Native stories

Shelley Morningsong to play at ABQ library branches

Shelley Morningsong enjoys telling stories through music.

And she’s good at it.

In 2016, Morningsong was awarded artist of the year at the Native American Music Awards.

Morningsong (Northern Cheyenne/Dutch) has recorded five contemporary Native American albums.

She will be performing at Erna Fergusson Library on Monday, Dec. 18, and Lomas Tramway Library on Tuesday, Dec. 19.

This will be her first time performing in the venues.

“I’m excited and don’t know what to expect,” she says in a recent phone interview. “It will be nice to get into a different setting.”

Morningsong has toured the country, as well as Germany.

She plays the Native flute, while her husband dances to the music. He also plays traditional drums and does an education portion to the show.

“I present my music within the show,” she says. “I always try to include positive messages in my music. I want to bring people together and show how connected we are. It’s important for the positivity to remain in my music.”

As far as her influences go, she and her husband live in the village of Zuni, where he is from.

“There’s a lot of inspiration there,” she says. “Sometimes on the reservation, there’s a lot of sadness. I see this life and write about the positive things. I’ll put melodies together for the songs. It’s a great process.”

One would think making music would be enough, yet Morningsong has begun to branch out into video production.

Although most of her music videos have been done by fans, she is beginning to learn about filmmaking.

“I’m trying to train myself,” she says with a laugh. “It’s difficult now. But I would like to do this medium because it would give me another outlet for my creativity. Making music videos is also part of the storytelling.”

Morningsong is looking forward to putting on a show for a different audience.

She regularly plays at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center.

“Performing is part of my life,” she says. “I grew up in a very musical family. I’m trying to carry on the traditions that I grew up with, only in a contemporary way. It’s always fun to get on stage and share it with my husband.”

New Mexico musician Shelley Morningsong will perform two free shows in Albuquerque. COURTEESY OF SHELLEY MORNINGSONG