Shane Koyczan
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Shane Koyczan

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I’m the type of guy that walks around with earphones in, but there’s no music playing,” he laughs. “It’s kind of a sneaky thing to do to people, but I hear some amazing things. When I was growing up you could walk into a café or a restaurant and it would buzz with conversation, passion and all of the things that to me symbolised what it means to be alive, to be human in the world. Now, you walk into a café or a restaurant and all you hear is the clanking of dishes or the steamer going off on the coffee machine, everybody is plugged into something and nobodies talking to one another. So if I ever find myself in a situation where I am surrounded by people talking – I’m going to listen.”

While he is also a critically acclaimed writer, the Canadian wordsmith has made a living out of sharing his stories with audiences across the globe, attaining five-star reviews and accolades for his truly touching performances. Humbly admitting that speaking to people wasn’t always his forte, Koyczan found solace in public performance.

“Growing up, I was very hindered socially because I did not develop the sort of social skills that were required to talk to a person one on one,” says Koyczan. “Like a person that’s perhaps loosing their sight and their hearing improves, I think I sort of overcompensated and I’m now able to step on a stage and talk to a thousand strangers about very personal experiences in my life.”

The verbal virtuoso is set to touch down on Australian shores, bringing with him a wide discography of pieces to pick from. With an extensive repertoire, Koyczan offers up a unique and instinctive performance.

“Every show is different,” he explains. “I try and craft a set, I never know what it’s going to be until the day of the show but I’m trying to create a thread between all of the works. I treat it like I’m a curator at an art gallery and all I’m doing is showing an audience the pieces that are on display right now – the pieces of my life that I’ve chosen to hang.

“I guess some people expect me to show up wearing a beret, smoke cigarettes and have a funky heroin addiction. I think they are always surprised by how emotional the shows are – there are moments of great levity as well as moments of despair and all I’m doing is taking them through that range of emotion and letting them know it’s okay to feel.”

A pioneer in the evolution of poetry, the multi-media artist refuses to adhere to any preconceived notions. Koyczan has removed the restrictions placed on poets by tradition and in turn, he’s welcomed a new audience.

“So many people hear the word poetry and they tear their hair out and run screaming in the opposite direction,” he laughs. “It really comes down to a sort of accessibility and vernacular issue. Those poems that we study in school are world-class poetry – absolutely, no question – there is lots to glean from them, lots to understand, lots to learn from them. But for a kid in school whose being exposed to poetry for the first time ever, they are going to look at that and say, ‘This makes no sense to me and this is not a way I can express myself. I don’t know how’.

“One of the great things about art in general is that it continues to evolve, it’s very fickle. It will always evolve to change with its time and poetry is no different. As much as language evolves, poetry evolves as well. With the advent of the internet and things like YouTube, you’re starting to see this resurgence where poetry is very accessible now and it does relay the emotions that I’m feeling, it does capture what I’m going through in my life, it is relatable.”

Ultimately, Shane Koyczan’s performance is a blend of beautiful melody and moving narrative moments. Reminiscing about the range of talent that engulfed society during his adolescence, it’s clear that his passion lies deep beneath the surface, and audiences continue to travel there with him.

“I was always a great lover of music and cinema and that informs a lot on my style. Growing up listening to people like Leonard Cohen and Ani DiFranco, all of a sudden words and music became this really powerful force. Then you had the first hip-hoppers coming out like Slick Rick and Young MC and their lyric book would roll out and you’d be like, ‘Holy shit this thing is a fucking scroll’. It just showed you that there was so much more that you could do. I looked at poetry and thought the same rules apply. I still love the traditional styles and I still read them, but for me it doesn’t have to be that.”

BY PHOEBE ROBERTSON