BIOGRAPHY & mission statement.

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On the evening of May 23, 1994, three policemen were shot by a single gunman in Southwest Phoenix. One of the injured officers waited several years to process his thoughts and emotions about that critical incident.

In 2000, Corbet Dean shared his experience at the Spoken Word Festival in Tempe, AZ. After performing poetry about the confrontation, Corbet was praised: Gary Mex Glazner mentioned his work in a festival review for About.com. Later that year, The Mesa Tribune quoted the poem in an feature article on poetry in Arizona. Eventually, Corbet's work appeared in Off the Cuffs, an unforgettable anthology published by Soft Skull Press.

Weeks later, Corbet won his first Grand Slam Championship in Arizona. After being named, "Slam Artist of the Year" by his local venue, Corbet took his second championship in 2001. In 2002, Corbet placed second in North America at the National Poetry Slam in Minneapolis, MN.

In the months that followed, Corbet became a popular feature at poetry venues throughout the country. Corbet's 2003 performance at the Bowery Poetry Club later appeared on The Best of Urbana '03 CD. At the 2005 National Slam in Albuquerque, Corbet repeated yet another "top ten" finish.

In all, Corbet has won a total of seven local slam titles, & performed at ten consecutive National Slam events. He has released three collections of prose, edited a benefit anthology, and produced a new DVD film. His work now appears in The Arizona Republic, Freedom To Speak (Wordsmith Press), Poems from the Big Muddy (Wordsmith Press), High Desert Vocies (Wordsmith Press), An Idiot's Guide to Slam Poetry (Alpha Books), and The Spoken Word Revolution Redux (Source Books). A Collection of Crime Scenes (iUniverse) is now available anywhere fine books are sold.

Currently, Corbet works as a police officer, trying to affect change within the "system." On his days away from the department, Corbet travels the country, sharing unique poems about God, love, and this crazy little thing called life.

Inspired by 1 TIMOTHY 1:17, Corbet's mission is to create written and visual art that forces us to face the humanity that flourishes in the shadows where we least expect it. By doing so, Corbet strives to honor the Spirit of those spoken word traditions that precede us by centuries.

For booking information, please visit the contact portion of this site.