DOWNLOAD: The #NationHood Mixtape

Combining the voices of many struggles, peoples and nations, the #NationHood Mixtape brings together an amazing array of hip-hop, spoken word, beats, ideas and sounds from artists across the world.

This is music for the movement: songs to inspire the liberation of oppressed peoples globally, and to bring Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists together in rhythmic force. For this mix, I wanted to showcase a diversity of styles that illustrate our commonalities in struggle, our shared experiences, and the many ways in which our words—in whatever language we sing and speak them—locate us in common purpose, resistance, and action to transform the world.

From LA to Chicago, Detroit to New Brunswick, Germany to Palestine, Phoenix to Greece, Nəxʷsƛ̕áy̕əm̕ , Tsalagi and Six Nations, to Anishinaabe and Mi'kmaq, and everywhere in between, the #NationHood Mixtape spans hoods and communities across Turtle Island and the globe.

Building on the enthusiastic response to the #ILF2013 mixtape, that I compiled earlier this year for the Indigenous Leadership Forum, this mix deepens the sounds and expands the horizons.

Kinanaskomitin and much respect to all of the incredible artists who donated their time and music to the project.

Please download, share, enjoy.

DOWNLOAD: The #NationHood Mixtape

#NationHood Mixtape - Full Track List

Marlon Brando - The Dick Cavett Show (1973) / Automuse - "Pan 2223" / Eastern Eagle Singers - "Mi'kmaq Honour Song" Beaatz - "Broken Promises" Sacramento Knoxx - "Dear Vaughan" DJ Muggs x Bambu - "Pow Wow Drums" Killah P - "Ζόρια" Immortal Technique - "Toast to the Dead" (prod. by J Dilla) Ant Loc - "Hands of Vengeance" Big Cats - "Pyramids" Angel Haze x ATCR - "A Tribe Called Red" Shining Soul - "Get Up Boikutt - "Muraba'at Amniyeh, Muthalathat Sihriyeh, Dawa'er Maliyeh - مربعات أمنية، مثلثات سحرية، دوائر مالية" Shigeto - "Detroit Part 1" Invincible - "Drunken Sleuth" (prod. by Marco Polo) *unreleased* Amewu - "Leidkultur" Tall Paul - "Protect Ya Spirit" Gil Scott Heron - "Parents (Interlude)" Gonjasufi - "Ancestors" Leanne Betasamosake Simpson - "she sang them home (ft. Cris Derksen)" Shibastik - "LandSlide" Skookum Sound System / Deano - "Long Stem (See Monsters RMX)" Meesha - "Movements" / Janet Rogers - "Being Indian" Flying Lotus - "Between Friends (Instrumental)" / Jeff Corntassel - "Indigenous Waves 11/13/2013" Poz Lyrix - "Chicago Native" Optimal - "Good Hair" Gabriel Teodros x Rebel Diaz x Suntonio Bandanaz  - "Rise & Decolonize" *unreleased* Malcolm X - "My Philosophy is Black Nationalism" Jasiri X - "The New Nat Turners" Big Cats - "Eleven" / Leanne Simpson - "Indigenous Waves 11/11/2013" City Natives - "4Kingz" Eastern Eagle Singers - "Mi'kmaq Honour Song"

Maisey Rika Wins Best Maori Album

At last week's New Zealand Music Awards, Maisey Rika took home "Best Maori Album" for "Whitiora" - congrats Maisey! - and we were stoked to check out all the nominees in the category.

The category celebrates Aotearoa (New Zealand) artists and music that express and reflect Maori culture. Eligible albums for the category don't have to be in Te Reo, but all three nominated albums this year were, which is rad!

Winner Maisey Rika is a soul/acoustic vocalist who has recorded in both English and Te Reo, and her fellow nominated artists were jazz/funk artist Kirsten Te Rito and blues/ jazz/soul singer Ngatapa Black.

Take in the sweet sounds of Rika, Te Rito and Black here:

Shining Soul: Phoenix Hip-Hop with a Purpose

We just got put on to the fresh stylings of Shining Soul, a Phoenix, Arizona-based hip-hop duo, composed of Franco/The Bronze Candidate, who makes beats and instrumentals with a distinct underground and jazzy flavor, and Alex Soto/MC Liaison, who spits politically subversive rhymes. The duo uses their music to inform audiences about border militarization, oppression of Indigenous Peoples, and capitalism.

Check out their recent interview with Occupy.com on hip-hop, cultural pride, and the politics of border militarization:

Carl Gibson: Where are you originally from? And how does that influence your music?

