JustJamaal ThePoet

Jamaal Jackson Rogers - stage name JustJamaal ThePoet - is a nationally recognized independent artist, creative entrepreneur and arts educator. He is the recently appointed Ottawa English Poet Laureate, and has been awarded the outstanding Artist Educator Award by the Ontario Arts Foundation. He has also received national recognition from TVO and CBC respectively for his appearances on Canadian documentaries 4 Kids and In Their Words, directed by award-winning film maker Randy Kelly, and was the first place recipient for best new poem at the Body Electric Poetry Film Festival for his cinepoem Husniyah. In 2016, he was a finalist in the Emerging Artist Award presented by RBC.

Jamaal is an artist, a poet/writer, spoken word practitioner, recording rap artist, and stage performer. His studio, The Origin Arts & Community Centre, serves as his launch pad for arts related events, where he spends his time developing community programs and events that advocate for the arts.