The Pursuit of Happiness is a team piece about addiction performed by the poets of Writers Never Die from Simeon Career Academy: sophomore Deandre Scott, 16, senior Taliah Thomas, 18, freshman Mariah Starks, 15, and junior Ruthie Eldridge, 16. This was the second year in the competition for Deandre, Ruthie and Taliah, and the first year for Mariah.

The largest of its kind in the world, Louder Than A Bomb (LTAB) is Chicago’s rapidly-growing teen poetry festival, taking place February 16 - March 9, 2013, at various venues around Chicago. Aiming to bring teens together across racial, gang, and socio-economic lines, LTAB is a friendly competition that emphasizes self-expression and community via poetry, oral story-telling, and hip-hop spoken word.

Click here to hear all the other 2013 recordings, alongside over 200 Louder Than a Bomb Finalist pieces recorded by Chicago Public Media (WBEZ-Chicago) over the past nine years.