A microphone always helps get your message to the masses. But in the right hands, a microphone sends a personal and passionate message about life, society and struggle — a message that, while expressed fine in writing, truly comes alive in vocal performance. And in Ann Arbor, the right hands grasp the mic at U-club's bi-weekly performances.

During the open mic portion of the Oct. 7 show, a young man took the stage, ukulele in hand, and proceeded to play part of the song “5 Years Time” by the band Noah and the Whale. Another delivered a poem about perseverance. One more read a poem praising her roommate.

Anyone can take the stage during the open mic segment of the show. They can read whatever they want — something they’ve been working on for months or something they completed in five minutes. The pieces don’t necessarily have to be poetry, and often they're not.

The poets who competed in the poetry slam following the open mic employed several different delivery styles: Some spoke rapidly and passionately, while others favored a somber tone. Five judges — volunteers from the audience — were provided with white boards to rank the performers on a scale of one to 10.

One competitor solemnly performed a poem about rape. Another shared a poem about being high, which he performed animatedly, walking around the stage, throwing out hand gestures and fluctuating the volume of his voice. The winner of the slam presented a clever poem about the race and class dynamics of being robbed as a white man in Detroit, which he speedily yet emphatically performed.

After each slam ends, the featured poet takes the stage and presents the audience with a sampling of his or her work.

Oct. 7's featured poet goes by the stage name Versiz, though his real name is Jamaal May. He gave a powerful performance, putting a creative, poetic spin on tough topics like war. Still, harsher themes can be performed alongside optimism.

“A lot of times I try to perform encouraging poems,” May said. “You know, poems about possibilities. They are to some extent optimistic but not in a hokey false way.”

One of May’s chief goals is to "bring poetry to the people." A published poet, May has been asked to perform at locations like Notre Dame, Indiana University and, of course, at U-club.

While the Oct. 7 U-club featured vastly different performers, one theme pervaded all of their of work: self-expression. It was clear most of the performers wrote about personal experiences or greater societal ideas that sparked their passions. U-club simply provided the venue.

“It’s a really laid back atmosphere in which anyone can participate,” said LSA junior Angela Crumdy, U-club’s vice president. “And it’s just a good place if you want to grow as a poet.”

Crumdy talked about some of the other events the organization makes happen. In early February, for example, U-club holds the “Penis Monologues” — a show consisting of penis-themed group pieces and monologues performed by men. And the club has started a slam in conjunction with the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity for Black History Month.

At the end of every slam season, U-club also hosts a Grand Slam, in which all the winners of the bi-weekly slams participate. The top five scorers comprise the University of Michigan team that will be sent to the College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational, colloquially known as College Nationals. This year CUPSI will be held in Ann Arbor; last year’s location was Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts.

Amariah Stepter is U-club’s president.