Patrick Roche

Spoken Word/Poetry

  • 3rd in the world at the 2016 Individual World Poetry Slam

  • Over 7.5 million views on YouTube

  • Featured on Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post, UpWorthy, MSN, iHeartRadio, and more

  • Performed with Darryl “DMC” McDaniels of RUN DMC, Brittany Snow of Pitch Perfect, and Tyler James Williams of The Walking Dead

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““Unbelievably heartfelt”
”
— Buzzfeed
““Just one word: Goosebumps””
— Z100/iHeartRadio
““Powerful and affecting…you will no doubt have an appreciation for [Roche’s] unbreakable spirit””
— The Huffington Post
““Patrick Roche silenced the clanking of silverware and even halted the checking of cell phone texts and emails with his vivid and visceral poetry…[an] extraordinary artist and advocate for mental health””
— Kathleen Pike, Director of Mental Health Program at Columbia University Medical Center
““Really an inspirational dude and so humble…I learned a lot””
— Tyler Posey of MTV’s Teen Wolf
““Utterly amazing””
— Stacy London, author, editor and host of TLC’s What Not to Wear
““Patrick ROCKED!!!””
— Darryl “DMC” McDaniels of RUN DMC

Patrick Roche is an award-winning poet and performer from New Jersey. Videos of Patrick’s work have amassed over 7.5 million views on YouTube, making him one of the most popular spoken word poets. He is the author of An Exercise in Necromancy (Bowery Poetry/The Operating System, 2017). Patrick has competed or been featured at multiple national and international competitions and festivals, including placing 3rd in the world at the 2016 Individual World Poetry Slam, 2nd  at the 2017 Capturing Fire national queer slam, 9th at the 2017 National Poetry Slam as part of the Bowery Slam Team, and 3rd at the 2014 College Unions Poetry Slam Invitational (CUPSI, the national collegiate slam) as part of Princeton University’s team. Patrick serves nationally as an ambassador for the JED Foundation, promoting mental and emotional health, suicide prevention, and substance abuse awareness. He has shared stages with Darryl “DMC” McDaniels of RUN DMC, Pitch Perfect star Brittany Snow, Everybody Hates Chris and The Walking Dead star Tyler James Williams, and Olympic Gold Medalist Chamique Holdsclaw, among others.

Patrick’s work has appeared in or been published by Button Poetry, UpWorthy, Buzzfeed, The Huffington Post, MSN, Beech Street Review, Gal Pals Present, Freezeray Press, Voicemail Poems, and more. His work explores mental health, grief, sexuality, body image, disordered eating, family, memory, love, joy, pop culture, and everything in between. Patrick is a 2014 graduate of Princeton University, where he studied Classics (specifically Latin and Greek poetry) and Education.