Ellis & Lafleur: Leaves & Flowers

About this event

ELLIS & LAFLEUR: leaves & flowers. An evening of spoken word and a cappella hip hop with Marv Ellis and Jorah LaFleur.

On November 28th, two longtime Northwest wordsmiths come together for an evening of firsts.

Hip hop artist Marv Ellis performs his new album 8 Pound Baby a cappella, offering an unprecedented opportunity to hear the words at the center of his music—unadorned, immediate, and fully in the room. For the first time in his career, Marv is also releasing a lyric book.

Spoken word poet Jorah LaFleur launches Paper Microphone, a new micropress aimed at translating the stage onto the page. She will debut a collection of 8 pocket-sized books featuring spoken word pieces that, until now, have existed only as live performance.

Ellis and LaFleur met as kids. After 35+ years of being classmates, framily, and mutual fans, this is their first official co-production and shared book launch. Together, these artists are leaving flowers: ensuring songs become text, and poems get printed. As the trees drop their foliage, the emcee drops bars without beats. As we deepen into fall, the poet prepares us for new petals, new pages.

Musical interludes and ambience will be provided by the one-and-only DJ Deviate. With surprise guest instrumentalists. A singular night of creativity and collaboration. Come be a part of it live. Take a piece of it home.

ABOUT MARV ELLIS Marv Ellis is nobody—just a kid from Eugene with a dream who gave up everything for 25 years to make it. And not “make it” as in fame, but in the art. The music. In his own way. Over time, that sound has been refined and is now defined as Neuro-Spicy NW Hip Hop. It’s folklore. It’s lyrical. Always on the precipice of modern creation. It makes you dance, it makes you think, and most importantly—it’s authentic. Now stepping into his Gear 5 era: positive, uplifting, and dynamic. Eighteen albums deep and still evolving. Performing alongside DJ DV8, the two are currently the longest-running hip hop duo in Oregon. Past projects include: FREE CREATURES, THE PLATFORM, SPIRIT TOWER OCF, WE TRIBE, IMAGINARY FRIENDS, ME.LT, GENUS PRO, PAPAS SOUL KITCHEN. Come see what’s next.

ABOUT JORAH LAFLEUR A writer, performer, emcee, and community arts advocate, Jorah LaFleur has spent years tending creative expression in herself and others, from a decade of hosting the Eugene Poetry Slam to her current work as a teaching artist with Wordcrafters in Eugene. Voted 2025’s “Best Poet” in the Eugene Weekly, Jorah’s work thrives on curiosity and collaboration, always chasing connection like a golden retriever after a tennis ball. Full Bio: jorahlafleur.com

From Jorah LaFleur