Watsky ’10 a guest on The Ellen DeGeneres Show

Slam poet George Watsky ’10 appeared on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on Thursday, January 27, performing Pale Kid Raps Fast, a video that has brought him Internet fame.

Watsky’s YouTube video of the same performance went viral in January, receiving more than 4 million hits; but it’s not the first time he’s been recognized for his talents.

In 2008, Watsky, a San Francisco native, performed at Rock the Debate prior to the first Presidential debate, and at Greenbuild Chicago just before former President Bill Clinton took the stage. As a junior at Emerson, he won the Rod Parker Playwriting Award, which meant his original play, Harold’s Fall or King Will, was produced during the NewFest program. He also hosted the 2010 College Union Poetry Slam Invitational at the Cutler Majestic Theatre.

Sustainability is one of Watsky’s frequent themes, garnering him a Sundance Summit Award for his poetry on climate change and invitations to perform from Robert Redford.

In the Summer 2010 edition of Emerson’s Expression magazine, Watsky said, “I am interested in any subject that inspires emotion in me. I hope the things that make me laugh will make others laugh, and that what scares me will, at least, make others think.”

updated 1/28/2011