SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - You would never know slam poet Shane Koyczan was nervous when he recited his poem, We Are More, at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games opening ceremonies, Feb. 12.

Former Yellowknifer Shane Koyczan did the city and the territory proud when he recited his poem, We Are More, at the 2010 Vancouver Olympic Winter Games opening ceremonies, Feb. 12. - photo courtesy of Petrice Brett

"It was very nerve-wracking, I pretty much wrestled with it until the very last second and at that point it was sink or swim," said the 34-year-old former Yellowknifer.

Standing in front of 60,000 people in the stadium and with millions more watching on television, the whole world heard what Koyczan loves about Canada, the Canadian people and what he hopes for the country.

"We are an idea in the process of being realized, we are young, we are cultures strung together, then woven into a tapestry and the design is what makes us more," said Koyczan. Since performing his poem he has become a video sensation on YouTube.

The We Are More poem was commissioned in 2007 for the Canadian Tourism Commission.

Koyczan said the response to his performance has been overwhelming.

He said the morning after the performance he woke up with close to 2,000 e-mails in his inbox, adding he didn't expect to generate such a reaction.

"A lot of the response I have gotten has been very positive but there are those Canadians who believe and rightly so, and I absolutely understand their sensitivities in that Canada is not a boastful nation and we shouldn't take that stance," he said.

Due to our geographical proximity to the United Sates, Koyczan said he understands those individuals' opinions but added he thinks Canada needs to start to embrace its identity.

"I believe that we are starting to come to a point when we need to step out of the shadow and embrace who we are," he said.

Born in Yellowknife, Koyczan left in 1989 at the age of 14, when his grandparents retired, moving to Penticton, B.C.

He said he has not forgotten where he grew up. Koyczan remembers living in a house across the street from CBC and spending his formative years developing his imagination fighting pirates and exploring the hill near there.

He did not start writing seriously until university, but in his early writings he did draw on his hometown as a source of inspiration.

"A lot of my early work stem from feeling lonely sometimes and as beautiful as the city is, it can be a very desolate place," he said.

Koyczan returned to Yellowknife in 2007 where he performed at Folk on the Rocks.

With this new sense of stardom, Koyczan is keeping busy with media appearances and has many projects on the go including a film, a graphic novel in addition to do some narration work.

Ultimately, what it comes down to is like Koyczan said: "We are the true North strong and freeand what's more is that we didn't just say it, we made it be."