Scott Roos
Special to the Herald
This March, iconic Canadian singer-songwriter Susan Aglukark is hitting the road to celebrate the 30th anniversary of her breakthrough album This Child.
On Thursday, March 13 she will perform live at the EA Rawlinson Centre for the Arts in Prince Albert, bringing her powerful stories and unforgettable music to the stage for a night of reflection, celebration, and inspiration.
Aglukark will perform iconic songs like “Oh Siem” and “Hina Na Ho (Celebration),” along with personal tracks such as “Shamaya” and “Breaking Down.” She’ll include songs “Pond Inlet” and “Casualties of War,” which tackle critical issues affecting Indigenous communities today.
“Relocation is an issue right now,” she explained, tying her music to ongoing struggles.
The album’s title track “This Child”, which many may remember from the early 2000’s Imax film “Great North”, will also feature.
Aglukark’s career journey began several years before the release of This Child. In a recent interview with the Prince Albert Daily Herald, she recalled how her songwriting began as a form of personal expression.
“When I first moved to Ottawa in 1989, I wasn’t even really a writer,” she said. “It was diary writing, it was journal writing, and there were these little bits and pieces of things I would write.”
It was during this time that she found her voice, both as a writer and as an artist.
The turning point came when Aglukark, then working for Indian Affairs in Ottawa, began reflecting on her experiences growing up in the North. When she first arrived in Yellowknife to complete her high school education she began residing in a residence that was adjacent to the school after previously living in a residential school in the Arctic region.
It was while living in these dormitories in Yellowknife that she wrote a poem about some of her experiences.
“Life was different, residence life was different, but it still brought with it a lot of uncertainty and trauma, leaving home going so far away, and being away for three years with two week breaks here and there,” Aglukark told the Herald.
Her first major breakthrough came when she presented this poem about these experiences to David Webster, who would become Aglukark’s first manager.
“Part of the job in Ottawa was giving Inuit history lessons, and what did I know about Inuit history? Very little, but I knew my community well, so we got to talking about, ‘well, what do we share?’
“This became a recording project. It was supposed to be a documentary, a short little documentary piece about living away from home to finish high school. We hired this musician, a jazz musician named Larry Crosley, to do the music. And he created an arrangement, which became a recording, which became the music and a music video that got submitted to MuchMusic,” Aglukark said. “That project opened the door for my first album, Arctic Rose…..” which would pave the way for a major label signing and the release of This Child.
The success of This Child was both thrilling and overwhelming.
“It was so scary…,” she said, reflecting on the whirlwind of becoming a well-known artist. “I wasn’t absolutely sure, certain or convinced I could (tour, sing and perform) day in and day out during This Child, because I wasn’t convinced then that I was the singer that could do this. Even if I was feeling that—and I was—I still wanted to see what could happen. (I thought,) ‘here’s an opportunity, an incredible opportunity. What can I do with this?’
“That’s the thing that kept me waking up every morning. Let’s keep trying. Let’s see what happens here.”
Despite the fear and uncertainty, Aglukark’s perseverance paid off. She quickly became a trailblazer in Canadian music, inspiring countless artists who followed in her footsteps.
Her journey, from the uncertain individual who first started out, to the confident and accomplished artist she is today, reflects on her personal growth. She’s come a long long way and so has the Canadian music industry in terms of inclusion and representation of Indigenous artists.
There’s no denying Aglukark played a big role in that. She is Canada’s first Inuk artist to win a Juno. She has been the recipient of a Governor General’s Performing Arts Award for lifetime artistic achievement, and is an officer of the Order of Canada. Through all of this, she still remains humble and grounded.
“Success has to be measured, not in terms of wealth or in terms of the things that we collect, but waking up every day and just having an inkling still of joy in the life that you are living in,” she said.
“I left home a broken person. 30 years later, that still is a big part of my life, but it’s not what defines me. My joy, reconnecting with joy through art and expression and performing and singing, that’s the thing that 30 years later is what still compels me to keep working, to keep moving forward, to keep recovering, to keep healing.”
Don’t miss the chance to experience Susan Aglukark’s extraordinary 30th Anniversary of This Child Tour. Get your tickets now for an unforgettable night of music, storytelling, and celebration at the EA Rawlinson Centre for the Arts in Prince Albert.
