Blood Reserve performers release album on cultural challenges: ‘It’s always on our minds’

Carl Brave Rock and Jessie Blackwater of the Blood Reserve are set to release a new album on Friday. The group calls themselves the “Blood Rez Crew” and their album will feature songs talking about the cultural challenges of living on the Blood Reserve.

But that was never the plan, at least not for Brave Rock.

“We walked into the studio. We created this music,” Brave Rock said. “We didn’t go in there saying: ‘We’re going to make music about Indigenous women and suicides,’ but what came out of it was that.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "We walked into the studio. We created this music," Brave Rock said. "We didn't go in there saying: 'We're going to make music about Indigenous women and suicides,' but what came out of it was that."

After winning a $10,000 grant from the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the two collaborated with artists from across Alberta on the album.

“It took us 12 months,” Blackwater said. “It feels really good to start something and finish it. To go that full circle and have it complete is great.”

Songwriters often sing about what they know. For Brave Rock, issues facing the Indigenous community are always front of mind.

READ MORE: FSIN developing Indigenous suicide prevention strategy

“It’s always on our minds. We see people going missing every day,” Brave Rock said. “And we hear about women getting raped and with suicides, all over the country, our kids are killing themselves.”

They poured their heart into their songs and one in particular was hard for Brave Rock to get through.

“‘Do, or die’ was a really tough track for me,” Brave Rock said. “I sung about my sister who killed herself in 2006. She hung herself while she was pregnant.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "'Do, or die' was a really tough track for me," Brave Rock said. "I sung about my sister who killed herself in 2006. She hung herself while she was pregnant."

Brave Rock is finding that music helps process grief.

“I couldn’t stop crying for like an hour after (I sang the song). I was just crying, but then I just released it,” Brave Rock said.

As for Blackwater, she says while others may turn to drugs to deal with problems, her answer has always been music.

“It’s kind of like my way to heal for the things that I go through personally,” she said. “I was going through some stuff when we did this album… I need something to be an outlet.”

The new album from “Blood Rez Crew” is called World or Nothing and is available for downloads on platforms like iTunes and Google Play.

If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, please call the Canadian suicide hotline, available 24/7, at 1-800-668-6868. For more information on suicide and to find help nearest you, visit the Canadian Association for Suicide Prevention. Please call 911 for immediate help.