CR Avery

C.R. Avery is a multifaceted musician and poet from British Columbia, Canada, as well as a writer and director of musicals produced in New York, Los Angeles, Seattle, and San Francisco. Inspired as a child by Bob Dylan and his father's country collection, Avery is an international spoken word poet drawn to "story-based music" and known for his harmonica and piano playing. His genius lies in many genres—blues, hip-hop, spoken word, and rock & roll. He is a one-man band with the rare ability to sing poetic verse while beatboxing simultaneously while pounding the piano and adding harmonica. He is the frontman for Legal Tender String Quartet, the lead singer/harp player for rock and rollers The Special Interest Group, and the musical backbone of the spoken word trio Tons of Fun University. Together with American slam poet Mighty Mike McGee and fellow Canadian Shane Koyczan, he is a co-founder of Vancouver, British Columbia spoken word trio Tons of Fun University (T.O.F.U.). He is a past winner of the CBC national Poetry Face-Off. From musical beginnings in his late teens, C.R. Avery has recorded over fifteen albums as well as writing and directing six hip-hop operas, which were mounted and performed from New York's Bowery to L.A.'s South Central. Avery's unique performances have taken him around the world, from Europe to Australia, alongside rock and roll punk ensembles, hip-hop circuses, as well as string quartets and burlesque revues. Some Birds Walk for the Hell of It is Avery's third book of poetry.

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