New York City Poems | Examples

Vocalize New York City Park

Eyes didn't organize
The tent drop
Code violation 
Ten days an hour, so what week
Use on the monthly?
We not gonna speak
Lost voices in bravado money, can't reach
Such is that meaning why?
Answer four times a second
Birth control that

Building code violation 
All over California 
Hop
Y'all crawled hip?
Pay my rent

New York City Jungle

Aisha was fierce and sensuous
and belonged on Broadway
she knew what she wanted
and was bound to get her way



AP: Honorable Mention 2025

In a New York City minute

another weekday
she awakens
to the sunrise aroma of
preset coffee brewing

her eyes still closed
she thinks about her day
and slowly starts to form
thoughts in her head

so much to do
so little time
a jolt of java
revs up the engine

give her a minute
she'll come to life
another sip
and there it is

it's all systems go!



AP: 1st place 2025

Poems About New York City

Concrete Jungle Dreams
midst the towering giants,

The silver and glass behemoths,
I walk, a speck of dust
In the grand scheme of life.
Their shadows cast upon me,
As I tread the well-worn paths,
Stepping over the cracks in the pavement,
My breath misting in the frigid air.
The City that never sleeps,
Her beating heart in sync with mine,
Each pulse a reminder of the dreams,
The aspirations that lie within.
A cacophony of sounds and sights,
The blaring horns, the flashing lights,
A tapestry of chaos and order,
Woven together in perfect harmony.
I pause for a moment, a brief respite,
Inhaling the essence of the concrete jungle,
And as I exhale, I see,
The dreams and possibilities are woven into the very fabric of New York.

New York City Rats

Rotting eggs, fish, moldy pasta, and meat
Mixed with the odor of damp rodent fur.
The garbage in bags is lining the street.
New York  is a city beyond compare.

The food that's thrown feeds a population,
Not for people, but for rats everywhere.
Well-fed and moving are these three million
Who run down sidewalks without any care.

The mayor has found a good solution-
Locked trash cans that keep the rodents from play.
When hunger pangs start in great profusion, 
I want to make sure I am far away.

Big Apple

I grew tired of those Montana mountains
was ready to give up that life for good
So I packed up my kit and kaboodle
and headed off to a new neighborhood

They loaded me onto this cattle car
went flying faster’n poop through a goose.
Then we skidded down in New York City
the place that is famous for their big fruit

That place was supposed to be all fast paced
I could hardly wait to see all the sights
But after three hours in the taxi
hadn’t found the place I was staying the night

As I was riding in that yellow car
the man said unemployment was real high
I was pretty sure he was joshen’ me
there‘s ‘help wanted’ at each place we went by

If there’s one thing I learned about that trip
if I should again get the itch to roam
I’ll just tuck my money into my mattress
cause it’s best to just keep my butt at home

5th Avenue Sunrise

jampacked city streets
that jangled and banged
in the raucous jarring day
shifted
from business to boogaloo
squeezing into moonlight
party lights
gin and lime-kissed
gimlet sequined dress
strutted
in studded six-inch heels
riveting flair
provoking jive and jazzy nights
to tame this lion of New York

The bed swallowed the evening
sucked-up in slumbered
sobering snooze
exhaling the drunkard’s stench
while the warmth of whiskey
and you next to me
laid dreamy still

popped up and propped up
restless and ragged
realizing the changing view
through the dirt-stained window
a pool of placid sunrise
igniting
colorless clustered towers
bulwarks and girders
scraping the sky

out of the easterly clouds
a creeping golden palette
arose
touching every crevice
defining each silhouette
your body stirs deliberate and slow

rainbow hued eyes
slenderly slitted catching
the new-found light
opening, tenderly revealing
the landscape of your smile
disclosing
a cozy contentment

waking with hello
as I fall into your dream
and a new day

Stranger In Egoli

"Stranger in Egoli"

Not right to feel lost in a city of vices, they judge you therefore you are a victim.

She creams for her purse ,
He screams  for his jacket,
Bloody panties on the sidewalk,
Last month the hood rats engulfed him!

I cannot understand what they say though we speak the same language!

My eyes do not sparkle like theirs.

l am a dog in a den....

Central Park South

Someones Grandma on a bench
I passed her everyday
Sharing the crumbs she begged for
With every passing stray
Once I heard her mumble
'Someone killed my Kitty'
I don't want to get lost in
New York City

All of the things she used to love
Were written on her face
Laughter and song were everything
Another time and place
A place where in her dreams
She still was pretty
I don't want to get lost in
New York City

Grandma wasn't on her bench
When I passed by today
Her shopping cart of dreams was there
But she had slipped away
And I cried because I knew
She found her kitty
I don't want to get lost in
New York City

Tar Beaches

searing summer sun
tarpaper rooftop beaches
city sunbathing

Autumn Evening In New York City

Cool breezes 
   surround the city 
As they walk together 
   in the autumn air 
 Streetlamps cast an eerie 
     glow onto the pavement 
as autos rush by 
   as shadows lengthen 
in the asphalt homeland
        Autumn evening in 
New York City 
  Apartment buildings filled
with city dwellers 
  challenge the sky 
The couple walk a dark street
    Together they move like panthers 
in the night 
They hold each others hand
  And move into 
whatever fate has in 
    store for them 
   On this cool autumn evening

Beautiful Day In New York City

Sun beats down 
But the air is fairly cool in NYC
People put our city down 
But it is actually the epicenter of the world 
I could use more cash 
I no longet smoke "hash"
But I am ready for joy 
And hopefully I wil find it in New York City 
my home!!!

New York City Resident

I met the rudest librarian.
"I'd like a library card, "I said to him.
"You have to prove, "he said annoyed, "that you're a New York City resident."
I said, "No problem,"
then I stabbed him.

Taxi Cab Driver

T   Tips are adding up fast
A   And you can see the meter rolling hard
X   'Xasperating to watch your hard earn money being spent
I    It might be better to not see how many accidents you have almost had

C   Cabbie drives wrecklessly, through two inch spaces,
A   Afraid for your life, you clutch the door, and the seat ahead of you
B   But you are not there yet, and you are in New York City

D   Deliberate attempts to kill you have not been successful yet
R   Racing heart, you dare not look away, from your final destination
I    In the throes of scary, you are terrified you are going to be smashed up
V   Vigorous driving, fast paced, then slamming on the brakes, wham. Whip.
E    Enthusiastic smiles from the man who has your life in his hands.
R    Relieved you have arrived in one piece, deciding never again.

Ode To New York City

Oh, pretty city you shine so bright,
Your wonderful lights are quite the site. 
Your streets overflow with fascinating faces,
And they all move so fast like they are in races.

Oh, pretty city your tall buildings stand,
You make me feel like an ant in this big wonderful land.
Your big park filled with the most beautiful greens,
I’d never want to leave here by any means.

Oh, pretty city and to think youre even more beautiful at night,
Walking through the streets is like a dream underneath the moonlight.
And though some people may find you overcrowded or gritty,
I do love you, New York City.

• Short New York City Poems
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