Upcoming events
#4: april gathering - RESILIENCE
Due to Covid19, our fourth gathering of Season 2: April Gathering will be online.
Registration will be required to ensure the safety and best possible experience for our guests and performers. This event will be recorded and will be closed captioned for accessibility.
Date: April 13, 2021
Time of Event: 7-9:00pm
What you require:
Computer, smart device or tablet with internet access and video/audio capabilities
Zoom app
Open mic:
We’re also accepting five (5) people for our open mic time slots! When you register for our event, simply check off if you want to be considered for our open mic.
For our open mics, we accept people from all backgrounds to share their writing, songs, poems or artistic work for two (2) minutes.
meet our guests:
JAYE SIMPSON
jaye is an Oji-Cree Saulteaux Indigiqueer from the Sapotaweyak Cree Nation. they are a writer, advocate and activist sharing their knowledge and lived experiences in the hope of creating utopia. jaye is published in several magazines including Poetry Is Dead, This Magazine, PRISM international, SAD Magazine: Green, GUTS Magazine, SubTerrain, Grain and Room. they are in two anthologies: Hustling Verse (2019) and Love After the End (2020). it was never going to be okay (Nightwood Ed.) is their first book of poetry, published October 2020. they are a displaced Indigenous person resisting, ruminating and residing on xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-waututh), and sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) First Nations territories, colonially known as Vancouver.
Twitter: @fka_jayesimpson
Instagram: @jaye_simpson
JACQUI DU TOIT
Jacqui is an award-winning, internationally celebrated storyteller from Kimberley, South Africa. She received the 2019 Prix Rideau Award for Outstanding Female Performance in Drowning Girls and an Outstanding Female Performance nomination for her role in Omnibus Bill. She created The Hottentot Venus - Untold, a monodrama nominated for best actress at the 2017 Rideau Awards and Capital Critics Awards. Jacqui has performed across Canada and the world. She serves on the Board of Directors of GCTC, Ottawa Storytellers and Tactic Indie Theatre festival. Jacqui is the founder and director of 8thGeneration Storytelling Company and the Co-owner and Creative Director of The Origin Arts and Community Centre in Ottawa.
Insta: jacqui.dutoit & 8thgenstory
Twitter: Generation8th
PAULA C.
Paula C is an Ottawa-born vocalist with a powerful sound that invites the listener to reflect on feelings of rejuvenation, healing, and love. Reggae, R&B, and her Jamaican-Dominican upbringing all influence her music, creating a sound that she calls “Neo-Soul With a Gospel Flow.” Paula C has performed at local cyphers and world-class stages. In 2020, she performed live at Bluesfest and The National Arts Centre, where she accompanied fellow musician NAMBI as part of The Rhythm. Her most recently released debut single, "Never Thought,” is an honest reflection of her views on self-love and what it means to transcend love beyond genders.
Instagram: @musicbypaulac
Thank you to the City of Ottawa Diversity In The Arts Fund for supporting this event.
#2: Celebrating black history month
Due to Covid19, our second gathering of Season 2: February celebrating Black History Month will be online.
Registration will be required to ensure the safety and best possible experience for our guests and performers. This event will be recorded.
Date: February 9, 2020
Time of Event: 7-9:00pm
What you require:
Computer, smart device or tablet with internet access and video/audio capabilities
Zoom app
Open mic:
We’re also accepting five (5) people for our open mic time slots! When you register for our event, simply check off if you want to be considered for our open mic.
For our open mics, we accept people from all backgrounds to share their writing, songs, poems or artistic work for two (2) minutes.
meet our guests:
JUSTIN “JAH’KOTA” HOLNESS
Justin “Jah’kota” Holness is a musical artist and owner/founder of TR1BE Music. He is a 2019 Indigenous Music Award Nominee for best rap hip hop album of the year for WOKE. His song WOKE also hit number one on the Indigenous Music Countdown for Aug 3-9, 2019. He made history as the first Native Hip-Hop Artist to drop a verse in the Senate 2016. He is passionate about sharing his experience with the next generations so they can learn how to navigate the music industry, overcome challenges, amplify their voices and share their stories! His company, TR1BE Music, began as a studio program to nurture the gifts and talents of young people who aspire to be artists and help them break into the music industry. It has now evolved into the first Afro-Indigenous owned, profit-sharing, music streaming platform to build Indigenomics and innovate the music industry to help increase market value for artists.
