Aysanabee, Shawnee Kish and more on the Indigenous artists who inspire them

Indigenous musicians person ever banded unneurotic to marque their voices heard, whether the wider euphony manufacture was paying attraction oregon not. From founding Indigenous-owned labels to launching planetary euphony summits to facilitating music-making workshops for Indigenous youth, leaning connected assemblage is simply a mode of navigating done obstacles oregon closed doors. 

That kinship has been a galvanizing force, and up of Indigenous Peoples Day, we astatine CBC Music privation to springiness the level to Indigenous artists to item and observe the peculiar bonds they've cultivated with their peers. 

"You perceive this from a batch of artists, that they ne'er grew up seeing radical that look similar them. It's precise bully being successful these spaces and to person that spot of kinship, you know, similar idiosyncratic who gets you for you," said Oji-Cree singer-songwriter Aysanabee successful an interview. 

"It's bully to benignant of person immoderate shared perspectives and that enslaved and that built-in therapy league whenever you request it."

Below, successful their ain words, Amanda Rheaume, Aysanabee, Sebastian Gaskin and Shawnee Kish stock thoughts connected their chap Indigenous artists, who animate and motivate them to propulsion boundaries.

Aysanabee connected Sebastian Gaskin

Aysanabee is an Oji-Cree vocalist with powerhouse vocal chops that elevate his spellbinding roots, stone and people songs. His 2022 debut album, Watin, centred astir his grandfather's memories of residential schoolhouse and the consequent aftermath and generational trauma that impacted his family. It was shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize and nabbed him a Juno information for modern Indigenous creator of the year. His EP, Here and Now, won the Juno for alternate medium of the twelvemonth successful 2024. His 2nd full-length album, Edge of the Earth, is retired now. 

WATCH | The euphony video for Sebastian Gaskin's Medicine:

"The archetypal clip I heard Sebastian [Gaskin]'s euphony I conscionable thought it was wild because helium was this Indigenous creator who was doing R&B euphony astatine specified a high, precocious level. I conscionable retrieve seeing [him] and proceeding his dependable and being truly blown away, due to the fact that astatine that point, the lone other Indigenous creator who had truly deed maine that way, from that benignant of music, was Teeks (a Maori psyche singer). I conscionable emotion the mode [Sebastian] tin genre hop and leap around, similar he's precise versatile and prolific, and that's beauteous inspiring. He's besides unafraid to look inwards and inquire those pugnacious questions, adjacent of himself. I deliberation I'm a spot biased, obviously, due to the fact that I cognize him beauteous personally, but I tin spot the fearlessness helium has and the magnitude of enactment and maturation helium puts into everything helium does. He ever looks to one-up himself and germinate and support expanding, so that's what I'm truly excited astir for his euphony too. He conscionable enactment retired the pop/R&B record, but hey, helium mightiness enactment retired a state grounds next." — Aysanabee

Why Sebastian Gaskin's Medicine is simply a opus radical request to hear: "I consciousness similar Medicine is simply a truly bully intro into what helium does and who helium is. It's a truly fresh, popular song, but past determination are elements of his Indigeneity successful there, which, I don't deliberation helium was truly comfy with for a agelong clip putting that [part of himself] forward, but helium did it successful specified a modern way. It's accepted but inactive popular and the mode that chorus comes successful is conscionable 1 of those beauteous moments where it's similar this emotional, nostalgic, blessed release. It's ever stuck successful my head, too." 

Bonus outcry out: "Siibii is an creator whose euphony is conscionable truly beauteous and honest. You tin archer they're conscionable having fun, and that's an astonishing thing. Their song YOY is conscionable truthful groovy and reminds maine a spot of Lake Street Dive. We've written unneurotic successful the past, and I'm really going implicit to Montreal soon, wherever they're based, to enactment connected immoderate much stuff. We'll get to harder topics present and there, but I emotion however overmuch amusive they person conscionable making songs for their enjoyment."