MC Liaison: First and foremost, I’m Tohono O’odham (pronounced tone-OH-tum) which translates to desert people, and is the second largest tribe next to the Navajo in the so-called U.S. Our land mass is as big as the state of Connecticut and shares 79 miles of so-called US/Mexico border. The line was drawn since 1848 with the Gadsden Purchase, so our nation and community has been divided in half. Our tribal lands go to Rocky Point, Hermecito, and spans as far north as Phoenix. Just like any indigenous tribe around the world, there are different bands. There’s desert people, but up here, the other O’odham, or people, are the river people. Any MC back in New York knows that Hip-Hop began with that cultural pride of people who were living in the ghetto, living in the hood, living on the rez. That’s one thing I communicate through my music. I share my culture and flavor down there, but I’m also rocking it in Phoenix with people up here.

CG: How long have you two been making music? Talk about how you began and the evolution of your sound.

Bronze Candidate: Alex and I have known each other for nine years. Shining Soul has been through many phases and mutations. We used to be a live band at one point; I was playing bass and guitar for the group. I’m still using those musical influences as music for the group, but I’m making the beat-driven, rhythm-driven music. It’s basically about cultural pride, and pride about where we come from. My mom and pops were into Earth Wind and Fire, Gap Band, El Chicano, really funky stuff. I supplemented it with Mariachi here and there, with some Salsa infused. And that’s all kind of what I gear myself and the audience for. With the beats coupled with the critical, crucial and sometimes urgent messages you sometimes need to put in the music, people are really feeling it. It’s a serious message, but it’s constructive, as well.

CG: This is Arizona, the home of SB 1070, Sheriff Joe Arpaio, Jan Brewer. It seems like there’s a lot of stuff to inspire your lyrics in Arizona. Talk about how these current battles influence your music.

BC: It’s also the home of Si Se Puede, as we say. And the house of insurrection. It’s in our rhymes. It’s the front lines of this new white supremacy we’re seeing, and that’s what we call it, because that’s what it is. It comes from colonization and this domination of the social order, you see the disparities in the distribution of quote-unquote wealth.

CG: And you see it in high unemployment rates in indigenous communities compared to white communities, incarceration rates and all that.

BC: Right. It’s the allegiances that are there that are not talked about and kind of invisible. There’s destitute people across the board. Whatever you look like, whatever your pigment is. It’s that allegiance to what we call whiteness. Because that gives you privilege over people who are darker than you. And at the end of the day, I mean, you don’t want to be criminalized for being poor. You want to pass the buck to someone else. And look at who’s historically been marginalized and how violence has been projected upon certain groups of individuals. I’m a Chicano, I come from generations in the valley of what we call Phoenix. I’m pretty much a desert person as well. But three generations is not that long, people like my boy Alex, MC Liaison, he’s been here since time immemorial. So what does that look like when I’m trying to claim space here? So my music comes from me as a human being, as a Chicano, and as an MC and beat maker. So that brings it back to this imperialism we try to address in our music. We have these draconian laws like SB 1070, and the streamlining of “secure communities” laws which allow federal agents and local pig to collaborate.

MCL: In particular, it relates to SB 1070, but it also relates to border militarization. This has been happening before SB 1070 became law. SB 1070 just made us more of a police state. In the Tohono O’odham nation, my people have been stuck literally in the middle of this war that’s been happening. With the push of NAFTA in 1994, we had an influx of economic refugees migrate here from the so-called line to the South, and of course, the state cracked down. So Nogales, El Paso, the bigger cities, Tijuana -- all got locked down, because that’s a given to lock that spot. So what happens is they have to go through the hottest, most rural, and craziest areas, which happen to be where I’m from. The Border Patrol and now the Department of Homeland Security have militarized it because it’s a corridor for migration. So my people are like, “Yo, I’m from here, and now I’m going through a checkpoint?” I went through one today. And granted, we’re here today having this interview, but it’s like, why the fuck do I have to go through a checkpoint? Why do I have to go through easily 50 Border Patrol agents, have helicopters flying overhead? We’re still here, we have culture, our languages, our songs, our indigenous people are still here after all these centuries. Now we have the spook of border militarization. Keep in mind, the immigration reform bill in its current form quadruples this militarized border by putting a Berlin-like wall in my backyard. I’ve seen it going from a chicken wire fence when I was five or six years old, to a vehicle barrier, to a vehicle barrier with a road next to it, and cameras all along the road, people patrolling up and down, day and night, and that’s just 25 years of my life. What’s it gonna look like when I’m 50 or 60? So we’ve done direct actions and protests, but I feel music for me is like a torpedo, for people who don’t know about this shit.

