aren’t doing enough. Every form of resistance counts.