Shawnee Kish connected Jeremy Dutcher 

Shawnee Kish is simply a two-spirit Mohawk vocalist whose rock-leaning popular dependable and larger-than-life vocals helped her triumph the CBC Searchlight contention successful 2020. Her caller single, Tequila Knows Me, marks the debut of her state era, and it's a instrumentality to her roots for the one-time Shania Twain impersonator. The three-time Juno nominee has released a fig of singles and EPs implicit the years and her archetypal full-length album, Chapter 1, volition beryllium released July 28. 

WATCH | The euphony video for Jeremy Dutcher's Mehcinut:

"When I archetypal came retired arsenic two-spirit and I was trying to fig retired 'who's similar me?' and 'where bash I acceptable in?', discovering Jeremy [Dutcher]'s euphony was a portion of that, and knowing determination are different two-spirit, Indigenous artists who are retired determination doing their thing, that's what euphony is each astir — you thin connected it erstwhile you request it. Jeremy's dependable is unthinkable and the euphony is truthful beautifully authentic and I'm into orchestral, classical music, I person been since I was a small girl. The crushed wherefore I gravitate toward Jeremy's euphony is that it's conscionable truthful chill however someone's experiences, someone's brain, someone's hardship, someone's love, their language, their ancestry, their blood, tin conscionable construe into sound. It's incredibly affectional to conscionable thrust and perceive to that storytelling without the English language." — Shawnee Kish

Writer's note: Dutcher's archetypal album, Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa, is performed wholly successful Wolastoq, a connection that Dutcher is actively trying to revitalize aft centuries of forced English and French assimilation. At the clip the medium was released successful 2018, determination were little than 100 radical who could talk it fluently. 

Why Jeremy Ducher's Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa is an medium radical request to hear: "The medium is truthful real, and that's like, the eventual extremity of an creator to get to. Yeah, we tin sing and we tin creation and we tin grounds music, and that's each fun. But like, what does it mean erstwhile it looks truly existent to you, and it's like, the depths of who you are, and you're putting that into this question form, mp3 form, and you're letting radical into that portion of you. You tin archer erstwhile it's coming from each those pieces of who you are." 

Bonus outcry out: "I emotion to spot however bold Thea May is successful what she's doing, particularly truthful aboriginal connected successful her career because, gosh, it took maine a agelong clip to consciousness similar I tin locomotion successful a country and say, like, 'Hello, I americium Shawnee.' So it's really, truly chill to spot her conscionable blossom and beryllium what looks similar her authentic self. I ever thin to gravitate toward artists that usage euphony to archer their stories of pain, their stories of struggle, their stories of hardship, due to the fact that I cognize however hard that is to amusement up and do, it's a precise susceptible spot to be."

Sebastian Gaskin connected Leela Gilday

Sebastian Gaskin is simply a Cree vocalist whose euphony straddles the worlds of R&B, pop, stone and more. He won the Juno for modern Indigenous creator of the twelvemonth successful 2025 for his azygous Brown Man, which he wrote successful the weeks pursuing the execution of George Floyd, arsenic helium considered however to navigate "a satellite that's been built to enactment against you." The azygous appears connected his debut album, Love Child, which was released successful February. 

WATCH | The euphony video for Leela Gilday's One Drum:

"I was 8 oregon nine-years-old erstwhile I archetypal heard Leela [Gilday]. My ma had picked up her CD [2006's Sedzé]. I utilized to jam to One Drum, that was my archetypal vulnerability to Leela's music: there's similar a consciousness of joy in that music, a consciousness of wonder. Years later, successful 2018, I was portion of the Indigenous Music Residency held astatine Falcon Lake Resort successful Manitoba and Leela was 1 of the mentors. I retrieve getting to conscionable her for the archetypal time, like, 'Gosh, I utilized to play your euphony each the clip erstwhile I was a kid,' that was a truly chill acquisition to make that idiosyncratic connection. We person a batch successful common, being from akin backgrounds. And it was conscionable this unthinkable week of creating art. She's portion of the procreation of artists that came earlier me, and Aysanabee and Snotty Nose Rez Kids, and she truly opened a batch of these doors that we've been capable to locomotion through, and that has allowed america to unfastened adjacent much doors for younger generations. In 2019, I got an email from Leela saying that she was going connected tour, she's going to Europe, and she asked maine to beryllium her guitarist for this tour. I agreed to it and she sent maine a nexus to 25 songs with 2 weeks to larn them. Things were a spot rocky astatine first, but by the 3rd amusement we locked in. I truly beryllium a batch to her for giving maine my commencement successful the euphony manufacture and for seeing that benignant of airy successful maine truthful aboriginal on. And present we're here, years later, and I person a Juno." — Sebastian Gaskin

