2013 NAMMY winners

A chronology of this year's NAMMY award show along with a partial list of winners.

2013 Native American Music Awards

By Sherrill FulghumActor Kevin Costner hosted a program called "500 Nations" that documented the many Native nations that inhabit North America. On May 10 the Native American Music Awards honoured Native musicians from many of those Nations for their contributions to the world of music.

The NAMAs held their 14th annual Awards gala at the Seneca Niagara Events Center in Niagara Falls, New York. This marked the sixth consecutive year that the Seneca Nation hosted the event.

Set to be held last November, the NAMA's were delayed after Hurricane Sandy destroyed the NAMA headquarters in New York City.

The sold out event was hosted by Canadian comedian Don Kelly.14th Annual Native American Music Awards WinnersARTIST OF THE YEAR
Tony Duncan
Earth Warrior

GROUP OF THE YEAR
Tuwa
Big City Indians

BEST POP RECORDING
Stay With Me Baby
Jana Mashonee

RECORD OF THE YEAR
Shi Keyah Songs For The People
Radmilla Cody

SONG/SINGLE OF THE YEAR
Hear My Cry
Frank Waln & Cody Blackbird

LIVING LEGEND
Nelly Furtado

HALL OF FAME
Russell MeansComment:  Go to either article for a complete list of the winners.

For more on the NAMMYs, see 2013 NAMMY Nominations and Russell Means Honored for "Rap-ajo."

2013 NAMMY nominations

Nelly Furtado, Tony Duncan, Rickey Medlocke, Radmilla Cody to Boost NAMA 2013On Friday, May 10, when the Native American Music Awards are handed out in some 35 categories, the cast of leading Native musicians will be joined on stage by pop star Nelly Furtado and Chinese singer Ayi Jihu, who was described by the BBC as "China's Madonna."

Rickey Medlocke, founder of Blackfoot and current guitarist for Lynyrd Skynyrd, and Grammy Award–winner Joanne Shenandoah will induct the late Russell Means into the Native American Music Awards Hall of Fame. Though primarily known as an actor and activist, Means released two discs that married his words to diverse styles of music. Means described the material on Electric Warrior (1993) and The Radical (1995) as "rap-ajo."

Acts scheduled to perform include Big River Cree, Buddy Big Mountain, Edmund Bull, Indian Elvis, Fawn Wood, CC Murdock, Jana, Joseph FireCrow, and Blackfoot. Grammy nominee Radmilla Cody, who is nominated for three NAMA awards, will sing solo, and also perform with Artist of the Year nominee Tony Duncan and his group Estun-Bah.

Furtado, who brought the hoop dancing skills of Tony Duncan to international prominence with her "Big Hoops" video, will receive the Living Legend Award. Duncan has become a regular presence on stage with Furtado, dancing to "Big Hoops" at high-profile performances that include MTV’s Video Music Awards, the Billboard Music Awards, The Tonight Show. Ayi Jihu will join fashion designer Angela DeMontigny and musician Terri-Lynn Williams-Davidson in presenting an award.Comment:  For more on the NAMMYs, see Russell Means Honored for "Rap-ajo" and Edwards and Secola in NAMA Hall of Fame.

Below:  "Nelly Furtado with Tony Duncan in 2012. The two-time Grammy winner holds Duncan's 'Earth Warrior,' nominated for the NAMA Record of the Year."

Russell Means honored for "rap-ajo"

The Late Russell Means to be Inducted into the Native American Music Awards Hall of FameAs a musician, Russell Means released two national recordings, the 16 track Electric Warrior, on Warrior Records in 1993, and The Radical, released on the American Indian Music Company, Inc., in 1995. He described his music as a Tribal Experience that included all genres of music; Classical, Country & Western Rock-n-Roll, Hard Rock, Hip-Hop, R&B, Jazz and the Blues. He called his own music and words, Rap-ajo because he said, “It's my version of Rap.”

The 14th Annual Native American Music Awards will be inducting the late American Indian activist, actor, and musician, Russell Means, into the Native American Music Awards Hall of Fame on May 10 at the Seneca Niagara Hotel & Casino in Niagara Falls, New York.

The New York Times described him as, "the charismatic Oglala Sioux who helped revive the warrior image of the American Indian in the 1970s with protests that called attention to the nation's history of injustices against its indigenous peoples". The LA Times called him, "the most famous American Indian since Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse." Means is remembered as an "Oglala Lakota patriot and freedom fighter" by his family.

