Iskwē Explained

iskwē
Birth Name:Meghan Lynne Meisters
Birth Place:Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Origin:Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Occupation:singer-songwriter

iskwē (Cree syllabics: Cree: ᐃᐢᑫᐧᐤ, formerly transliterated IsKwé) (short for waseskwan iskwew, meaning "blue sky woman" in English)[1] (born Meghan Lynne Meisters,[2] 1981) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and activist.[3]

Personal life

Originally from Winnipeg, Manitoba, iskwē has lived in Los Angeles, New York City, and Toronto, and now lives in Hamilton, Ontario.[4]

iskwē is a Cree Métis and a citizen of the Manitoba Métis Federation, a federally recognized Métis government.[5]

Career

She released her debut album Iskwé in 2013.[6] Her debut single "Nobody Knows," produced by The Darcys and featured in the Netflix series Between, focused on the Missing and murdered Indigenous women crisis in Canada.[7]

Her second album, The Fight Within, was released in 2017.[8] In 2018, she received a SOCAN Songwriting Prize nomination for the song "Healers".[9] The Fight Within garnered a win at the 2017 Western Canadian Music Awards (WCMA) for Electronic/Dance Artist of the Year, she also received a Juno Award nomination for Indigenous Music Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2018 and was longlisted for the 2018 Polaris Music Prize.[10] [11]

Her third album, acākosīk, was released on 8 November 2019.[12] The album won a Juno Award for Music Video of the Year for the song Little Star directed by Sarah Legault[13] and was a Juno Award nominee for Adult Alternative Album of the Year at the Juno Awards of 2020.[14] Her song "Breaking Down" was shortlisted for the 2020 SOCAN Songwriting Prize and the video PRISM Prize.[15]

iskwē's fourth album The Stars was released 5 March 2021 and is a "reimagination" of her album acākosīk (saying that "the stars" is English for acākosīk.[16]) featuring new arrangements (by Darren Fung) of six songs with iskwē accompanied by a trio of piano (Michael Shand), cello (Mariel Gonzalez), and violin (Laura C Bates) recorded live-of-the-floor at Revolution Recording[17] in Toronto and an orchestral arrangement of “Night Danger (Lovers Mix)” recorded with the FILMharmonic Orchestra (Prague).[18]

Discography

Songs

Iskwé Album Tracks[20]

The Fight Within Album Tracks[21]

acākosīk Album Tracks[22]

The Stars Album Tracks[23]

Awards

Notes and References

  1. Web site: iskwē Takes on Callous Coverage of Indigenous Youth Murders In 'Little Star': Video Premiere. Karen Bliss. 13 February 2019. Billboard.com.
  2. Web site: Indigenous musician's Facebook page suspended for using traditional name. CBC.ca. 16 October 2015.
  3. Web site: Remembrance, by iskwe. The Walrus. 9 November 2018 . 11 March 2021.
  4. http://www.cbc.ca/radio/unreserved/indigenous-artist-iskw%C3%A9-shares-her-inspiration-for-music-1.4123871 "Indigenous artist iskwē shares her inspiration for music"
  5. News: Loo . Olivea . The blue sky woman “Iskwē” performs new music live in Toronto . 25 February 2024 . 106.5 ELMNT FM Toronto (CFPT-FM) . 15 December 2023.
  6. https://www.thecoast.ca/halifax/iskwes-fight-for-the-greater-good/Content?oid=10723384 "Iskwé’s fight for the greater good"
  7. Web site: Iskwé. www.facebook.com. en. 18 May 2018.
  8. http://www.cbcmusic.ca/first-plays/567/first-play-iskwe-the-fight-within "First Play: Iskwé, The Fight Within"
  9. http://exclaim.ca/music/article/2018_socan_songwriting_prize_nominees_revealed "2018 SOCAN Songwriting Prize Nominees Revealed"
  10. http://www.cbc.ca/music/junos/junos-news/arcade-fire-and-daniel-caesar-lead-2018-juno-award-nominations-1.4520940 "Arcade Fire and Daniel Caesar lead 2018 Juno Award nominations"
  11. Web site: 2018Polaris Music Prize Longlist. polarismusicprize.ca. 18 February 2019. 11 March 2021.
  12. Graham Rockingham, "Hamilton-based singer-songwriter shares her journey of Indigenous self-discovery with new album". Hamilton Spectator, 6 November 2019.
  13. Web site: 2020 Juno Award Winners, by . Juno awards. 11 March 2021.
  14. Melody Lau, "Alessia Cara and Tory Lanez lead the 2020 Juno nominations". CBC Music, 28 January 2019.
  15. Allie Gregory, "SOCAN Announces 2020 Songwriting Prize Finalists". Exclaim!, July 16, 2020.
  16. Web site: iskwē Swaps Out Electro-Pop Immediacy for Orchestral Haunt on 'The Stars' EP, by Alisha Mughal. exclaim.ca. 1 March 2021.
  17. Web site: Revolution Recording. revolutionrecording.com. 11 March 2021.
  18. Web site: FILMharmonic Orchestra. musa.cz/filmharmonic-orchestra.htm. 11 March 2021.
  19. Web site: Spill New Music: iskwē Announces New Album nīna + Shares "Waiting for the Laughter". Spill Magazine Staff. January 11, 2024. Spill Magazine. Spill New Music. March 6, 2024.
  20. Web site: iskwe, by iskwe. iskwe. 18 May 2018.
  21. Web site: The Fight Within, by iskwe. iskwe. 18 May 2018.
  22. Web site: acākosīk, by iskwe. iskwe. 11 March 2021.
  23. Web site: The Stars, by iskwe. iskwe. 11 March 2021.
  24. Web site: 2020 Juno Award Winners, by . Juno awards. 11 March 2021.
  25. Web site: 2020 Juno Award Winners, by . Juno awards. 11 March 2021.

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