Awakening: First Blossoms / Spring Equinox   

Indigenous Artists for this Event!

• Curtis Clear Sky and the Constellationz

  Curtis Clear Sky and the Constellationz

  [Blackfoot/Anishinabe/ Maori/Guarani]

  Curtis Clear Sky and the Constellationz captivate audiences with their funky rhythms, thundering percussion, blasting horns, soulful harmonies with empowering lyrics that gratify your soul. Their highly-engaging performance will make you “bump with the booming blasting blare”, “you’ll be moving your feet like you don‘t care”. You can find Curtis Clear Sky and the Constellationz latest album Indigifunk that features Juno Award winning Mohawk Bluesman Murray Porter on their single “Turtle Island”. Indigifunk is available on all digital streaming platforms including Spotify and Apple music. In 2020 Curtis Clear Sky and the Constellationz are developing a new album with super talented Indigenous musician Beaver Thomas and they will highlight news songs at the upcoming 2 Rivers Remix Virtual Feast show.

  [Blackfoot/Anishinabe/ Maori/Guarani]

• Devyn Destinee

  Devyn Destinee

  [Syilx]

  Alternative Country singer settled in her roots on her traditional lands located in Vernon Okanagan BC on the unceeded territories of the Syilx Nation.

  Devyn is a mother, wife, animal rescuer, photoshoot creative director, podcast host and psychic. Raised in the country way of life Devyn found joy and good medicine writing songs and singing infront of crowds while performing with Wicked Stone, and alternative rock cover band. She sings the national anthem at rodeos and other events and has performed and collaborated with a variety of artists from all different genres writing hooks and assisting with writing lyrics. Inspired by her very creative family Devyn now pursues her career in music again. Her Papa Marcel was a traveling performer and Auntie Mariel is an actress and activist who helped Devyn along the path to work with community and become involved in the Indigenous Media Industry.

  As a retired actress and previous Rodeo Queen Devyn became more involved in volunteering time towards Indigenous afterschool youth and womens programs which lead her to becoming a creative director organizing photoshoots to empower women.

  [Syilx]

• Mariel Belanger

  Mariel Belanger

  [Syilx]

  Mariel Belanger has spent the last 30 years devising a life through artistic practice and digital media. Mariel’s resume is filled with Sqilxw ‘of the land’ self-directed digital performance art to revise history. As a current scholarship sponsored PhD student at Queens University in Sqilxw worlding, Mariel developed a keen understanding of Indigenous perspective by living on her reserve and honed it through artistic embodiment in her UBCO MFA research creation. Focusing on Indigenous Performance Theory, Mariel was awarded Outstanding Indigenous Student in 2018 at the International Congress of Qualitative Inquiry by the Indigenous Inquiry Circle through her revisionist history through concrete photography, performance, and video projection instillation.

  [Syilx]

• Rich & Beka

  Rich & Beka

  [Tsilhqot’in/ Secwepemc]

  Grounded in poetry, rap and melody, Rich n Beka are like fire and water, masculine and
  feminine elements of nature coming together in harmony. Their artistic partnership goes
  back six years, and bridges life and love – they’re engaged to be married and have a
  beautiful daughter together. Both share in the culture of the Tsilhqot’in Nation, Beka (Rebecca Solomon)
  from Xeni Gwet’in and Rich (Richard MacDonald) from Tletinq’ox, West of Williams Lake, BC.
  Rich n Beka carry the power of story, family, and community in their music. Rising up
  from the Tsilhqot’in, their music ignites the passion and presence of healing and
  resilience, the light of hope that shines when cycles of oppression are overcome.
  Unapologetic and powerful, there’s a fierce flow of Earth’s medicine through their song
  stories.

  URL https://www.richnbekamusic.com/

  [Tsilhqot’in/ Secwepemc]

• The Melawmen Collective

  The Melawmen Collective

  [Secwepemc/ Nuu-Chah-Nulth/ Nlaka’pamux]

  A contemporary Indigenous alternative fusion woven together with elements of hip/trip-hop, rock/folk, righteous rhymes and rich harmonies, carried through with experience, manifestation, and visions of intergenerational stories of pain and healing. The Melawmen Collective brings a uniqueness to their sound like no other, drawing in a wide variety of listeners through sharing their own journeys of life through their musical evolution together. ‘Melawmen’ means medicine in the Secwepemc language, and the unceded territory of the Secwepemc People in what is now known as BC, is where co-founders Meeka Morgan (vocals, Secwepemc/Nuu-Chah-Nulth), Rob Hall (Vocals, Ghengis Ghandi’s, Ashcroft), Geo Ignace aka Geo The Voice (Vocals, Secwepemc/Cree), and Kiva Morgan-Hall (Vocals, Secwepemc/Nuu-Chah-Nulth), continue to grow. The collective is honoured to be joined by Cass Gregg (Bass, Tŝilhqot’in) and Victor Laso (Drums, Republic of Chile).

  URL https://themelawmencollective.bandcamp.com/

  [Secwepemc/ Nuu-Chah-Nulth/ Nlaka’pamux]

• Ullus Collective

  Ullus Collective

  [Syilx]

  ULLUS is a word translated from the Syilx Language and is translated as “a gathering of people for a common purpose” and represents the necessary cohesion of artists to advance the Indigenous arts to mainstream audiences.
  ULLUS originated in 1982 under the Okanagan Tribal Council as the Okanagan Indian Curriculum Project and produced two short dramatic features films, “First People” (1982) and “First Contact” (1983). The Okanagan Indian Curriculum Project provided media arts training through the productions of video and audio recording, allowing participants the opportunity to both experience hands on training in broadcasting for film and television and audio recording industries and became the foundation for the collective’s beginnings. ULLUS Collective established itself as the video production company and Nak’ulamn Productions produced audio cassette recordings and tapes and eventually radio of live events and gatherings within the Southern Interior of BC.
  Forty years later, ULLUS is a collective of professional Indigenous artists supporting the creation, development and dissemination of Indigenous art, practices and disciplines to both Aboriginal and non- Aboriginal audiences.

  URL http://www.ulluscollective.com/

  [Syilx]