Promoting Mentoring at Winnipeg’s Sākihiwē Festival for Indigenous Music

Aboriginal Music Manitoba has created a school in which five Indigenous artists mentor emerging artists.

Mentoring that touches on every aspect of artistic practice

The 20 emerging artists—half of whom are women—who take part in Aboriginal Music Manitoba’s Sākihiwē Festival attend meetings with mentors to discuss their performances and master their art. The meetings focus on songwriting, vocal technique, stage presence, marketing, management, and many other topics relevant to their career in the arts.

Supporting future generations of Indigenous musicians

This Aboriginal Music Manitoba activity at the Festival brings together Indigenous participants, including three Inuit, from all provinces. A survey of artists ahead of the event has helped guide discussions on topics of interest. In the long-term, these discussions seek to increase the number of Indigenous artists invited to take part in music festivals and support the creation, professionalization, and dissemination of music created and performed by Indigenous people. These new artistic relationships may even continue after the Festival.