sākihiwē festival 2019

Riit, photo by Jen Squires

Published May 30, 2019

WINNIPEG, Man. — Aboriginal Music Manitoba (AMM) is excited to announce details for the 2019 edition of the sākihiwē festival. Everything is set for June 14 – 16 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada and 21 Indigenous acts will perform at one or more of the festival’s five locations.

sākihiwē festival
June 14 – 16, 2019
Treaty One Territory
Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
sakihiwe.ca

“This festival is different,” explains Festival Director Alan Greyeyes “We take the music to the families because we want Indigenous kids to see more than the caricatures of Indigenous people in professional sport logos; the hunter/gatherer references in history books; and, the one-dimensional characters in Hollywood films.”

Festival Highlights

• 2019 marks the 10th year of festival programming for AMM (the festival was introduced as Aboriginal Music Week in 2009, took a one-week break during the Canada 150 celebrations, and received a new name during a ceremony lead by Sundance Chief David Blacksmith in 2018).
• Arctic Song’s Inuit music revitalization movement, the electro-pop throat singing of Riit, and Kelly Fraser’s Inuktitut pop songs will give audiences a taste of the incredible things happening north of the tree line.
• Eekwol and T-Rhyme will join forces for a powerhouse hip hop performance in front of the Ka Ni Kanichihk building on June 15.
• Hoop dancers Shanley Spence, Sandra Lamouche, and Rylee Sandberg will entertain audiences on their own at one of more of the festival concerts.

Arctic Song, Kelly Fraser, Riit, Boogey the Beat with Shanley Spence, Rylee Sandberg, Eekwol and T-Rhyme, Don Amero, Leonard Sumner, and Art Beat Studio participants are set to take one or more of the sākihiwē festival stages.

AMM is really excited to present members of the Butterfly Club, next wave hip hop artist Antoine Edwards Jr., genre bending crooner Aspects, hoop dancer Sandra Lamouche, pop singer Carsen Gray, Innu reggae singer Shauit, country/rock maven Dawn Chartrand, rapper Zedone, the Ma Mawi Pow Wow Club, and northern Manitoba’s Low Budget Rock Star for the very first time.

The Good Will Social Club, Ka Ni Kanichihk, Central Park, the Turtle Island Neighbourhood Centre, and the Magnus Eliason Recreation Centre will play host to the sākihiwē festival and AMM is working with Ka Ni Kanichihk, Central Neighbourhoods, the Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre, and the Spence Neighbourhood Association to bring it all together.

The festival will begin with a sweat lodge ceremony on June 13 to welcome the visiting artists and start everything in a good way. The public programming kicks off on June 14 with a ticketed concert at the Good Will Social Club. Saturday’s programming includes block parties at Central Park and Ka Ni Kanichihk from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., respectively. Everything wraps up on Sunday after a block party from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Magnus Eliason Recreation Centre and a five-hour block party set for a 1:00 p.m. start time at the Turtle Island Neighbourhood Centre.All of the block parties and concerts are open to the general public and AMM encourages audiences from all parts of the city to attend. Each location will have licensed security on site, professional sound technicians and great PA systems, restrooms with washing stations, and parking on public streets in the area. Lawn chairs, refillable water bottles, and sunscreen are recommended for all outdoor events.

sākihiwē festival details:

Grand Entry presented by Section 35
ft. Antoine Edwards Jr., Boogey The Beat w/ Shanley Spence, Carsen Gray, Aspects, and Kelly Fraser
Friday, June 14, 2019
The Good Will Social Club, 625 Portage Avenue
9:00 p.m. – 2:00 a.m.
18+ | I.D. Req’d
Tix: First 100 free with RSVP, $10 +tax advance/door
RSVP/Tix: https://smarturl.it/grandentry2019

Central Park Block Party
Partners: Central Neighbourhoods Winnipeg, Art Beat Studio
ft. Don Amero, Leonard Sumner, Carsen Gray, Sandra Lamouche, and Art Beat Studio
Saturday, June 15, 2019
Central Park, 400 Edmonton Street
12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
All Ages | Family Friendly
Free concert | Free BBQ | Bouncy castle
Bring lawn chairs

Ka Ni Kanichihk Block Party
Partner: Ka Ni Kanichihk
ft. Eekwol & T-Rhyme, Arctic Song, Boogey The Beat w/ Shanley Spence, Aspects, The Butterfly Club, and special guestsSaturday, June 15, 2019
Harriet Street beside the Ka Ni Kanichihk office at 455 McDermot Avenue
1:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
All Ages | Family Friendly
Free concert | Free BBQ | Bouncy castle
Bring lawn chairs

Spence Neighbourhood Block Party
Partner: Spence Neighbourhood Association
ft. Arctic Song, Kelly Fraser, Low Budget Rock Star, Rylee Sandberg, and special guests
Sunday, June 16, 2019
Magnus Eliason Recreation Centre, 430 Langside Street
12:00 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.
All Ages | Family Friendly
Free concert | Free BBQ | Bouncy castle
Bring lawn chairs

Turtle Island Block Party
Partner:  Ma Mawi Wi Chi Itata Centre
ft. Riit, Shauit, Sandra Lamouche, Dawn Chartrand, Zedone, Ma Mawi Pow Wow Club
Sunday, June 16, 2019
Turtle Island Neighbourhood Centre, 510 King Street
1:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.
All Ages | Family Friendly
Free concert | Free BBQ | Bouncy castle
Bring lawn chairs