With a season total of 93 individual placements, including 14 third places, 15 second places and 17 first places, the Columbia Heights speech team recently ended its most successful season yet!
On April 26, Ray Muhm (11), Hanan Mohamoud (10), Daphney Kleinschmit (11) and Taymoi Epps (12) traveled to the State Tournament in Shakopee to compete. To qualify for this elite competition, these competitors had to place third or above at the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) Section 4AA sections competition. Beloved senior captain and talented public speaker Taymoi Epps took home the first-place trophy for his category of poetry—a first-ever achievement for CHHS!
A rousing and emotional piece on the complexities of being a Black man in America inspired by everyone from spoken word artist Rudy Francisco to rapper Kendrick Lamar, Epps won over judges of all backgrounds with his ferocious wordplay and magnetic presence. His deeply personal resonance with the piece was also clearly a contributing factor in his monumental win.
The Heights Herald (HH) reached out to Epps to discuss this exciting experience.
HH: Would your past self have expected you to have joined speech, let alone place first at the state competition?
Epps: “Never. Sophomore and freshman year I was really into football and wrestling; I didn’t care about anything theater-related. I literally joined speech to get out of wrestling practice. [laughs] It’s like I was living a double life. Everyone knew the athlete, but I was secretly really nerdy. So of course I didn’t see myself being on a speech team, let alone going to state.”
HH: What was going to state like?
Epps: “It was honestly kind of crazy. It was like having an out-of-body experience. Having tons of people watching [my] round and being there to see [me] was super exciting.”
HH: Do you think speech has helped you put your true self out there?
Epps: “It’s definitely helped. It’s made me be able to step out of my comfort zone. Now I’m much more open to theater-related stuff. Like I said, I always thought I was going to play football, but speech really changed my mindset.”
HH: Why should others join the speech team?
Epps: “You should go just for you! You should do it just to improve yourself and your public speaking ability. There [are] so many categories and so many outlets for you to express yourself and for you to be you. You also get to meet other people and talk about something you’re passionate about. So do it!”
In addition to Epps’s much-deserved recognition, Kleinschmit placed 8th in her category—drama. Her monologue from the perspective of a mother who loses her children to a horrific act of domestic violence moved many onlookers close to tears with the actor’s quiet, simmering intensity. Muhm competed in Extemporaneous Reading and Mohamoud performed in the Creative Expression category, and while neither placed, their teammates who were there to support them had nothing but positive things to say about this very tough, very stacked competition.
The Columbia Heights speech team is full of talented speakers who would be thrilled to have even more like-minded performers join in on the fun. If you want to get involved with the team, or just learn more about what it takes to compete, talk to coach and CHHS English teacher Ms. Rachel Mann (available through email at [email protected] or in person in room 291) or coach and CHHS music teacher Mr. Nicholas Hollermann (available through email at [email protected] or in person in room 139) about competing next season.
