Who is Dejean Talks

Keynote Speaker, Spoken Word Poet, Host, Entrepreneur & Business Consultant specializing in Business Model Canvas and Design Thinking, Life Transformation.

Since he was 19 years old, Haitian-American Dejean Talks has been captivating audiences of all sizes and backgrounds with his riveting, painful and inspiring performances. His life is a story of victory in the face of trials that would defeat most others.  From surviving imprisonment Guantanamo Bay at age seven as a young refugee, to spending years in the American prison system, Dejean remains a faith-filled survivor who shares his stories of despair and triumph through poetry and public speaking.

Dejean Talks delivers inspiration to all who would listen, with soulfulness and honesty that comes with the humility of surviving extreme adversity. At birth, Dejean’s parents were told he would never walk, but at age 3, he had proven the doctors wrong.  By age six, Dejean had been forever changed after experiencing rape by two older girls.  Then he and his father embarked on a harrowing journey to the United States.

The course of Dejean’s life has taken him through many trials — racial discrimination, homelessness, poverty, stabbing, shootings, gang violence, and imprisonment.  Dejean paints his life story on a canvas of words and theater with an uncanny boldness as he captivates his audience, once center stage. His testimony is captivating, heartfelt, painful and victorious. His spoken word performances and motivational speeches paint and frame his pain and sorrow in the most beautiful poetic way. He has been called “the modern-day Renaissance man.”

Dejean’s personal experience with imprisonment and the inability to gain employment following incarceration has led him to co-found Emergence Corporation, which is dedicated to bringing higher education and business courses to men and women behind prison walls.  He is an accomplished speaker and pitch master who has competed and won public speaking competitions and debates from Toast Masters International, and garnered a platform at the prestigious SXSWedu in Austin Texas, where his winning business idea took center stage in 2017.

As a proud father of 2 boys, Dejean believes that his sole purpose is to provide his sons a life and future he could have never dreamed for himself. He credits his drive, determination, and unwillingness to quit to the mere joy he has in looking in his sons’ eyes; and knowing they depend on him to provide. “I accept the challenge of fatherhood with no excuses, but total acceptance.”

Dejean’s message and stage presence would be a great addition to any event or venue.

Available For:

Hosting Events, Panels, Workshops, Business Conferences, Tech & Start-Ups, Preaching, Testimonials, Church Events, Weddings, Plays, TV Shows, Radio Shows, Podcast or Movies and more.