Indigifest is back for another year, streaming the music of Indigenous, Metis and Inuit musicians from across B.C. into your living room.
“What we really wanted to do was honour the artists themselves. We have let the artists decide how they want their creation to be, what their video looks like, what is important to them,” said Sarah Pocklington, Indigifest executive producer and artistic director.
The bi-annual online music festival is put on by The First Peoples’ Cultural Council, a Crown corporation that assists in efforts to revitalize Indigenous language, arts and culture.
The festival not only helps foster and mentor the musicians selected but also elevates their talent by putting them in the spotlight.
“They are really sharing their cultures, their individual styles — some of them are really featuring the land … that they’re from,” said Pocklington.
“It’s really cool. Some of them are really unique and I find that very exciting.”
Kelowna’s dynamic musician Jodie ‘Jodie B’ Bruce will take the virtual stage on Aug. 12.
“My set actually takes place in a treehouse on Klub Kalamalka on the lake out there and it’s just a neat spot,” said Bruce.
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“I have my looping pedal, so my usual setup is, I will pick up a guitar, loop things and then loop my bass and different instruments, play harmonica, sing and rap.”
Quinn Pickering from New Westminster is one of the 18 artists selected, showcasing his unique blend of folk and indie music.
The online platform allows the musician to share even more of himself through his music.
“For the Indigenous artists it’s a very unique platform, because we are able to welcome everybody into our home and to our territories rather than everybody be in a field that no one has ever been in before, and on a stage they never stood on before,” said Pickering.
“I think it’s special to me that I get to welcome everybody to my mother’s backyard which is where I started playing music.”
Indigifest will be streaming every Thursday of August at 7 p.m on their website www.indigifest.ca
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