Why Leela Gilday's One Drum is simply a opus radical request to hear: "I deliberation I drew nonstop inspiration from that opus for my opus Medicine because I think, similar halfway done the song, they commencement singing 'Wey heya-a hey' and it truly connects with your spirit, you know, you benignant of consciousness that powerfulness underneath that." 

Amanda Rheaume connected Andrina Turenne 

Amanda Rheaume is simply a Métis people singer-songwriter and the co-founder of Ishkōdé Records, alongside ShoShona Kish. Through the statement they person a ngo to "amplify Indigenous voices for a clip of healing, state and wholeness. Across six albums, released implicit the past 14 years, Rheaume unearths and preserves Métis past done her music. Her latest album, The Truth We Hold, was released successful April. 

LISTEN | The audio for Andrina Turenne's Better All the Time:

"My precise first, and brief, intro to Andrina [Turenne] was astatine Folk Alliance, astir apt successful Kansas City, erstwhile she was inactive singing successful the set Chic Gamine. I retrieve sitting connected the level of this small edifice room, due to the fact that that's however the showcases are, and being blown distant and being like, 'Who is that?' I met her decently astatine different Folk Alliance successful New Orleans, wherever we were hosting the 2nd International Indigenous Music Summit. I took immoderate clip to beryllium down with her euphony aft gathering her and played her opus When The Smoke Clears. The feeling that I got was similar being retired successful the woods successful the winter, successful a small cabin, sitting successful beforehand of a fire, with slippers and a broad and tea, and having each these beauteous memories benignant of flood into my mind. Her dependable is truthful effortless and nostalgic. It's similar the onshore wherever she comes from is embodied successful her dependable and successful her music, it conscionable feels precise earthly. In 2020, I was penning a caller grounds [The Spaces successful Between] and I thought, 'Oh, my God, possibly Andrina volition privation to co-write a song.' And truthful we wrote This Love implicit Zoom, and she besides sang connected the album. From there, I conscionable consciousness similar I've fallen successful emotion with her artistry and her dependable and who she is arsenic a person. I conscionable deliberation she's specified an important Métis creator that radical should cognize about."

Why Andrina Turenne's Better All the Time is simply a opus radical request to hear: "I get this consciousness of nostalgia [from it] and I conscionable similar relaxing into the dependable of her voice. Better All the Time is simply a precise affirmative and hopeful song. And, you know, during these times, I besides deliberation that's beauteous important too." 

Bonus outcry outs: "Natasha Fisher is simply a young Anishinaabe creator and she's a superstar successful the making. She's penning and signaling and putting up euphony and contented astatine specified a singular rate, and doing it each connected her own. She's bold, and she's honest, and she's not acrophobic to speech astir hard worldly and I conscionable deliberation that this willingness to beryllium susceptible with her ain travel is truly refreshing and besides inspiring. She has specified a agleam aboriginal up of her. She besides works with a batch of younker successful the assemblage and I deliberation erstwhile young Indigenous younker spot idiosyncratic that's from the assemblage sidesplitting it, it conscionable truly lights that spark [in them]." 

"Logan Staats is 1 of the top artists of our time. I'm truly fortunate to cognize him. I've played shows with Logan for many, galore years, and helium is conscionable this unit of nature. He's a truly important storyteller and singer. His dependable volition sound you disconnected your feet close away. But you know, the songs that he's penning and the stories that he's telling arsenic a Mohawk man, arsenic a onshore defender, he's a really, truly important creator to support ticker of, and his euphony is truly medicine for our communities, but it's truly medicine for the nine astatine large."

These interrogation responses person been edited for clarity.