Read more: Shining Soul: A Phoenix Hip-Hop Duo Raps on Border Militarization | Occupy.com

For more of Shining Soul's music check them out online: shiningsoulmusic.bandcamp.com and shiningsoul-music.blogspot.com

#Revolution2: RPM is Back!

Did you miss us? It's been a revolutionary minute since we last hit you with a good dose of Indigenous Music Culture. But we're happy to let you know that RPM is back!

The crew has been busy since the winter working on music, touring, songwriting, media arts, land-based education, political organizing and a host of other arts, decolonizing and resurgence projects—all the while planning to get back online to bring you the best Indigenous music from across Turtle Island and around the world.

From the #RoundDanceRevolution to Idle No More to the Indigenous Nationhood Movement, we've been deeply inspired by everything happening in Indian Country, and we're happy to be back up and running with new music, reviews, interviews and artist features.

To kick things off, we have the #NationHood Mixtape—a global compilation of Indigenous and non-Indigenous artists' music in support of oppressed peoples' struggles for liberation; a review of Tara Williamson's new EP, Lie Low, from Leanne Betasamosake Simpson; a report on the recent New Zealand Music Awards and the winner for Best Maori Album, Maisey Rika; and an interview with Phoenix hip-hop duo Shining Soul!

We've got lots more in the works but for now, enjoy the new music. Thanks for your patience and support of RPM—and please share the good news on all your channels.

It's time for #Revolution2. Let's go.

Music & Idle No More: RPM on CBC's The Current

On today's edition of The Current, three members of the RPM crew spoke with guest host Duncan McCue about music and the Idle No More revolution.

"Does every revolution have a soundtrack?". We know it does—and it was an honour to discuss RPM, revolution, music along with the recent release of our Songs for Life compilations: Volume 1 and Volume 2.

LISTEN: Stream the panel discussion on CBC here.

Idle No More: Does Every Revolution have a Soundtrack? - January 25, 2013

The ideas of the Idle No More protests may nor may not catch on, but some of the music it's inspired is already part of a new aboriginal songbook. With Idle No More protesters calling for a Global Day of Action on Monday to mark the return of the House of Commons, we chat with three Indigenous artists behind the Idle No More soundtrack.

Source: CBC.ca

DOWNLOAD: Idle No More: Songs for Life Vol. 2

We are pleased to present Idle No More: Songs for Life Volume 2. As with Volume 1, the highlights are many!

Idle No More is just about 2 months old. It’s hard to know for sure how many strong in number the movement is now, but one thing is for certain - the message has circled the globe, crossed oceans, and reached people from all walks of life. Musicians are among those from the artistic community who have been vocal in their support. Some have written songs. Some have spoken out at shows. And some have graciously allowed us to share their music with you here.

The collection kicks off with the call to arms Red Action by power duo Indian Handcrafts, who will soon traverse our fair land as the opening act for Billy Talent. Blue Rodeo, who made national headlines for their shout out to Idle No More, offer the song Fools Like You, from the 1992 platinum selling Lost Together. Rising stars Nick Sherman and Tracy Bone are here, as are indie darlings Royal Wood and Hannah Georgas. The timeless power pop of Vancouver’s Odds. Reggae and R&B from New Zealand courtesy NRG Rising. And the poignant cello piece Theresa, by Anishinaabe musician, researcher, and media artist Melody McKiver. Plus much more - 17 tracks in all! We hope you enjoy it!

Some are asking, what IS the message of Idle No More? Read on below the set for words from the founders.

This exciting collection – and the additional volumes that will follow soon (there’s that many artists and voices!) – was conceived by Marty Ballentyne, Holly McNarland, Kevin Joseph and RPM’s Ron “Ostwelve” Harris. RPM is thrilled to collaborate on it!

And now -

DOWNLOAD: Idle No More: Songs for Life Vol. 2

‘We contend that: The Treaties are nation to nation agreements between The Crown and First Nations who are sovereign nations. The Treaties are agreements that cannot be altered or broken by one side of the two Nations. The spirit and intent of the Treaty agreements meant that First Nations peoples would share the land, but retain their inherent rights to lands and resources. Instead, First Nations have experienced a history of colonization which has resulted in outstanding land claims, lack of resources and unequal funding for services such as education and housing.

