Semi-Finals #2 Judges Announced!

After an incredibly fierce and successful semi-finals #1 we are now busy preparing for semi-finals #2 - this Saturday 11th August at the Bruce Mason Centre in Takapuna. Make sure you bring all of your friends and family along this Saturday to witness some incredible young poets as they step up to the mic to slay their giants. 

We expect this heat to be just as fierce and so we have an amazing judging panel to match. We are so excited to have some truly talented poets, artists, educators and community leaders on board with us, and wish them all the best for the tough job they have ahead. 

Introducing our judges for WORD - The Front Line semi-finals #2:

Marina Alefosio

​Marina Alefosio is a spoken word artist, rapper, mother and workshop facilitator.  As a performance poet, Marina was a member of the critically acclaimed South Auckland Poets Collective and has performed both locally and internationally at venues and events such as the Nuyorican Poets Café (New York), Te Papa Museum (Wellington), the Adelaide Fringe Festival and TEDX Auckland. She has led many performance and poetry workshops for adults and young people.

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Bronson Price AKA Melodownz​
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​Melodownz’ hip-hop lyricist, Bronson Price, is an urban poet and artist raised in the phone line tangled village of Avondale, Auckland. Melodownz’ sound is shaped by a variety of local producers who honour his smooth melodies. His diverse style travels from hip-hop, reggae, G-funk and soul all accompanied by his punchy lyrics.

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Te Kahu Rolleston

​Maori poet, spoken word performer, actor and battle rap artist Te Kahu Rolleston (Ngāi Te Rangi) won the National Poetry Slam Competition in 2014 and has since performed his work nationwide and Internationally, working particularly with youth, schools and community groups.

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Yvonne Thynne

Yvonne Thynne has worked in the publishing industry since 1998 promoting some of New Zealand’s leading poets, authors and celebrities. She has been a promoter of National Poetry Day, a book reviewer for RadioLive and is now the Communications Manager for Domino’s Pizza New Zealand.

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