Inspired by the Nuyorican Poets Cafe tour that came to London in 1994, Martin Daws started off performing at open mics and slams, graduated to feature slots and touring shows and has now performed his work across three decades and multiple continents. Martin approaches poetry with a musical ear and he loves the rhythms of written and spoken language. He has performed and recorded with many top class musicians including - among others - 9Bach, Huw V Williams, Mr Phormula and Huw Warren. As an MC, Martin is the sideman of DJ Adam Racubah in the Racubah Sound System.
Extensively experienced as a creative educator Martin has facilitated workshops for 40 000+ participants in a community arts practice that began in Liverpool in 1996 and is still thriving to this day. In recognition of his decades of socially engaged work as a creative educator Martin was honoured with the role of Young People’s Laureate for Wales (2013-16). Through this national role he was partnered with Urban Word NYC and commissioned to co-write and perform the Dylan Thomas Centenary celebration show "Dylan ar Daith / Dylan Live", touring Wales, the UK and USA in 2014.
Martin's touring experience includes 3 x tours of Ireland, 5 x runs at the Edinburgh Fringe and numerous shows across the UK and USA. He has toured in the West Bank, Palestine. Having successfully delivered many residencies, in 2014 Martin worked alongside French poet Camille Faucherre to deliver a three week poetry theatre residency in a hostel for homeless men in Dunkerque.
In 1995 in Liverpool Martin founded the Poets Get Paid arts collective. Since 2007 in Bangor, North Wales, he has co-curated the poetry performance series POETica. In 2024, Martin became a Director and co-founder of youth music organisation Underground Artist Movement.
He has published two written collections of his work with accompanying albums - Skintight the Sidewalk (2008) and Geiriau Gogs (2016) and has contributed pieces to multiple anthologies, journals and music productions.
Interested in how culture defines and redefines our identities, Martin's work adds up to a lifelong enquiry into the after shock felt in his community when the factories on the street he grew up on got knocked down and he watched it all happen listening to black pirate radio.
One of the UK's best performance poets
Square Magazine