We contend that: The state of Canada has become one of the wealthiest countries in the world by using the land and resources. Canadian mining, logging, oil and fishing companies are the most powerful in the world due to land and resources. Some of the poorest First Nations communities  have mines or other developments on their land but do not get a share of the profit. The taking of resources has left many lands and waters poisoned – the animals and plants are dying in many areas in Canada. We cannot live without the land and water. We have laws older than this colonial government about how to live with the land.

We contend that: Currently, this government is trying to pass many laws so that reserve lands can also be bought and sold by big companies to get profit from resources. They are promising to share this time…Why would these promises be different from past promises? We will be left with nothing but poisoned water, land and air. This is an attempt to take away sovereignty and the inherent right to land and resources from First Nations peoples. We contend that: There are many examples of other countries moving towards sustainability, and we must demand sustainable development as well. We believe in healthy, just, equitable and sustainable communities and have a vision and plan of how to build them. Please join us in creating this vision.’

Jessica Gordon, What is Idle No More?

Don't forget you can also grab the first volume of songs for life here: DOWNLOAD: Idle No More - Songs For Life - Vol. 1

This exciting collection – and the additional volumes that will follow soon (there are that many artists and voices!) – was conceived by Marty Ballentyne, Holly McNarland, Kevin Joseph and RPM’s Ron “Ostwelve” Harris. 

VIDEO: Drezus - "Red Winter"

Drezus's new video Red Winter has been quickly racking up views on YouTube since he dropped it on January 11th.

After releasing the new song on December 25th, Drezus began fundraising for an official video and remarkably pulled together the funds and resources to produce and release it less than three weeks later.

Drezus's words for the #IdleNoMore movement are passionate, articulate, and powerful (after watching the video read the lyrics below) and his own dedication and embodiment of the message is palpable. "I've invested... my heart and my drive to represent my people for once in my life. This Red Winter song is special to me... it's for us by us" the Winnipeg-based artist wrote on Facebook.

I didnt just make a song to fit in or look cool...I actually march and rally with the rest of my people!!! I live this!!! #idlenomore

— #RedWinter (@drezus) January 13, 2013

With director Cowboy Smithx, produced by Drezus Music, Eccentricus Imagery and 4K Film Production, and a long list of crew and community that made it happen, the video dropped on January 11th, the global day of action. The views have been stacking up since, the word has been spreading. Watch, listen and share Red Winter, by Drezus:

The OFFICIAL #redwinter video is here! youtube.com/watch?v=VEc3ZY… produced by @boogeythebeatdirected by @cowboysmithx #idlenomore RT

— #RedWinter (@drezus) January 12, 2013

Red Winter: Lyrics

Verse 1

My skins red, I bleed red, I'm seeing red/ I'm praying for my people out there who haven't seen it yet/ His blood is cold, tellin lies forever told/ By his ancestors 500 years ago/ Yeah I said it, got my people getting restless/ Making money off our land and we aint even on the guestlist/ Carry on traditions of a racist ass pilgrim/ And I know you really love it when my people play the victim/ 'Cause it makes it seem like we're folding under pressure/ But we're up to bat now no more playing catcher/ 'Cause we see the bigger the picture that we have to capture/ See how quick we get together? We out to get ya!

Chorus 1

You can lock us in jail and throw away the key Take away my rights but you ain't stopping me 'Cause I been quiet for too long its time to speak We got to stand for something to keep us free! I'm Idle no more I'm Idle no more I'm Idle no more Yeah I'm Idle no more!

Verse 2

I'm getting aggravated, my people saying chill/ I feel my heart breaking, but i don't need your pills/ I need my people strong, with hearts of many men/ He letting women die outside of the parliament?!/ Opposition's only siding for their benefit/ The only ones we really got is us and it's so evident/ Before you take a stand! Remember to get educated/ Once you understand the message go and share it with your neighbors/ Basically, We're getting taken hostage for our land/ 'Til they sell it out for profit now they got the upper hand/ But! Trust me we can stop it I'm thanking the four sisters/ Dear Mr Harper we all coming to get ya!/ And we won't stop for nothing we're bringing all of our cousins/ And we're getting educated so the fighting ain't for nothing/ Stand up! for your people our time for power is coming/ I'm a full blooded native believe me I'm proud of it!/

Chorus 2

(speech by aaron paquette)

Keith Secola: Seeds, Songs and Social Commentary

Anishinaabeg blues rocker Keith Secola recently released his seventh studio album, Life is Grand, and has written a pop-rock-opera, Seeds, that was seven years in the making. Through both works, Secola is starting to pull a mainstream audience into, what has been, an underground following, and finding ways to stay true to his message along the way.

Winner of seven Native American Music Awards, and 2011 inductee into the Native American Music Hall of Fame, Keith Secola's best known track is NDN Kars. Fans will be glad to hear his new album, Life is Grand, released late 2012, includes an updated punk version of that well loved song, among a list of new tracks.

"I think the new album (Life Is Grand) is going to be the quintessential protest album of 2012, only I have to disguise it, like Dickens' Christmas Carol, " Secola recently told Christina Rose for Indian Country Today Media Network. In Keith Secola Gets Humble for the Muse Secola also spoke about his pop-rock-opera Seeds:

It took years of writing, and writing is difficult! I started writing it about six, seven years ago. The songs have lyrics and melody, and it’s not some new age, ‘Look at this Indian with the flute’ and the audience fills it in. This has dialogue, long, meaningful, songs, with to-the-point lyrics.

That was the hard part, trying to write without being pretentious about it, because we can’t be so serious, either. You have to write with a sense of humor, and also have to look at the criteria -- one, Is it entertaining? Two, is it philosophical? Three, is it spiritual in nature? And four, is it metaphysical in nature, so people can draw their own meaning to it?

The first song is called “Song For The Marginals”. And we say, "Come out, come out marginal creatures! Now is the time to dance under the sun, because we have been dancing under the full moon for a long time, and now it is our time to reclaim the sun!"

The songs on Life is Grand are also poignant, powerful and to-the point. Check out the track Say Your Name, written about residential schools:

Get the new Keith Secola album on CDBaby or iTunes, and read the complete ICTMN interview here.

Wab Kinew Brings the Flash Mob 'Round Dance Revolution' to Strombo

Everyone's favourite 8th Fire heartthrob, Wab Kinew, surprised George Stroumboulopoulos and his CBC television studio audience—while making all of Indian Country proud—when he led a spontaneous flash mob round dance Thursday night, during an interview taping on George Tonight.

Impeccably clad in a dark grey Mad Men-styled suit, and singing a cappella while clapping out the beat instead of using a hand drum, Wab brought the #IdleNoMore round dance revolution into the living rooms and hearts of Canadians in all the right ways.

Posting photos and video on Instagram and Twitter after the taping, he added: "Let's share the beauty of our culture in a positive way. Miigwetch everyone!"

We couldn't agree more.

#rounddancerevolution on the Strombo show. Monday the 21st at 7pm #idlenomore youtube.com/embed/-bzO1YB0…

— Wab Kinew (@WabKinew) January 18, 2013

Here's the video. And what a great choice of song. Aho!

Wab Kinew Flash Mob Round Dance on Strombo - Jan 17, 2013

Now this is a rare moment in Canadian television. Wab Kinew is a First Nations leader and the Director of Indigenous Inclusion at the University of Winnipeg.

While he was in the red chair last night, Wab surprised the audience (and the crew!) by orchestrating an impromptu flash mob round dance in studio.

Catch the full interview with Wab on Monday, January 21st. He'll talk to George about 'Idle No More' and how all Canadians are treaty people.

Here's what Wab had to say about the round dance:

"You guys want to do a flash mob round dance?

This is what it's all about. It's been one of the most popular tactics of Idle No More and what it is, is a traditional dance, a friendship dance. So it's just about showing off our culture. So I notice I have a few sisters in the house today. Would you guys like to help show our non-indigenous brothers and sisters here how to do the round dance?"

Source: CBC.ca/strombo

DOWNLOAD: Idle No More: Songs for Life Vol. 1

Idle No More: Songs for Life Vol. 1 is the first of an ongoing series of free downloadable compilations of songs by artists who support the vision of Idle No More, Indigenous and allies. Volume 1 features a broad and diverse array of artists - everyone from Derek Miller (whose contribution, 7 Lifetimes, is a brand new track inspired by Chief Theresa Spence), to John K. Samson of the Weakerthans.

Bluesey-roots from Digging Roots. The indie stylings of Whitehorse. A funky hip hop jam from Plex with Wab Kinew and Sarah Podemski. It’s a feast for the ears. A celebration. And we’re only just getting started. If ever we’ve been idle - whether in our thoughts or our actions - we are now Idle No More.

This exciting collection - and the additional volumes that will follow soon (there's that many artists and voices!) - was conceived by Marty Ballentyne, Holly McNarland, Kevin Joseph and RPM's Ron "Ostwelve" Harris.

