From artist to activist
Singer Jully Black's defence of a book by an Indigenous author led to her focus on empowerment
After more than 20 years in the music business, Jully Black is known to many friends and fans as the “Queen of R&B.”
But recently, she’s been feeling around for new ways to describe herself.
“I tend to say ‘game changer’ or ‘history maker,’ ” the 40-year-old Juno-award winner mused in a recent interview.
“I used to think my musical voice was what I had. But now I recognize, it’s my voice 360.”
It was Black’s “game-changer” self in the spotlight in March when she appeared on the annual book battle, CBC Canada Reads.
Defending The Marrow Thieves, a young adult novel written by Métis author Cherie Dimaline, Black made a public commitment to being a voice for Indigenous issues in Canada.
“It helped me find a new cause,” she said.
“I’m excited to be part of this conversation … for the rest of my life.”
The book is a dystopian tale in which Indigenous people are hunted for their bone marrow. As Black pointed out, the story is a metaphor for Canada’s history of residential schools.
“We have to hear these hard truths,” Black said on the show.
The Marrow Thieves was voted out on the third day of debates. Mark Sakamoto’s memoir Forgiveness, as defended by fashion icon Jeanne Beker, was the last book standing.
Discussion was heated at times. At one point, Black challenged privileged Canadians to actually do something about Indigenous issues. Things turned suddenly personal.
“Why are you attacking me?” asked Beker. “I just feel that you’re speaking to me, like I don’t believe …”
Black said she hadn’t been addressing Beker.
“Whatever you’re feeling, take it to the altar,” Black said, “’cause I’m not the one that’s responsible for your feelings.”
It was a dramatic moment, and soon the twitterverse had something to say about it. People lauded the phrase “take it to the altar” as a succinct way to respond when privileged people put their feelings at the centre of a conversation that isn’t about them.
“The whole point is, check your privilege,” said Black, who soon found herself designing and selling a line of T-shirts featuring the phrase: “Whatever you’re feeling #takeittothealtar.”
Since the show, she has stayed in touch with Dimaline, calling herself a “student” of the author. She’s also working on a song with an Indigenous rapper David Strickland.
Reconciliation may be a new cause for Black, but her transformation from singer to activist had been bubbling for years. She was a correspondent on CTV’s eTalk and a WeDay ambassador. Then, when her mother, Agatha Gordon, died in 2017, Black felt a renewed sense of purpose. Gordon had raised 20 children — some of them her own, some of them fosters.
With her mom’s example in mind, Black recently joined forces with her friend of 22 years, Nkechi Nwafor-Robinson, to organize a series of conferences.
“It’s about helping women do the inner work so they can be confident and stand in their power,” said Nwafor-Robinson, a bank executive and motivational speaker.
On May 5, the pair will host 220 women at an all-day event at a hotel in North York. Empowered In My Skin speakers will focus on the theme of career, with future events set to focus on other aspects of women’s lives, including spirituality and health.
“You don’t have to declare yourself as a feminist” to appreciate the conference, said Black. “But we must hold on to our femininity ... and we must take responsibility for our own lives.”