Ojibwe students from St. Joseph’s School in Bruce Grey Catholic District School Board came together to make a music video.
Since being released at the end of March, the students’ video has garnered thousands of views on social media platforms.
The song and video, titled “Tie Our Spirits” was produced and shot with the help of a non-profit group N’We Jinan. N’we Jinan is a group whose name means “We Live Here” in the Cree language. The non-profit group has created over 80 songs and videos across Canada that have been viewed more than 15 million times online. Their organization does a lot of great work in promoting and sharing Canada’s Indigenous languages and culture.
Students at St. Joseph’s held a viewing assembly so those involved could share their creation with the rest of the school.
Native Language Teacher, Natalka Pucan, and Principal, Keith Walsh, arranged for N’we Jinan to come to St. Joseph’s School. Students from the Senior Native Languages class participated in making the video.
N’we Jinan’s initiative brings a mobile recording studio into schools and community centres across First Nation communities in Canada.
Not only was this a great creative outlet for our students, but it also was an important learning opportunity. Participants learn about recording, music production, song writing, performance, marketing and design.
They also had a chance to share with each other on issues of cultural identity, language, struggle, love and self-acceptance — a wonderful opportunity for all those involved.
Watch the video here:
