DETROIT \u2013 The theme was \u201cBlack excellence, all the time\u201d at the Lewis College of Business on Thursday as the Pistons held their 21st annual Poetry Scholarship Competition.<\/p>\n
It featured the best young poets and artists from across the city of Detroit, competing for a $20,000 scholarship to the school of their choice. The event is the brainchild of Pistons legend Rick Mahorn.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen we started this, something in my mind said we got to celebrate Black History Month in some way, somehow,\u201d Mahorn said on Thursday. \u201cNow it\u2019s an annual event, and to see young people get a chance and an opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n
The 1989 NBA champion and legendary \u201cBad Boy,\u201d first pitched the idea back in 2005 to former owner, the late Bill Davidson.<\/p>\n
It has become a yearly event that has grown exponentially since current owner Tom Gores moved the team back to Downtown Detroit in 2017.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re in Detroit,\u201d Mahorn said. \u201cYou know, we were in Auburn Hills. We were in Pontiac, but we\u2019re in Detroit and one thing about being in the city, it gives you a new vibe.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s all about giving back to the community,\u201d Mahorn said. \u201cI don\u2019t care how much basketball I played, that doesn\u2019t mean anything, because you still have to live life.\u201d<\/p>\n
The competition featured 10 artists and 10 poets from various Detroit high schools.<\/p>\n
The scholarship fund is named in honor of Earl Lloyd, the NBA\u2019s first black player, who played nine years in the league from 1950-1960, including playing his final two NBA seasons in Detroit.<\/p>\n
He also served as the Pistons\u2019 first black head coach, having coached 77 games in 1971 and 1972.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had a chance to meet him,\u201d Mahorn said. \u201cI keep in touch with his son. I went to Hampton and my college coach\u2019s dad played with Earl Lloyd.\u201d<\/p>\n
The young artists\u2019 pictures were on display while the poets competed in a poetry slam. Each had two minutes perform their best poem for the crowd, with the theme being \u201cBlack Excellence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMy sister was actually the runner-up in 2024,\u201d Kady Robinson, a senior at Detroit Marygrove High School, said. \u201cI use my platform to uplift Black brilliance and beauty.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robinson, 17, was the winner of the poetry slam and the $20,000 prize after an electrifying performance. She wore a patch that represented both of her equally talented sisters.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a big part of my family growing up,\u201d she said. \u201cMy parents really instilled Black excellence in us, specifically how we need to help Black people and uplift them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Robinson headed to the University of Michigan, and she says she eventually wants to start her own media company. The winning artist was Marygrove\u2019s Cherokee Barrow.<\/p>\n
Two other poets — Renaissance High School\u2019s Meadeux Williams and Davis Aerospace\u2019s Leonard Shirley — finished second and third, respectively, and each received scholarships.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor me, it\u2019s like coming out of my shell and getting to be alive,\u201d Shirley, 17, said. \u201cI was always suppressing my voice because I didn\u2019t like how I sounded when I was younger.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI really don\u2019t think I\u2019m that good at poetry,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause of a couple of people and a couple of (school) advisors, is why I\u2019m able to be here.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the teens clearly took their poetry and art seriously, they spent most of the time hanging out with each other and left with new friendships because many of them will be attending the same colleges this fall.<\/p>\n
\u201cI really made, like, a lot of friends today, and I am, like, so happy that I\u2019ve been able to connect with those people, because it really wasn\u2019t a competition,\u201d Robinson said. \u201cAt the end of the day, we were all a community at the same time.\u201d<\/p>\n
As for the original \u201cBad Boy,\u201d he could do nothing but marvel at how creative these kids were and says the future is in better hands than people think.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt gives you goose bumps,\u201d Mahorn said. \u201cBut they bring you to now, and they make you really enjoy it, because they\u2019ve learned, and they learn to express themselves, and that\u2019s the biggest thing.\u201d<\/p>\n
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