Born Jamaal Robert St. John in the quaint town of New Rochelle, New York, this performance poet/spoken word artist has been honing his literary craft for fifteen (15 years). Jamaal is a graduate of New Rochelle High School and attended Northeastern University majoring in Criminal Justice. This poet’s lyrical style is like no other. Jamaal’s poetry is a cross between old school hip-hop rhyme schemes with cunning wordplay, accentuated with relevant social, political, cultural and economic topics. Jamaal manages to layer these aspects with a comical dexterity that only few poets can match. Jamaal has many accolades to his credit. He is a five (5) time Nuyorican Poets Café Grand Slam Finalist for years 1996, 1997, 2000, 2008, and 2010 (he is the only poet in Nuyorican Poets Café history to do so) and has won the coveted title of Nuyorican Slam King (December 2000). Jamaal highly contributed to the success of the Nuyorican National Slam Team placing third in August 2000 as a member along with fellow teammates Bryonn Bain, Helena D. Lewis and Tehut-Nine. Jamaal has had the auspicious title of Captain of the Poetic Battles Slam Team at the World Famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem, New York. He currently is the poet with the second most wins in the history of the acclaimed Hottest Poets Slams once held at Jimmy’s Uptown Restaurant in Harlem, New York. Jamaal taped for Russell Simmons’ Def Jam Poets during the second season. He has also had the illustrious title of New Jersey Grand Slam Finalist at Serengeti Plains in Montclair, New Jersey. Jamaal has performed on various stages and colleges throughout The United States and Canada to enthusiastic crowds. He is a 6 time winner of The Toronto International Poetry Slam and was crowned Nuyorican Grand Slam Champion in 2008. He’s been a member of The Nuyorican National Slam Team on 3 occassions (2000,2008, & 2010) helping lead those teams to finishes of 3rd, 5th, and 2nd respectively. He is also a two time winner of The Yale Peabody Slam and The James Marshall Slam. He is the author of a chapbook of poetry entitled The Horror & The Hype and has 3 spoken word albums to his credit : Enterlightenment, Won’t Catch Me Runnin’, & Southpaw Stance. He is currently working on a book of quotations, a new chapbook of poems, and a brand new spoken word album. He is also the host/facilitator of The Relationship Forum, which he conducts once a month in Albany, NY and quarterly in Miami, FL. He is looking to take The Relationship Forum to more cities across the US and Canada. He currently resides in West Orange, NJ with his lovely wife of 13 years, Nile.