Listen to and download the tracks now, and read on below.

Idle No More: Songs for Live Volume 1

From co-creator of Idle No More: Songs for Live Vol. 1 Marty Ballentyne

Music is transcendent. Somewhere in between the melody, the rhythm, the words, the instruments and the people playing them, it all adds up to something more than the sum of its parts. It’s magic! Music soothes frayed nerves. It makes you dance. It says things you just can’t put into words. Songs make you think, make you feel, bring you up, bring you down, bring you around. For some music is loud and groovy on a Friday night; for some, it’s quiet and calming on a Sunday morning. Music brings us all together. We have it in common, along with the air, the water, the earth beneath our feet, and the sky above.

Idle No More began in November as a grassroots effort by four women to educate people about Bill C 45, tabled by the federal government.  The news media and commentators such as Rick Mercer had given the bill cursory attention when the bill was introduced in Parliament in mid October. Hidden inside the 440 page bill are changes that will affect all Canadians, now and in the future. Most Canadian waterways, protected since the days of John A. Macdonald, are protected no longer. Amendments have been made to The Indian Act without consulting First Nations. A series of teach ins by Sylvia McAdam, Nina Wilson, Jessica Gordon and Sheelah McLean first brought awareness, then concern, then action. People started talking. Social media networks were lit up by the sharing of information. And virtually overnight, the national conversation shifted considerably. Little over a month after the first rallies and flash mob round dances took place across Canada, Idle No More has become an international movement.

At the heart of Idle No More is a desire to foster dialogue. People are talking, and about many things - not only Bill C 45, but also the relationship between Canada and its First Peoples, protection of the environment, the economy, and the Third World conditions of some of our communities. People are also talking about how they can contribute. It was in this spirit of pitching in that musicians Holly McNarland, Kevin Joseph, Ron Harris (Ostwelve), and Marty Ballentyne came together to work on gathering tracks from artists in support of Idle No More, to be released as a series of free downloadable collections of songs. This is the first.

Idle No More: Songs for Life Vol. 1 is the first of an ongoing series of free downloadable compilations of songs by artists who support the vision of Idle No More. Over the past few weeks we’ve been contacting people from across Canada and around the world, and the response has been fantastic. It’s a feast for the ears. A celebration. And we’re only just getting started. If ever we’ve been idle - whether in our thoughts or our actions - we are now Idle No More.

Words of support from artists on Volume 1:

Jenn Grant: "Perhaps music can help spread awareness and support our precious earth, and to our leaders who are fighting this cause. Let us grow together and show our cause and concern. Canadians need to shout and sing and sometimes starve - let us be heard. "

Holly McNarland: My focus is to speak to music fans and to hopefully sway some of the opinions and myths about First Nations people, and shine some light on how the Harper Government is selling us out via our water, land and resources. Bill C-45 needs to go.

Whitehorse: We believe that conditions in many First Nations' communities are deplorable and would not be tolerated in neighbourhoods in Toronto or Calgary (for example) and as such there is a deep double standard at play in Canada. We support Attawapiskat Chief Theresa Spence and urge Prime Minister Stephen Harper to meet with her. Also, the shredding of environmental regulations and the defunding of environmental and science organizations at the very time when there is a push by Harper to build a pipeline through environmentally vulnerable lands and waters is cause for great concern to all Canadians.

Native America North Takes New York

Three of our favourite Indigenous artists will be traveling from their Canadian homes to New York this weekend to perform a showcase at APAP 2013.

The Big Apple will have the pleasure of hearing Don Amero, Digging Roots and Elisapie at a showcase, Native America North, during the APAP 2013 conference. Between the three acts you'll get roots, folk, and pop interpretations of Anishinabe, Mohawk, Inuit, and Métis culture.

If you're in the city Saturday January 12, head to the National Museam of the American Indian from 2-5pm to take it all in - the event is free to the public!

For more info visit aboriginalmusic.ca and get started with the latest video from Don Amero, Turn These Grey Skies Blue:

STREAM: Cris Derksen - "Our Home on Native Land"

#SoundtrackTheStruggle continues with this new track from electro-cellist Cris Derksen.

Half-Cree electro-cellist Cris Derksen continually experiments and creates with her instrument (the cello), electronics (especially the loop pedal), the addition of a live drummer, and her voice. Here her impassioned declaration of our home on Native land will ring through your heart and feet and across Turtle Island. #IdleNoMore.

STREAM: Cris Derksen - "Our Home on Native Land"