SHANE KOYCZAN IN CONCERT:
Award-winning Canadian poet Shane Koyczan brings electric energy and razor-sharp wit to spare every time he steps on stage, completely captivating each audience member with his unique world view. At his live shows Koyczan uses his rhythmic cadence and impressive word play to reveal a startling amount of honesty and vulnerability, captivating audiences with his unique slam poetry aesthetic. He easily flows into the rhythms of hip hop, getting ticket buyers bobbing their heads while he unfolds an increasingly literate frame of mind. Fans of music, comedy, and poetic thinking won't want to miss this wordsmith on tour.
BACKGROUND SNAPSHOT:
Originally from the Northwest Territories of Canada, Shane Koyczan's early poetry was informed by such traumatic events as being abandoned by his parents and bullied by his schoolmates. In 2000 he became the first Canadian to win the National Poetry Slam’s Individual Championship. This recognition allowed him to publish two books of poetry entitled Visiting Hours and Our Deathbeds will be Thirsty, as well as a novel in verse titled Stickboy. Koyczan experienced a mainstream breakthrough when he turned his poem “To This Day” into an animated video that received 1.4 million views in its first two days on YouTube, thanks to support from anti-bullying movements. The impact of the poem was so profound that Koyczan was eventually selected to read the poem and show the animation at a TED Conference.