Courageous Cadence was founded in 2020 by Jasmine Games, Director of Education and Social Justice at The VORTEX and Artistic Director of The Poet House. Originally developed as part of Jasmine’s graduate studies in Drama and Theatre for Youth and Communities (DTYC) at The University of Texas at Austin, Courageous Cadence began as a Performing Justice Project, adapting ensemble performance methods to center spoken word poetry as a tool for racial, gender, and healing justice.

The early development of Courageous Cadence was supported by community partnerships with Speak Piece Poetry Project, Austin Bat Cave, and the UT DTYC program. The program first launched as a virtual residency during the COVID-19 pandemic, operating online in Fall 2020 and Summer 2021. In 2022 and 2023, Courageous Cadence moved into in-person programming through summer residencies hosted at the African American Youth Harvest Foundation's Urban University Summer Camp.

In Spring 2024, The VORTEX hosted the first full in-person Courageous Cadence residency, marking the program’s transition into a long-term partnership between The Poet House and The VORTEX. Today, Courageous Cadence continues to grow as a collaborative spoken word and performance residency where youth develop original writing, engage in social justice dialogue, and perform fully staged public showcases. The program also includes zine publishing and digital storytelling to amplify youth work both on and off the stage.