There is something special about being the first.
This past March in Halifax, Aysanabee found that out firsthand, becoming the first Indigenous artist to win a Juno Award in both the Alternative Album of the Year and Songwriter of the Year categories.
It was indeed a special night for the Oji-Cree singer-songwriter, not unlike what promises to be an equally special evening on Wednesday, July 3rd at Del Crary Park when Aysanabee headlines Peterborough Musicfest, with Alderville First Nation singer-songwriter Cale Crowe opening the free-admission concert.
A member of Sandy Lake First Nation’s Sucker Clan well northeast of Red Lake, Ontario, Aysanabee gave the first real indication of what was to come at the 2023 Juno Awards. Nominated for the Contemporary Indigenous Artist of the Year statue, he performed at the awards’ live gala, backed by the traditional round dance group Northern Cree. It was a performance that was well remembered long after he left the stage.
Aysanabee was nominated that year on the strength of his debut album released in November 2022. Titled Watin as a nod to his grandfather’s first name, the album was named by CBC Music as one of the best 22 Canadian albums of that year and was subsequently shortlisted for the 2023 Polaris Music Prize.
Clearly, the time that Aysanabee dedicated during the pandemic years to creating his own original music was time very well spent.
VIDEO: “We Were Here” – Aysanabee with Northern Cree
Featuring, as spoken interludes, several recordings of his grandfather recorded via phone conversations during the pandemic, Watin also includes the song “Nomads” that was pre-released as a single, reaching the top spot on both the CBC Music Top 20 and Alternative Rock charts — the latter achievement a first for a Canadian Indigenous artist.
Aysanabee says Watin — which was released through Ishkodé Records, one of the first Indigenous and women-owned labels in Canada — “actually started out as a series of conversations between myself and my grandfather.”
“We spent the first year of the pandemic talking about things we’ve never spoken about — his life on the trapline on Sandy Lake First Nation, falling in love, his life in residential school, and then leaving everything behind,” Aysanabee says in his website bio. “Even though we were more than 1,000 kilometres apart, it was probably the closest we’ve ever been.”
In an October 2023 interview with Adriel Smiley of Range Magazine, Aysanabee elaborates on the recorded result of those conversations with his grandfather.
“The record was able to kind of give him closure, which is something residential school survivors don’t get,” Aysanabee says. “Suddenly he was able to just talk more about these things. Some of these survivors go around for decades being like ‘This happened’ and everyone just looking at them like they’re a crazy person, so to have that validation (was good).”
Aysanabee, who reclaimed his grandfather’s surname when he became an adult, has followed up on the success of Watin with a six-track 2023 EP titled Here And Now that includes the single “Somebody Else,” which hit number three on the MediaBase Alternative Chart.
VIDEO: “Nomads” – Aysanabee
The title track, meanwhile, is described in Ayansabee’s website bio as a “coulda woulda shoulda song.”
“There are a million ways, and a million different outcomes, to any situation but things unfold the way they unfold,” says Aysanabee of its meaning. “Sometimes you just need to appreciate the moments, the memories, the people who have come into your life for a time to share their gifts with you, and vice versa.”
Aysanabee’s Musicfest appearance marks his first in Peterborough since performing last November at Market Hall.
Meanwhile, Cale Crowe arrives in Del Crary Park as part of a very busy summer schedule which saw him recently perform at the Kawartha Craft Beer Festival and three times in June at McThirsty’s in downtown Peterborough.
Hailing from Alderville First Nation near Roseneath, Crowe first picked up a guitar at age 12 and quickly discovered what he was meant to do, performing live for his first audience at 14.
Crowe performs his style of folk and pop-rock live using an acoustic guitar, often using an electronic drum pad and a loop station pedal to provide backing for his songs.
VIDEO: “Closer” – Cale Crowe
Crowe says the songs on his debut EP Stars & Promises, and on his follow-up EP Til You Let Me Go, capture different stages of his life, each relating a different chapter of the same story.
Having performed alongside Ron Sexsmith, Scott Helman, Gentlemen Husbands, Jimmy Bowskill, Sarah Mark, Fast Romantics, and countless others, Crowe’s music has found an appreciative audience that’s hungry for what’s next, with his next EP Burn Blue now nearing completion.
As part of his busy summer schedule, Crowe will be joining Dave Mowat and other performers from Alderville First Nation for “Natural Balance,” a concert on Willow Hill at Westben in Campbellford on July 11.
Peterborough Musicfest is presenting 16 free-admission concerts during its 37th season, each staged on Wednesday and Saturday nights until August 17th.
Overseen by executive director Tracey Randall and staff, a board of directors, and numerous volunteers, Peterborough Musicfest’s stated mission remains “to provide diverse, affordable live music to enrich cultural and economic prosperity in our community.”
For more information on this concert or the 2024 season, visit www.ptbomusicfest.ca or phone the Peterborough Musicfest office at 705-755-1111.
kawarthaNOW is proud to be a headline sponsor of Peterborough Musicfest’s 2024 season.
