The Jerry Cans

Indigenous Band #5

The Jerry Cans is a five person band from Iqualuit, Nunavut. Their music is mostly written in Inuktitut, and combines Inuit throat singing with folk, country and rock. The group consists of a vocalist/guitarist, a vocalist/accordionist, a violinist, a bassist and a drummer. The name of the group actually comes from the drummer building a drum kit out of old jerrycans. 

Squires, J. (n.d.). The Jerry Cans. [Photo]. Retrieved from  https://calgaryherald.com/entertainment/local-arts/the-jerry-cans-bring-some-northern-light-to-calgary-with-genre-hopping-inuktitut-music/

Music:

The group has released three albums to date, in 2012, 2014 and 2016, with a fourth upcoming to be released sometime this year (2020). The band as a whole has not won any notable awards, but achieved nominations for Aboriginal Songwriter of the Year and Pushing the Boundaries at the CFMA in 2015. They were also nominated for Breakthrough Group of the Year and Contemporary Roots Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2018. 

Goals:

The group has published a children's book, Mamaqtuq!, based on their song that shares the same name. I actually remember being read this book, though I can't remember how old I was. The band also made the record label "Aakuluk Music", which releases albums by Nunavut artists to help northern musicians. They also performed live at the Juno Awards in 2018, alongside other musicians from Nunavut.

Squires, J. (n.d.). Juno-nominated The Jerry Cans (Steve Rigby, Nancy Mike, Andrew Morrison, Gina Burgess, and Brendan Doherty) bring a taste of Canada's Far North to Peterborough Musicfest for a free concert on Canada Day at Del Crary Park in Peterborough. [Photo]. Retrieved from https://kawarthanow.com/2018/06/29/peterborough-musicfest-the-jerry-cans/

Though not intense activists, The Jerry Cans are a group worth listening to, and their children's content is charming, including their book and music for the children's series, Anaana's Tent. They did an Inuktitut cover of The Tragically Hip's Ahead by a Century, which was actually stunning. They've released two more singles so far this year, and many fans are looking forward to their upcoming album, titled Echoes, which is said to be released May 15, 2020.

You can find their website, which includes updates, their store and music videos, here:

https://www.thejerrycans.com/

Tanya Tagaq

Indigenous Singer #4

Tanya Tagaq is from Cambridge, Nunavut, and also attended school in the Northwest Territories and Nova Scotia. One of her most stunning achievements is her tours and album in collaboration with Björk in 2004, and has been an active artist since 2002.


Bertlesen, O. (n. d.). Cambridge Bay’s Tanya Tagaq entertaining a large audience at the Riddu Riddu international indigenous festival in northern Norway during a July 17 performance. [Photo]. Retrieved from https://nunatsiaq.com/stories/article/photo_tanya_tagaq_in_norway/

Music:

Tanya has released five studio albums, her third, Animism, having won the 2014 Polaris Prize. The same album also won the Juno Award for Aboriginal Album of the year. She has received many nominations throughout her entire musical career, and has performed across Canada. Besides be an accomplished musician, Tanya is also a visual artist and has published book, called Split Tooth, which is a mix of fiction and memorial aspects, and was nominated for both 2018 Scotiabank Giller Prize and 2019 Amazon.ca First Novel Award. 

Goals:

Tanya has spoken out against anti-sealing activists, which is huge. The seal skin trade is an immense portion of the modern Inuit economy, and rules preventing them from selling the skin have a devastating effect, even though they hunt sustainably and use every part of the animal. A picture of Tanya and her child wearing sealskin received comments saying she should have her child taken away from her, which is an awful way of racism against Inuit apparel and way of life.

N. A. (2015). Tanya Tagaq at Interstellar Rodeo, 2015. [Photo]. Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Meetup/Indigenous_Musicians

One of Tanya's unique aspects of her art is her solo form. Inuit throat singing is traditionally done by two woman, and Tanya's lack of a partner was a large step away from the usual Inuit throat singing. Her combination of modern and traditional singing, with her own twist, as well as a book and visual art, is an amazing combination of skills. Tanya is a varied artist in many forms, and brings attention to problems in the media that are usually very one-sided.

A biography on Tanya Tagaq by Timothy Monger can be found here:
https://www.allmusic.com/artist/tanya-tagaq-mn0001400520/biography