The Lagos Poetry International Poetry Festival has launched its annual poetry slam competition for #LipFest2021. Think you stand a chance? One lucky winner will go home with a whooping 1 million Naira. The competition is open to poets between the ages of 18 and 35 to perform at the festival’s command performance event on the 23rd of October at Terra Kulture, Lagos.

The Lagos International Poetry Festival is the largest poetry-centered gathering of performers and creative professionals in Nigeria. The 2021 edition will be a hybrid of both virtual and in-person events and will run from October 21 through 24.

Read the entry guidelines carefully below:

1. Submit a one-minute video of a poem on the theme Ancestral Imaginings to [email protected]. Videos must be less than 100mb.

2. Poems must be original to the poet and previously unpublished.

3. Videos must be clear and recorded without props or background music.

4. Poems can be in English or any other Nigerian/African language.

5. Poems may not contain excessive violence, explicit language and/or degrading language in reference to any group of people and persons.

6. Submitting poets must be between 18 and 35 years of age.

7. Stand a chance to qualify as one of two wild card entries by uploading your poem on any social media of your choice – Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or TikTok –

with the hashtags #LIPFest2021Slam and #AncestralImagnings, tagging @lagospoetryfestival.

8. Two entries with the highest number of likes/engagement will qualify as wild cards.

9. Only one submission allowed. Poets who make more than one entry will be automatically disqualified.

10. Poems will be judged by a carefully selected team of judges.

11. Entries should contain the poet’s full name, age and social media handles in the body of the submission.

12. Entries close on the 10th of October 2021.

13. Ten shortlisted by poets will be announced on the 19th of October 2021.

14. Shortlisted poets will compete live for N1M on the 22nd of October 2021 at #LIPFest2021. LIPFest 2021’s inaugural slam competition emphasizes the role of young people in dreaming and building a future that answers the anxieties of today.

For more details, visit the festival’s website here.