Ian Stephens (1955 – March 22, 1996) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

poet, journalist and musician from

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, best known as one of the major Canadian voices in the

spoken word Spoken word refers to an oral poetic performance art that is based mainly on the poem as well as the performer's aesthetic qualities. It is a late 20th century continuation of an ancient oral artistic tradition that focuses on the aesthetics of ...

movement of the 1990s."AIDS poet cherishes each moment: Ian Stephens reads Thursday at Sneaky Dee's". ''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and part ...

'', March 21, 1995. Most of his work focused on his experiences living with

AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual m ...

.Lejtenyi, Patrick. "In Memoriam: Five ''Mirror'' cover subjects who have since passed on". '' Montreal Mirror'', October 20, 2005. Stephens studied at

Bishop's University Bishop's University (french: Université Bishop's) is a small English-language Liberal arts college, liberal arts university in Lennoxville, a borough of Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada. The founder of the institution was the Anglican Diocese of Quebe ...

and

Concordia University Concordia University ( French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

."Ian Stephens, poet and singer, dies". ''

Montreal Gazette The ''Montreal Gazette'', formerly titled ''The Gazette'', is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Three other daily English-language newspapers shuttered at various times during the second half of th ...

'', March 24, 1996. In 1984, Stephens released a 45 RPM single with band Disappointed a Few People, titled ''Fuck With Christ'', on Les Disques Noirs, followed in 1986 by album ''Dead in Love'', on Psyche Industry Records. The group disbanded in 1988. In 1992, Stephens released a spoken word CD, ''Wining Dining Drilling'', which featured his poetry with a punk rock-influenced musical backing."Ian Stephens: writer first, singer second; Serious songs contain even more serious messages, including a cry against AIDS". ''

'', November 11, 1993. The album included tracks such as "Coroner Wants a Kiss," "Loser w/ a Hard-On," "Sex is Dog," "Queer in Amerika", "I Started to Get Sick in New York" and "The AIDS Guy". He published a book of poetry, ''Diary of a Trademark'', in 1994; the following year, he released an album of the same title, featuring his recitations of many of the pieces in the book. The title track was later included on ''Word Up'', a compilation of spoken word poetry. Stephens was also a regular writer for the '' Montreal Mirror'', contributing book reviews and a 1994 cover story, "A Weary State of Grace", on living with AIDS. He had begun writing a novel, although it was not completed before his death. He died in 1996 of AIDS-related

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enlar ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephens, Ian 1955 births 1996 deaths 20th-century Canadian poets Canadian male poets Canadian punk rock musicians Canadian gay writers Musicians from Montreal AIDS-related deaths in Canada Canadian spoken word poets Canadian gay musicians Canadian LGBT poets Writers from Montreal 20th-century Canadian male musicians Bishop's University alumni Concordia University alumni 20th-century Canadian male writers 20th-century Canadian LGBT people Gay poets