Johnny MacRae

A self-proclaimed mouthy poet and the Vancouver Poetry House Youth Coordinator, Johnny MacRae lives and works on the the unceded ancestral territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), səl̓ilwətaɁɬ (Tsleil-waututh), and sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish) nations. Since first hitting the slam stage in 2009, he has won regional and national slam titles, featured at poetry series and arts festivals across the country, and led 400+ workshops in BC schools. Johnny’s passion for collaborative spoken word has led him to perform and tour with acts such as 2 Dope Boys in a Cadillac (inc. musical spinoff, Cadillac Mountain Orchestra), The Dambassadors, and Travelin’ Word Circus. In 2014, he placed 2nd on the CBC reality show, Canada’s Smartest Person, but if you bring it up he’ll roll his eyes and mutter with embarrassment about how ridiculous the whole thing was.

Although best known for his energetic delivery of humourous poems, his poetry encompasses in a vast range of voices, subjects, and styles, including slam-style power poems, long-form narrative poems, spoken word theatre and more. Whenever he performs, Johnny brings something delightfully unexpected!

Writer in Residence – Powell River Public Library (2023)
Recipient – Zaccheus Jackson Memorial Award (2017)
Teaching Faculty – Writers’ Guild of Alberta’s Wordsworth summer camp (2015-2024)
Indie Slam Champion – Vancouver Poetry Slam (2013/2016)
Poet of Honour – Victoria Spoken Word Festival (2013)
Underground Indies Champion – Canadian Festival of Spoken Word (2011)
Grand Slam Champion – Vancouver Poetry Slam (2010)

Region: Lower Mainland