An inspirational visionary, Russell Means, passed away in October of 2012 at his ranch in Porcupine, South Dakota at the age of 72.Comment:  For more on Russell Means, see Russell Means Was a Fighter and Russell Means's Funeral.

Below:  "Russell Means with Senator Ted Kennedy."

Edwards and Secola in NAMA Hall of Fame

2011 NAMMY Awards

By Sherrill FulghumThe first induction to the Native American Music Association–NAMA–Hall of Fame went to Nokie Edwards. Edwards began his musical career at age five with the guitar. By eleven there wasn’t a string instrument Nokie couldn’t play, but he stuck with the guitar. In 1959 Edwards became one third of the trio known as The Ventures; a group that went on to sell over 100 million records around the world and record such hits as “Wipe Out,” “Pipeline,” and the theme to original television series “Hawaii Five-O.” Edwards is also a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a part of The Ventures.

Joining Nokie Edwards as the newest members of the NAMA Hall of Fame is seven time NAMMY winner Keith Secola. Secola is a multitalented guitarist, flutist, singer, songwriter, composer, and producer whose song NDN Kars is the most requested and played song on Native American radio. When not entertaining fans with his music, Secola is campaigning for Native American Rights and environmental concerns.Comment:  Who knew that one of the composers of the Hawaii Five-0 theme song was Native? Not me.

For more on the NAMMYs, see NAMA Endorses Military Book and The 2010 NAMMY Winners.

The 2011 NAMMY winners

Congratulations NAMMY Winners 2011!

The winners include:

Artist of the Year:  Gabriel Ayala

Group of the Year:  Pipestone, As the Rez Turns

Best Spoken Word:  My Life is My Sundance, Harvey Arden and Leonard Peltier

Follow the link for the complete list of winners. For more on the subject, see The 2010 NAMMY Winners and The 2009 NAMMY Winners.

NAMA endorses military book

N.A.M.A. Endorses New Military BookIt has often been noted that American Indians/Alaska Natives have served in the United States military more per capita than any other ethnic group. So it’s no wonder an organization like the Native American Music Awards & Association would endorse a military project.

In a recent announcement N.A.M.A. is collaborating with Operation Music Aid Inc., involving recently published Two Scoops of Hooah!: The T-Walls of Kuwait and Iraq. The 208-page hardcover book, serves as a pictorial spread of history, focusing on cement structures, T-walls, that originally were military barriers. Now transformed into artistic murals showing the expressions of the American Service Members and Coalition Partner Nations on the battlefields of Kuwait and Iraq.Comment:  For more on military books, see Navajo Codetalker Writes Memoir and Photographing America's First Warriors.

The 2010 NAMMY winners

2010 Native American Music Award Winners

By Sherrill FulghumOn Friday the Native American community held the twelfth annual Native American Music Awards. The show was dedicated to the troops, veterans, and teen suicide awareness.

Honouring the best of Native Americans and their music the Native American Music Awards was hosted by actor Wes Studi–Magua in the 1992 “Last of the Mohicans” and Eytukan in “Avatar”–from the Seneca Niagara Events Center in Niagara Falls, New York. The NAMMYs honour traditional and contemporary artists in 30 categories.Some of the winners:

Debut Artist of the Year:  Victoria Blackie with “Wanted Man”

Best Pop Recording of the Year:  “We Are” by Digging Roots

Best Compilation Recording of the Year:  “Walking with the Spirits” by Randy McGinnis

Record of the Year:  “Breakin’ Free” by the Jan Michael Looking Wolf Band

Song/Single of the Year:  “Windwalker/Wind Spirit Drum” by Grandfather

Songwriter of the Year:  Brad Clonch for “Fight for Survival”

Best Rock Recording of the Year:  “Sgeweh” by Segweh

Best Music Video of the Year:  “Sacred Warrior” by Tom Bee

Artist of the Year:  Joseph FireCrow with “Face the Music”

The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Bobby Bullet St. Germaine.Comment:  For more on the subject, see The 2009 NAMMY Winners and The 2008 NAMMY Winners.