el jones
El Jones is a spoken word poet, educator, journalist, and a community activist living in African Nova Scotia. She was the fifth Poet Laureate of Halifax (2013 to 2015) and National Slam Champion at the Canadian Festival of the Spoken Word (2007 and 2008). In 2016, El was a recipient of the Burnley “Rocky” Jones human rights award for her community work and work in prison justice. She is a
co-founder of the Black Power Hour, a live radio show with incarcerated people on CKDU that creates space for people inside to share their creative work and discuss contemporary social and political issues. Along with this work, she supports women in Nova Institution in writing and sharing their voices. El served as the 15th Nancy’s Chair of Women’s Studies at Mount Saint Vincent University for the
2017-2019 term. Her book of spoken word poetry, Live from the Afrikan Resistance! was published by Roseway Press in 2014. El writes a weekly column for the Halifax Examiner, and was an Atlantic Journalism Award winner in 2018. El would like to pay tribute to the many nameless and unrecognized women whose work makes it possible for her to be here today.
TIYAHNA RIDLEY-PADMORE
Born in Montreal and currently living in Toronto, Tiyahna is a lifelong bookworm and the author of Trailblazers: The Black Pioneers Who Have Shaped Canada. She is an Equity and Inclusion Strategist who believes in the transformative power of inclusive representation and intersectional story-telling. Tiyahna has a Master's degree in Public Policy and is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.
For more information on Trailblazers or to follow Tiyahna:
@tiyahna_
info@blacktrailblazers.ca
https://www.blacktrailblazers.ca/
Merryl-Royce Ndema-Moussa
Merryl-Royce is a passionate, self-taught artist living in Ottawa and the illustrator of Trailblazers. As a new father, Merryl-Royce hopes to leverage his artistic skill set to foster a more equitable world for the next generation.
@theroyceproject
Thank you to the City of Ottawa Diversity In The Arts Fund for supporting this event.
S02: Gathering one
Our second season is upon us! Due to unforeseen circumstances, we are postponing our October event and rescheduling it for November. We apologize for any inconvenience, but we are looking forward to gathering with you!
Date: Tuesday, November 10, 2020
Time: 7-9PM EST
Location: Zoom
Cost: Suggested Donation $5
Registration for this event is closed. Please email inourtongues (at) gmail (dot) com to join us.
There will be no open mic, however we have a special presentation and community project in store.
You will be sent the Zoom link a few days before the actual event. We will not be streaming this event live.
Meet our Performers!
keith whiteduck
Keith Whiteduck is Anishinabe from Algonquin territory Kitigan Zibi (Quebec). Keith has studied music at both Cambrian College in Sudbury, ON (performance diploma) and Queen's University Kingston, ON (Bachelor of Arts-music). For Keith, school and studying classical music has really opened up a love of all genres/styles of music. Because of this he also writes all styles and performs variety when possible.
Keith participated in festivals such as Summer Solstice/Ottawa Bluesfest (Ottawa) and The Fringe Festival (Edinburg, Scotland). Keith has also composed/recorded original compositions and has recently received a grant from the Hynatyshyn Foundation in honour of his original music.
Keith has started to focus solely on his music career recently. The first album ‘Enter Keith Whiteduck’ was released in December 2019 with the help of ‘Weber Brothers Productions’ and James McKenty. It is available on iTunes/Spotify.
Keith’s website.
Jamaal Jackson Rogers
Jamaal Jackson Rogers; stage name JustJamaal ThePoet, is an award winning, internationally recognized independent artist, creative entrepreneur and arts educator. He is the recent outgoing Ottawa English Poet Laureate, a position that has not been occupied in the city of Ottawa for the past 30 years, and has been awarded the outstanding Artist Educator Award by the Ontario Arts Foundation. He has also received awards for his appearances on Canadian documentaries “4 Kids” and “In Their Words” by TVO and CBC respectively and was the first place recipient for best new poem at the Body Electric Poetry Film Festival for his cinepoem “Husniyah”. In 2016, he was a finalist in the Emerging Artist Award presented by RBC.
