Press & Features
Ahmed “Knowmadic” Ali has been featured across national and local media for his spoken word poetry, hip-hop music, and youth education work in Edmonton and beyond. Below is a curated archive of press coverage, interviews, and featured appearances.
Major News Features
- CBC News — Ahmed Knowmadic Ali named Edmonton’s 7th Poet Laureate (2017)
- CBC News — Edmonton’s poet laureate on the power of spoken word (2018)
- CBC News — Edmonton Poet Laureate Ahmed Ali reaches end of term (2019)
- CBC Video — Knowmadic reflects on two years as Edmonton’s poet laureate (2019)
- Edmonton Journal — Ahmed Knowmadic Ali is Edmonton’s newest poet laureate (2017)
- Edmonton Journal — Spoken word poet Knowmadic at Stanley Milner Library (2018)
- Edmonton Journal — Poet Laureate recites signature poem “Knowmadic” (2018)
- Edmonton Journal — Spoken word poet Knowmadic HD (remaster) (2021)
- Global News — Meet this year’s Top 40 Under 40: Avenue Magazine (2017)
Magazines & Print
- Avenue Magazine / Edify Edmonton — Ahmed Knowmadic Ali: Top 40 Under 40 (2017)
- Quill & Quire — Ahmed Knowmadic Ali named Edmonton poet laureate (2017)
- Edmonton Sun — 20 Questions: Ahmed Ali, aka Knowmadic
Arts & Culture Recognition
- Edmonton Arts Council — Poet Laureate Announcement Press Release (2017)
- City of Edmonton — Official Poet Laureate Program
- Theatre Alberta — Edmonton Arts Council 2013 Awards: Cultural Diversity in the Arts (2014)
- John Humphrey Centre — Human Rights Champion Award (2018)
- Edmonton Community Foundation — Breathing Life into Community: Breath In Poetry
- SHIFTER Magazine — Outstanding Black Men in Canada 2023
Online & Digital Features
- Passion Passport — Edmonton Feature: Knowmadic
- Edmonton Poetry Festival — Headliner: Ahmed “Knowmadic” Ali
- Edmonton Poetry Festival — Interview with Ahmed Knowmadic Ali
- Taproot Edmonton — 2021 Municipal Election Candidate Profile
- Hiiraan Online — Somali-born Canadian poet and activist Ahmed Knowmadic Ali (2015)
Education & Keynote Appearances
- Alberta Teachers’ Association — Keynote: The Value of Public Education (2025)
- Chilliwack Teachers’ Association — TLC Conference Keynote: Empowering Educators (2024)
- University of Alberta — International Week Keynote Speaker (2017)
- North Central Teachers’ Convention — Unpacking Poverty & Inequality thru Spoken Word (2021)
- North Central Teachers’ Convention — Annual Review featuring Keynote (2018)
- International Society for the Performing Arts — Congress Panel: Identity, Diversity and Creativity (2017)
- University of Alberta — CGCER Conference: Decolonizing Global Citizenship Education (2013)
- Rocky View Schools — Wellness Summit 2024
- Fostering Diverse Communities Conference — Presenter (2015)
Radio & Podcasts
Wikipedia & Reference
Books & Publications
Ahmed Knowmadic Ali’s poetry appears in nationally published anthologies and a forthcoming debut collection.
- The Great Black North: Contemporary African Canadian Poetry — Frontenac House (2012). The first national anthology of African Canadian poetry. Edited by Valerie Mason-John and Kevan Anthony Cameron. ISBN:
978-1-897181-83-6 - AfriCANthology: Perspectives of Black Canadian Poets — Renaissance Press (2022). Edited by A. Gregory Frankson. ISBN:
978-1-77112-376-1· Goodreads · De Gruyter Academic Entry - Black Abacus — Debut poetry collection. Write Bloody North Publishing (forthcoming).
Music & Streaming
- Spotify — Knowmadic
- Bandcamp — Smoke Detector (2014)
- YouTube — Knowmadic Official Channel
- SoundCloud — Knowmadic
- Deezer — Knowmadic
- YouTube — “I Am Africa” spoken word performance
- YouTube — Spoken word performance