Indoor Street Art

Ibis Style Hotel

Bercy, Paris

The fun began at the front desk

where the art behind the happy trio

played off the 2 female singers

and the two male musicians,

— drummer and guitarist.

A street art theme on every floor.

Real HipHop shouts in red–

folded arms sound a thread

of anger: that’s his pose.

Headphones on, Mr. Kool

channels beats, purple flows

of riffs. He hides his woes.

Pursed lips near flute unspool

notes behind closed eyes.

Gold cascades, scarlet highs.

Cap’n Strut kicks his heel,

plucks, and crouches low.

Blacks and orange glow.

Summoning the red feel

inside his head, he writes

lyrics, kills critics’ slights,

sidesteps love’s time-worn tread

to find the range she’ll sing:

the blues and reds are wed.