INDIGENOUS VOICES AT NAC
Women featured in Anishinabekwe show
There’s never been a better time to celebrate the voices of Indigenous women in Canada, says singer ShoShona Kish, a core member of the band Digging Roots and a co-curator of Saturday’s Anishinabekwe event at the National Arts Centre.
Patterned after the annual Women’s Blues Revue in Toronto and presented by the NAC’s Canada Scene festival, the concert features Digging Roots as the backing band, with Kish and five other artists who have Indigenous roots: Inuk throat-singing sensation Tanya Tagaq, Métis singer-songwriter Amanda Rheaume, Cree/Dene electro-pop songstress Iskwé, multidisciplinary Métis artist Moe Clark and Métis fiddler and electroacoustic composer Sandy Scofield.
“At this particular moment, this just resonates in such an important way for me,” said Kish in an interview. “The inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls is happening, and families are moving through these very painful things and we in the larger community are moving through some painful things, too, and starting to look at ways to change that.
“It’s one thing to read about it in the papers or see something on television, but it’s another to come together around art and stories because that cuts through the noise and is really able to speak directly to our hearts. This gathering is not about the inquiry or the politics specifically, but I think it’s about art and celebrating these beautiful Indigenous voices coming out of the community and lifting up these stories.”
It’s also the first time a concert showcasing Indigenous women has been presented on a national stage. “There have been gatherings of Indigenous women in the past,” Kish observes, “but this is happening at the premier arts presentation space in Canada.
“I feel like it’s the right moment for a really special event like this to be happening. And it’s my hope that it’s something that will happen again. This is an amazing lineup of creative innovators, but there’s obviously so much more to share in terms of Indigenous women and artists. It was really difficult to decide who to have for this first revue because there’s so much goodness out there.”
Here’s more on each artist and Kish’s thoughts on them.
TANYA TAGAQ
Originally from Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, Tagaq creates her own unique style of music based on the Inuit tradition of throat singing. A dynamic, visceral performer, she won the 2014 Polaris Prize for her album Animism.
“What can I say?” begins Kish. “She’s one of my best friends and a force of nature. The stories that she tells hit you right in the heart. I think there are some times that what she shares is so deeply personal and intimate. She speaks to the child in me, yet there are moments she’s terrifying. She’s probably the most courageous performer in the world right now. Where she is willing to go with you is extraordinarily brave. She’s one of the most important artists working right now.”
AMANDA RHEAUME
The Ottawa-based singer-songwriter has been making music for years and has blossomed on her last two albums, which explore her Métis heritage in melodic countryfolk-pop songs. One of her most powerful tunes is Red Dress, written to honour the more than 1,180 missing and murdered Indigenous women and girls in Canada.
“Amanda is a wonderful, seasoned performer even though she’s still young,” says Kish, “and I think her voice as a Métis woman and storyteller has been a really important part of the discourse that’s evolving. Her stories are really important.”
ISKWÉ
The Winnipeg-bred, Torontobased songstress Iskwé draws on her Irish and Cree/Dene roots to create a mesmerizing blend of hip hop, R&B, jazz and piano pop, topped by a voice that ranges from sweet to urgent.
“She’s a rising star right now, with a new record coming out this year,” notes Kish.
“She has an extraordinarily powerful voice and is bringing influences that come out of electronic music, and out of our teachings and stories as Indigenous people, and really doing something beautiful and completely her own.”
MOE CLARK
The Montreal-based artist and spoken-word poet concocts music based on sonic layering and an improvisational approach to singing that draws from gospel and soul.
“To me, she’s one of the most exciting emerging talents coming out of our community. She’s a beautiful singer, works with a looping pedal, plays piano and traditional hand drum. She brings together her influences, both traditional and contemporary, into a very unique voice that’s all her own,” says Kish.
SANDY SCOFIELD
The award-winning musician-composer, descended from four generations of musicians, fiddlers and singers, has studied music from around the world, mixing a range of influences with First Nations traditions to come up with her own electro-acoustic style. A career highlight for her was composing the Aboriginal Welcoming Song for the 2010 Vancouver Olympics.
“She’s a trailblazer. She certainly has been an influence for me and many of us coming up as women performers in the community. Sandy was the one opening the doors. She lives in B.C. and has one of the most strikingly powerful voices I’ve ever heard. She’s also a song keeper, and has all of these old songs, and a music degree, so she studied in the Western sense. She’s ... been a very important part of developing what’s happening now.”
DIGGING ROOTS
Kish and guitarist Raven Kanatakta were both music students when they first met in Ottawa 20 years ago. They immediately hit it off and, after finishing their degrees, went on to form Digging Roots, grooving on the chemistry between his blues-rock guitar style and her powerful, uplifting voice. They also decided to spend their lives together. Today, their son plays drums in the band, and they’re putting the finishing touches on a new album, The Hunter and the Healer, due for release this fall. “This record is very personal,” says Kish. “We’re looking at our healing journey. Coming from where we come from, there is so much beauty and so much pain. I think we’re looking at love and joy as being our fundamental way of fighting oppression.” lsaxberg@postmedia.com twitter.com/ lynnsaxberg