As an artist he is a poet/writer, spoken word practitioner, recording rap artist, and stage performer, recording and performing on numerous festival stages with his Hiphop group Missing LinX and new soul band, The WIze. He draws his inspiration from the conditions of society and human behaviour, and has been mentored by Hiphop's original pioneer and master poet, the late founder and leader of The Last Poets, Jalal 'Lightenin' Rod' Nurridin. Jamaal's his early years he has honed his talents that has allowed him in the past five years to bring his performances to audiences across Canada and internationally. His defining moments are when he makes intimate connections with his listeners during his live performance sets. As a creative entrepreneur he has quickly become known for his ability to take ideas and translate them into action, using art as a way to bring communities together for entertainment and education. He is the mind and management behind such endeavours as Make Spoken Word Go Viral and Fly Poets Society; organizations that support poets and songwriters in their craft and that engineer poetry and music related events in the capital city of Canada.
Other major creative projects under his name include the Writers Point Poetry Retreat, Urban Legends Poetry Slam, Nationless Nights Music Concert, The Algonquin College Poetry Show, the House of Paint OG500 Poetry Slam, and the National Youth Poetry Festival to name a few. As an arts educator he has worked with thousands of youth and young adults nationally and abroad, using unique methods to assist participants in finding their artistic voice. He has taught masterclass workshops in songwriting, performance and poetry and has been recognized by his peers for the creative activities that he uses in order for the learner to be actively engaged.
Jamaal is also considered a mentor and arts coach, working in correctional facilities and finding time to tutor in inclusive settings with artists to help them reach their goals within various artistic fields. Teaching, inspiring and leading is what Jamaal believes he does best, and with 20 years of working with youth, he finds his passion best exemplified as an arts educator. He resides in Ottawa, Canada, with his wife and six children, using the national capital region and his performance studio, THE ORIGIN ARTS & COMMUNITY CENTRE, as his launch pad to teach, mentor and advocate for the arts.
HANA SHAFI
Hana Shafi is a writer and artist who illustrates under the name Frizz Kid. Both her visual art and writing frequently explore themes such as feminism, body politics, racism, and pop culture. A graduate of Ryerson University’s Journalism Program, she has published articles in publications such as The Walrus, Hazlitt, This Magazine, Torontoist, Huffington Post, and has been featured on Buzzfeed India, Buzzfeed Canada, CBC, Flare Magazine, New York Times, and Shameless.
Known on Instagram for her weekly affirmation series, she is also the recipient of the Women Who Inspire Award, from the Canadian Council for Muslim Women.Her first book, It Begins With The Body was recently selected by CBC books as one of the best poetry books of 2018. Her second book, Small, Broke, and Kind of Dirty is forthcoming with Bookhug Press on September 22nd.
#7: June Gathering in Honour of National Indigenous History Month
Due to Covid19, our June gathering will be online.
Registration will be required to ensure the safety and best possible experience for our guests and performers. We’re also accepting five (5) people for our open mic time slots! When you register for our event, simply check off if you want to be considered for our open mic.
For our open mics, we accept people from all backgrounds to share their writing, songs, poems or artistic work for two (2) minutes. *OPEN MIC IS NOW FULL*
Date: June 9, 2020
Time of Event: 7-9:30pm
What you require:
Computer, smart device or tablet with internet access and video/audio capabilities
Zoom app
SPECIAL GUEST PRESENTATION BY:
DR. LYNN GEHL
Lynn Gehl is an Algonquin Anishinaabe-kwe from the Ottawa River Valley, although due to Canada’s need to clear the land of Indigenous Nations she was born and grew-up in Toronto. She studied chemical technology at college where, after 12 years of working in the environmental science field, she returned to school eventually gaining a Ph.D. in Indigenous Studies. Her undergraduate studies were in psychology and cultural anthropology, her Master’s thesis focused on the impact of identity denial where she developed “disenfranchised spirit, a model and a theory”. Her Doctoral dissertation focussed on the Ontario Algonquin land claim process where she developed “Debwewin Journey, an ancient model and theory” as her methodology, thus clearly producing Indigenous knowledge. This doctoral work offered an insider analysis of the ongoing genocide inherent in the land claims process. Today she places ancient Anishinaabeg knowledge at the core of what she learns, thinks about, and does. Lynn has a rare form of blindness which creates many judgements and barriers yet at the same time increases her ability to think critically.
