Bio

Nigerian–South African multidisciplinary poet, spoken-word artist, author, educator, and arts manager lives and works in Mohkínstsis. Shaped by her culture, identity, and moving between continents, she discovered her poetic voice , a voice that balances personal truth with collective stories. Her work spans social commentary, explorations of connection, identity, and presence, and performance, creating spaces for empathy and shared experience.

Her debut chapbook, A Lot of People, sold out at her 2025 birthday launch and reflects her collaborative practice. Copies are available at Shelf Life Books. Her poetry and blog, Poetry and Purpose, can be found at alotofpoetry.com.

Bio

Kue Varo is a rising force in the Canadian indie-rock scene, fronting Kue Varo & The Only Hopes with a voice that’s equal parts ethereal and defiant. A queer, autistic musician reclaiming themselves from a strict fundamentalist upbringing, Varo channels personal evolution into raw, genre-bending songs that straddle mysticism, love, growth and a healthy rebellion.

Their debut LP, Cowboy Witchcraft (2023) produced by Juno-winner Russell Broom, fuses desert-scorched art rock with haunted folk and dream-pop textures. The single “Furthest Place”charted in the Top 40 on the Canadian Alternative Rock charts, and the album hit #10 nationally on college and community radio.

Kue Varo’s music is part memoire, part spell work stitched together with southern grit, haunting harmonies, and heart.

Bio

SHY FRiEND is brutally honest, tragically dramatic, & full of feminine rage, and has been turning the Alberta music scene into a church for the queer, alt, pop & punk misfits to share in since 2023 while experiencing the sonic equivalent of their mantra “TO BE CRINGE IS TO BE FREE”.

Bio

Wakefield Brewster, Calgary Poet Laureate, 2022–2024Wakefield Brewster stepped onto his first stage as a Poet andSpoken Word Artist, January 1999.

He’s now known as one of Canada’s most powerful ProfessionalPerformance Poets.Wakefield became the sixth Poet Laureate of Calgary in 2022, first Black Poet Laureate of Calgary, ever.

During National Poetry Month in April 2024, after a quarter-century of Professional Performance Poetry, Wakefield released his first written Poetry collection titled: WakeWord(FrontenacHouse)For more about Wakefield and his Lyrical Life, please visit:http://wakefieldbrewster.com