Writer and musician Antonio Michael Downing was raised in Trinidad, Toronto and Kitchener. He is the author of the acclaimed memoir Saga Boy, the novella Molasses, children’s book Stars In My Crown, and the novel Black Cherokee. He graduated from the University of Waterloo with a degree in English Literature and has been a recording artist for two decades including three albums as his alter ego John Orpheus. He is also the host of CBC Radio's book program and podcast The Next Chapter.