While only learning how to read and write beyond the primary school level in her thirties, Lynn was successful in obtaining the Ontario Graduate Scholarship, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Scholarship. She completed her Ph.D. in 2010 and has since focussed on knowledge production, both in academic and community based venues. She has 4 books published, many academic journal publications, and well over 100 community publications in such places as Anishinabek News, Muskrat Magazine, rabble, Canadian Dimension, Huffington Post, Policy Options, and most recently Canada’s History Magazine. She blogs and has several video productions, and has participated in over 20 television and radio interviews, most recently with CBC’s The Current.
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Lynn Gehl est une Anishinaabe-kwe algonquine de la vallée de l'Outaouais, bien qu'elle soit née et ait grandi à Toronto en raison de la nécessité pour le Canada de défricher les terres des nations autochtones. Elle a étudié la technologie chimique au collège où, après avoir travaillé pendant 12 ans dans le domaine des sciences de l'environnement, elle est retournée à l'école pour obtenir un doctorat en études autochtones. Elle a fait des études de premier cycle en psychologie et en anthropologie culturelle, et sa thèse de maîtrise portait sur l'impact du déni d'identité, où elle a développé "un esprit privé de ses droits, un modèle et une théorie". Sa thèse de doctorat s'est concentrée sur le processus de revendication territoriale des Algonquins de l'Ontario, où elle a développé "Debwewin Journey, un modèle et une théorie anciens" comme méthodologie, produisant ainsi clairement un savoir autochtone. Ce travail de doctorat a offert une analyse de l'intérieur du génocide en cours inhérent au processus de revendication territoriale. Aujourd'hui, elle place le savoir anishinaabeg ancien au cœur de ce qu'elle apprend, pense et fait. Lynn est atteinte d'une forme rare de cécité qui crée de nombreux jugements et obstacles tout en augmentant sa capacité de réflexion critique.
Bien qu'elle n'ait appris à lire et à écrire qu'à partir de la trentaine, Lynn a réussi à obtenir la bourse d'études supérieures de l'Ontario et la bourse du Conseil de recherches en sciences humaines. Elle a obtenu son doctorat en 2010 et s'est depuis lors concentrée sur la production de connaissances, tant dans le cadre universitaire que communautaire. Elle a publié 4 livres, de nombreuses revues universitaires et plus de 100 publications communautaires dans des endroits tels que Anishinabek News, Muskrat Magazine, rabble, Canadian Dimension, Huffington Post, Policy Options et, plus récemment, Canada's History Magazine. Elle tient un blog et a réalisé plusieurs productions vidéo, et a participé à plus de 20 interviews à la télévision et à la radio, dont la plus récente avec l'émission The Current de la CBC.
JANELLE “ECOABORIJANELLE” PEWAPSCONIAS
Janelle “ecoaborijanelle” Pewapsconias (she/her) is a nehīyaw spoken word poet, social entrepreneur, founder of Neeched Up Games and Neechimoose Novelties, and grassroots activist from Little Pine First Nation, Treaty 6 Territory in Saskatchewan. She is part of the Saskatoon Indigenous Poets Society.
She is the 2017-18 Tonight It’s Poetry (TiP) Poetry Grand Champion, competing at 2018 Canadian Festival of Spoken Word and was a finalist at the 2019 Canadian Individual Poetry Slam in Vancouver. She has self-published her first chapbook, kikawiynaw askiy: Mother Earth, and is completing her second chapbook nipiy acimowina: #PoemsForMotherEarth.
As a reserve-based artist, she practices, organizes, and builds her spoken word art that continues the oral tradition and celebrates narratives of Indigenous survivance and strength. She believes in ahkamemowin (“ahh-gkaa-mey-moo-win” 5 syllables) – meaning having resilience and never giving up. Working to build community she brings the message: “your words matter, your words are alive, let us tell our stories with care”.
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Janelle "ecoaborijanelle" Pewapsconias (elle) est une poète de la parole nehīyaw, entrepreneure social, fondatrice de Neeched Up Games et Neechimoose Novelties, et militante de la Première nation de Little Pine, territoire du Traité 6 en Saskatchewan. Elle fait partie de la Saskatoon Indigenous Poets Society.
Elle est la grande championne du Tonight It's Poetry (TiP) 2017-18, qui participe au Festival canadien du spoken word 2018 et a été finaliste au Canadian Individual Poetry Slam 2019 à Vancouver. Elle a auto-publié son premier livre de chapitres, kikawiynaw askiy : Mother Earth, et termine son deuxième livre de chapitres nipiy acimowina : #PoemsForMotherEarth.
En tant qu'artiste basée dans une réserve, elle pratique, organise et construit son art de la parole qui perpétue la tradition orale et célèbre les récits des autochtones sur notre survie et notre force. Elle croit en ahkamemowin ("ahh-gkaa-mey-moo-win" 5 syllabes) - ce qui signifie avoir de la résilience et ne jamais abandonner. En travaillant à la construction d'une communauté, elle apporte le message : "vos mots comptent, vos mots sont vivants, racontez-nous nos histoires avec soin".
LEANNE BETASAMOSAKE SIMPSON
Leanne Betasamosake Simpson is a renowned Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg scholar, member of Alderville First Nation, writer, and poet, who has been widely recognized as one of the most compelling Indigenous voices of her generation. Her work breaks open the intersections between politics, story and song—bringing audiences into a rich and layered world of sound, light, and sovereign creativity.
Leanne holds a PhD from the University of Manitoba and teaches at the Dechinta Centre for Research & Learning in Denendeh. She is the author of five previous books, including This Accident of Being Lost, which won the MacEwan University Book of the Year; was a finalist for the Rogers Writers’ Trust Fiction Prize and the Trillium Book Award; was long listed for CBC Canada Reads; and was named a best book of the year by the Globe and Mail, the National Post, and Quill & Quire. Her latest book, As We Have Always Done: Indigenous Freedom Through Radical Resistance was published by the University of Minnesota Press in 2017 and was awarded Best Subsequent Book by the Native American and Indigenous Studies Association. Her new novel Noopiming: The Cure for White Ladies is forthcoming from House of Anansi Press in the fall of 2020.
Leanne is also a musician combining poetry, storytelling, song-writing and performance in collaboration with musicians to create unique spoken songs and soundscapes. Leanne's third record, The Theory of Ice will be released in 2020.
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Leanne Betasamosake Simpson est une érudite Michi Saagiig Nishnaabeg renommée, membre de la Première nation d'Alderville, écrivain et artiste, qui a été largement reconnue comme l'une des voix autochtones les plus convaincantes de sa génération. Son travail fait éclater les intersections entre la politique, l'histoire et la chanson, amenant le public dans un monde riche et stratifié de sons, de lumières et de créativité souveraine.
Leanne est titulaire d'un doctorat de l'université du Manitoba et enseigne au Dechinta Centre for Research & Learning au Denendeh. Elle est l'auteur de cinq livres précédents, dont This Accident of Being Lost, qui a remporté le prix du livre de l'année de l'université MacEwan ; elle a été finaliste pour le prix Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction et le prix Trillium Book ; elle a été longuement citée dans le cadre de CBC Canada Reads et a été nommée meilleur livre de l'année par le Globe and Mail, le National Post et Quill & Quire. Son dernier livre, As We Have Always Done, a été récompensé par le Globe and Mail, le National Post et Quill & Quire : Indigenous Freedom Through Radical Resistance a été publié par l'University of Minnesota Press en 2017 et a reçu le prix du meilleur livre ultérieur décerné par la Native American and Indigenous Studies Association. Son nouveau roman Noopiming : The Cure for White Ladies sera publié par la House of Anansi Press à l'automne 2020.
Leanne est également une musicienne qui combine poésie, récit, écriture de chansons et performances en collaboration avec des musiciens pour créer des chansons parlées et des paysages sonores uniques. Le troisième disque de Leanne, The Theory of Ice, sortira en 2020.
WILLIAM “NORTHERN KNOWLEDGE” KOMAKSIUTIKSAK
William Komaksiutiksak, also known as Northern Knowledge, is a touring Hip-Hop Artist who is originally from Kangi&ingiq, Nunavut. He is also the founder of the youth-led organization Strong Minded Inuit (SMI). William creates music to help learn how to speak his language of Inuktitut. He is a family man, a father, and he is strongly supported across Inuit Nunangat.
