Hear Me Roar!

DEFNE is a queer multidisciplinary artist. She currently studies a Bachelor of Arts (Creative Writing & Theatre) & Fine Arts (Photography & Graphic Design) at UNSW. DEFNE is the Program Coordinator for Word Travels and runs West Side Poetry Slam in Western Sydney. 

Isi Ferguson was born and raised in the creative climate of the Bellinger Valley. Her attention is drawn by colour, culture and quirky moments.

Anna McGahan is a poet, essayist, scriptwriter, author and actor. Her poetry and essays have been published in The Griffith Review, The Guardian and more. Her previous work includes the memoir Metanoia and Skin, a collection of poetry for pregnancy and birth. She has won the Queensland Young Playwright’s Award twice, been shortlisted for the Queensland Premier’s Drama Award, and shortlisted for The Saturday Paper’s Horne Prize. She was the 2022 runner-up of the Australian Poetry Slam National Final. She is currently in the publication process for her first fiction novel. 

Performing writer Miles Merrill brought poetry slams to Australia from Chicago. He is the spark for dozens of story sharing programs across the Asia-Pacific region and is the founder of Australian Poetry Slam.

Tracey O’Callaghan has performed internationally in Longford and Dublin, Ireland. She was the 2021 SA State Champion of the Australian Poetry Slam and was the Runner-Up in 2022. She is a raw, passionate poet who seeks to speak the truth, wake listeners up and fill them to the brim with powerful words.

Steven Oliver is a descendant of the Kuku-Yalanji, Waanyi, Gangalidda, Woppaburra, Bundjalung and Biripi peoples. He became notorious with ABC’s Black Comedy as a writer/actor/associate producer. He also performs across web series, documentaries and cabaret. His poetry is published in national and international poetry journals. His plays Proppa Solid and From Darkness were published by Playlab.

Joanna Yang is a passionate educator, podcaster, blogger, and now, poet, born and raised in Naarm/Melbourne and now based in Tennant Creek (Warumungu country). After stumbling into the spoken word scene by chance, she has enjoyed every bit of this surreal journey, creating, performing and even calling herself the 2022 Australian Poetry Slam Champion.