Canadian Musician - January / February 2020 | Page 45

makerz and Ajungi did a great
job on my song and other songs
from the album as well.”
Seeteenak plans to drop
her debut full-length in 2020
and is grateful to Simonsen for
his ongoing guidance with that
project. Ultimately, she aspires
to be a full-time professional
artist, and recognizes this expe-
rience is bringing her closer to
that goal.
It’s worth noting that a
Stuart Qiyuk (right), from Baker Lake, NU, records with producer Thor
portion of Ajungi’s sales will ben-
Simonsen (left) in Iqaluit.
efit the Kamatsiaqtut Nunavut
Helpline. Kamatsiaqtut means
Ajungi artists are peppered throughout it,
“thoughtful people who care” in Inuktitut,
there was a lot of back-and-forth during the
and the service offers residents of Nunavut
creative process.
anonymous and confidential counseling
Stuart Qiyuk is one of the artists fea-
if they or someone they know is feeling
tured on the compilation, teaming up with
suicidal, depressed, or overwhelmed. Simon-
Greenland-based DJ and producer Uyaraqk
sen says that idea was born of some of the
for the atmospheric and chill R&B number
consistent lyrical themes interwoven through
“Why.”
Ajungi’s 12 songs.
“I got to work on a song that meant a
lot to me at the time, and what they made
out of it just made it that much more mean-
ingful,” he says about the experience. “They’ve
shaped the song into something I never
would have thought of, kindled with a flame
that made it that much brighter.”
Originally from Baker Lake and now liv-
ing in Iqaluit, Shauna Seeteenak contributes
the hooky hip-hop track “Letter to Myself.”
She says the experience of working with Hit-
makerz and Ajungi was enlightening as she’s
been producing and mixing her own music
for years with a relatively insular workflow.
“It was nice to have someone else be
able to work on my song because at times
it can get frustrating trying to mix my own
music, and I can’t get to the point where it
seems perfect,” she explains. “I feel like Hit-
the impact that Ajungi has had thus far and,
looking ahead to the work and workshops of
2020, hopes it continues to grow. It’s particu-
larly encouraging that many previous work-
shop participants, such as Angela Amarualik
and, until her untimely death in December
2019, Kelly Fraser, joined the team to carry
the mission forward and help deliver more of
them in Inuktitut for other communities.
On the note of the Indigenous
renaissance, Simonsen says successful
Nunavut-rooted artists like Tanya Tagaq and
The Jerry Cans are “blazing a trail for others
to follow,” and the more momentum those
at the tip of the iceberg can gain, the more
opportunity there is for others to break the
surface.
Some Ajungi artists already feel like
they’re on that path.
“I’ve never had my song on platforms
such as iTunes, Spotify, or any of that. Now I
do, and that’s something I’ve always looked
into and wanted to happen,” says Oiyuk.
“I see more people sharing the song and
Hitmakerz founders Thor Simonsen (centre, left) & the late Kelly Fraser (centre, right) give a workshop on “Working
in the Arts” in Arctic Bay, NU
Acclaimed Inuk artist Kelly Fraser
was actively involved in advancing
Hitmakerz & Ajungi’s mission prior
to her tragic death by suicide in
December 2019. May her music
and her work continue to inspire &
empower her fellow artists for years
to come.
“The experience of mental health
issues – that’s something every Nunavum-
miuq has grown up with, so it didn’t come
as a surprise to me [that it was a prominent
theme],” he says. “It’s such a broad issue, so
[it felt important] to help raise awareness
and help the volunteers working at that
helpline.”
Music, he adds, is also a means of chan-
neling negativity and transforming it into
something healthy and positive – another
fact that fuels his team’s work.
“There are cases where a song has
really helped put someone in the right
direction and changed their outlook on life,”
he says. “It can get pretty extreme at times.”
Simonsen says he’s encouraged by
giving positive feedback, and I am proud
of that.”
Simonsen says they just want to
reinforce Nunavut’s position on the musical
and cultural map. “We joke that our mission
is to bring Grammys back to the North,” says
Simonsen. “We really do want to promote
these artists, make them self-sustaining, and
have them touring in the south and glob-
ally. Inuit music – stuff that’s made in the
Arctic – is very unique globally, and I think
there’s a huge opportunity for us, not just
Nunavummiut, but as Canadians, to share
this in other places.”
Andrew King is the Editor-in-Chief of
Canadian Musician.
CANADIAN MUSICIAN 45