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William Komaksiutiksak, également connu sous le nom de Northern Knowledge, est un artiste hip-hop itinérant originaire de Kangi&ingiq, au Nunavut. Il est également le fondateur de l'organisation dirigée par des jeunes, Strong Minded Inuit (SMI). William crée de la musique pour aider à apprendre à parler sa langue, l'inuktitut. C'est un père de famille, et il est fortement soutenu par l'Inuit Nunangat.
Thank you to the City of Ottawa Diversity In The Arts Fund for sponsoring this event.
No Borders Art Festival
No Borders Art Festival Online - Coming to a living room near you!
For all up-to-date details visit: https://nobordersartfestival.com/
Saturday, May 16
3:00-5:00pm: Watch Party The John Allaire Show with special guest Tony D, two-time Juno award winner with Monkey Junk!
5:30 pm: Opening with Doreen Stevens, Louise Garrow, Makhena Rankin Guerin, Aymara Alvarado Lang, Pedro Diaz (Churún Merú), Marcelo Saavedra-Vargas, Yessica Rivera Belsham & Theo Paradis, Thunderbird Sisters Circle, Tito Medina, Just Voices Activist Choir. Featuring Music, Drumming, Teachings, Hoop Dancing.
7:00pm: An evening of performances with Yessica Rivera Belsham & Theo Paradis, Aymara Alvarado Lang, Rob Snikkar, Maria Hawkins, Evan Garrow, Ashelita Shellard, Lili Mivechi, Kerem Eker, Ellie Partridge, Royal Ottawa, Pedro Diaz (Churún Merú), Aki Metallic Silver
Sunday, May 17
9:00am: Facebook concert featuring Beverley McKiver on piano
10:00-11:00: Beading with Patsea!
11:00-12:00 TBA
12:00 -2:00pm: International conversation on survivng the pandemic: hosted by Patsea and Isaac Murdoch. International and Indigenous panel including Carmel Whittle, Francine Anishinabe, Aymara Alvarado Lang, Robert Snikkar, Beverley McKiver, Susan Fino (New York), Louise Garrow, Eleanor Hooker (Ireland), Ashelita Shellard, Kaz (India) and Pedro Diaz.
2:30pm: Wrap Up - poetry and more: Eleanor Hooker,
In Our Tongues with: Shery Alexander Heinis, Natalie Hanna, Sarah Kabamba, Danielle Gregoire, Mailyne K. Briggs, and Larissa Desrosiers.
Mirth Vital Marrow, Patsea Griffin, Doreen Stevens, Rob Snikkar, Bart Gerald, Carmel Whittle and others… and Just Voices Activist Choir
#6: May Gathering in Honour of Asian Heritage Month
***REGISTRATION FOR THIS GATHERING IS NOW CLOSED***
Due to Covid19, our May gathering will be online.
Registration will be required to ensure the safety and best possible experience for our guests and performers. We’re also accepting five (5) people for our open mic time slots! When you register for our event, simply check off if you want to be considered for our open mic.
For our open mics, we accept people from all backgrounds to share their writing, songs, poems or artistic work for two (2) minutes.
Date: May 12, 2020
Time of Event: 7-9pm
What you require:
Computer, smart device or tablet with internet access and audio capabilities
Zoom app
After registration, we will email you with the access information for our event on May 12, 2020.
MEET OUR SPECIAL GUESTS
KING KIMBIT
King Kimbit is an internationally-acclaimed Hip-Hop artist with a focus on the literary sense, interested in telling stories that are authentic to her experiences and identities. Her poetic work details the realities of her upbringing as the daughter of Vietnamese immigrants, the truths of her social vantage point as a young racialized womxn, and her stance on social issues regarding racism, de/colonization, and gender inequality.
Since being crowned Urban Legends Poetry Slam Champion in 2012, King has been sharing love and light through her poetry and music across Canada, the US, and more recently in Jamaica, where she worked in part on her debut album of poetry and musical arrangements entitled "Life Lessons Poetically". King currently coordinates Urban Legends’ Youth Speak! writing and performance workshops for teens and is also 1/3 of the founding force of Cap City Cyphers, a space for rappers across the city to unite and celebrate love and unity through Hip-Hop.
