'Not a good place to hide your heart'

 

“I hid my heart under my bed because my mother said if you're not careful someday somebody's going to break it. Take it from me, under the bed is not a good hiding spot.” – Shane Koyczan

Born on May 22, 1976 in Yellowknife in Northwest Territories, Koyczan grew up in British Columbia and was the first Canadian to win an Individual Championship title at the U.S. National Poetry Slam.

 

A spoken word poet, writer, and member of the group Tons of Fun University, he is best known for writing about issues like bullying, cancer, death, and eating disorders and internationally famous for his anti-bullying poem To This Day, which has more than 25 million YouTube views.

  

 Also the author of 4 books of poetry and many essays – both written and spoken – Koyczan said he’s interested in pursuing opera next.  “Opera is the original marriage of words and music, and there's a theatre element, a dramatic element,” he said.   “It's right up my alley.”