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King Kimbit est un artiste de Hip-Hop de renommée internationale qui met l'accent sur le sens littéraire et s'intéresse à raconter des histoires qui sont authentiques par rapport à ses expériences et à son identité. Son travail poétique détaille les réalités de son éducation en tant que fille d'immigrants vietnamiens, les vérités de son point de vue social en tant que jeune femme racialisée, et sa position sur les questions sociales concernant le racisme, la décolonisation et l'inégalité des sexes.
Depuis qu'elle a été couronnée championne du Urban Legends Poetry Slam en 2012, Mme King a partagé l'amour et la lumière à travers sa poésie et sa musique au Canada, aux États-Unis et, plus récemment, en Jamaïque, où elle a travaillé en partie sur son premier album de poésie et d'arrangements musicaux intitulé "Life Lessons Poetically". King coordonne actuellement les ateliers d'écriture et de performance "Youth Speak !" d'Urban Legends pour les adolescents et est également 1/3 de la force fondatrice de Cap City Cyphers, un espace pour les rappeurs de toute la ville pour s'unir et célébrer l'amour et l'unité à travers le Hip-Hop.
ELLEN CHANG-RICHARDSON
Ellen Chang-Richardson (she/her) is a Toronto/Ottawa poet of Taiwanese and Cambodian-Chinese descent. Winner of the 2019 Vallum Award for Poetry, her writing has appeared in Anti-Heroin Chic, Cypress Press, Bywords.ca and more. Her debut chapbook Unlucky Fours is now available with Anstruther Press (2020). In addition to her writing, Ellen is the founder of Little Birds Poetry and the
co-founder of Riverbed Reading Series - a new Ottawa-based performance series launching May 20, 2020. Follow her on Twitter @ehjchang.
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Ellen Chang-Richardson (elle) est une poète de Toronto/Ottawa d'origine taïwanaise et cambodgienne-chinoise. Lauréate du prix Vallum 2019 pour la poésie, ses écrits ont été publiés dans Anti-Heroin Chic, Cypress Press, Bywords.ca et bien d'autres. Son premier livre de chapitres, Unlucky Fours, est maintenant disponible chez Anstruther Press (2020). En plus de ses écrits, Ellen est la fondatrice de Little Birds Poetry et la co-fondatrice de Riverbed Reading Series - une nouvelle série de performances basée à Ottawa qui sera lancée le 20 mai 2020. Suivez la sur Twitter @ehjchang.
NAMITHA RATHINAPPILLAI
Namitha Rathinappillai (she/her) is a spoken word poet, artist, and writer who has been part of the poetry community since 2017. She has been involved with Urban Legends Poetry Collective ever since her engagement with the Ottawa arts community, and made Urban Legends history as the first female and youngest director. She is a two-time Canadian Festival of Spoken Word team member with Urban Legends, and she published her first chapbook titled ‘Dirty Laundry’ with Battleaxe Press in November of 2019. She has been involved as a performer and a workshop facilitator within the Ottawa community at spaces such as Tell em Girl, Youth Ottawa, the Artistic Mentorship Program, Carleton Art Collective, The Fembassy, Youth Services Bureau, and more.
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Namitha Rathinappillai (elle) est une poète, artiste et écrivain qui fait partie de la communauté de la poésie depuis 2017. Elle est impliquée dans le Urban Legends Poetry Collective depuis son engagement dans la communauté artistique d'Ottawa, et a fait entrer Urban Legends dans l'histoire en tant que première femme et plus jeune directrice. Elle a fait partie de l'équipe du Festival canadien du spoken word à deux reprises au sein du Urban Legends, et elle a publié son premier livre de chapitres intitulé "Dirty Laundry" chez Battleaxe Press en novembre 2019. Elle a participé en tant qu'interprète et animatrice d'ateliers au sein de la communauté d'Ottawa dans des lieux tels que Tell em Girl, Youth Ottawa, le programme de mentorat artistique, le Carleton Art Collective, The Fembassy, le Bureau des services à la jeunesse, et bien d'autres encore.
Thank you to the City of Ottawa Diversity In The Arts Fund for sponsoring this event.