The 2009 NAMMY winners

NAMMY 2009 Winners Announced

Eleventh Annual Winners AnnouncedOn Saturday October 3, 2009, the Eleventh Annual Native American Music Awards (N.A.M.A.) was held at the Seneca Niagara Hotel & Casino in Niagara Falls in front of a packed house that featured consistently outstanding live music performances along with an emotionally charged Hall of Fame induction in honor of the late Ritchie Valens.

Taking this year's top honors are; Joanne Shenandoah & Michael Bucher's Bitter Tears Sacred Ground for Best Compilation, Jana Mashonee's rendition of Sam Cooke's A Change Is Gonna Come with Derek Miller for Song/Single of the Year, Jan Michael Looking Wolf for Artist of the Year, Skylar Wolf for Debut Artist of the Year, Will and Lil Jess for Debut Duo/Group of the Year, Kevin Locke's Earth Gift for Record of the Year, and American Idol Semi-finalist Charly Lowry for Best Video for her long form video featuring her song, Movin On.Comment:  For more on the subject, see 2009 NAMMY Nominations and The 2008 NAMMY Winners.

2009 NAMMY nominations

11th Annual Native American Music Awards nominees announcedThis year’s Hall of Fame induction will be held for the late Ritchie Valens, who is of Yaqui heritage on his mother’s side. It has been 50 years since his tragic passing--he was killed on a small private plane that took off from Clear Lake, Iowa bound for Fargo, N.D. that never made its destination. The plane crash also claimed the lives of Buddy Holly, J.P. “Big Bopper” Richardson and the pilot Feb. 3, 1959.

Special recognition will also be given to guitarist/musician/producer Stevie Salas as this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award recipient. Salas is an American born rock guitarist of Apache descent. With humble beginnings, Salas’ unique heavy funk/rock guitar styling’s quickly helped him make a name for himself in music industry circles in the late 1980s. After 20 years in the business, Salas’ talent and swagger have earned him great respect in the music world as a studio and concert musician. He has recorded, toured with, written, produced and directed many record industry greats including; Mick Jagger, Rod Stewart, George Clinton and Justin Timberlake.

A plethora of new up-and-comers were nominated alongside established artists and previous winners throughout a diverse array of 30 music categories spanning all genres. This year’s leading nominee is classical guitarist Gabriel Ayala (Yaqui) with five nominations surrounding his three recordings; “Portraits,” “Allegro” and “Tango!” Three of those nominations are in the World music category and the other two in Instrumental and Male Artist.

Following up with four nominations each are: Apryl Allen (Comanche) with “Na Unu Nahai” (Shape Shifter) for Debut Artist, Pop, Record of the Year and Song/Single of the Year; Bryan Akipa (Dakota Sioux) with “Songs From The Black Hills” for Flutist, Male, New Age and Record of the Year; Jana Mashonee (Lumbee) with her recording “A Change Is Gonna Come” for Pop, Best Video and Song/Single as well as for her release, “New Moon Born” which earned her Artist of the Year; and Joanne Shenandoah (Oneida) and Michael Bucher (Cherokee) for their recording “Bitter Tears Sacred Ground.” Together they share nods for Record of the Year and Best Compilation. Shenandoah earned Best Female and Song/Single for the track, “Riding Free.” Bucher earned Best Video for his single, “Don’t Forget About Me,” and Best Male.Comment:  For more on the subject, see Birmingham to Host NAMMYs and The 2008 NAMMY Winners.

Birmingham to host NAMMYs

Gil Birmingham to Host Native American Music Awards Oct.The Native American Music Awards and Association today announced that actor Gil Birmingham will host and perform at the 11th Annual Native American Music Awards (NAMMYS) on Saturday, October 3, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. at the Seneca Niagara Hotel & Casino in Niagara Falls, New York.

"It is with great pleasure that we announce the inclusion of Gil Birmingham to the Seneca Niagara Casino & Hotel for the 11th Annual Native American Music Awards", states Karen Karsten, Executive Director of Entertainment for Seneca Gaming Corporation. Gil represents the very best of what NAMA stands for--a formal recognition of outstanding contributions in the arts by Native American performers. We couldn´t be more honored to have Gil join us in Niagara Falls for this very prestigious occasion."Comment:  For more on the subject, see The 2008 NAMMY Winners and Pix of Billy Black and the Wolf Pack.

Blackfire and the Native legacy

Native American fireball punk

Blackfire returns with their combustible mix of politics and musicThe history of rock 'n' roll, like just about everything in the Americas, is inseparable from the Native American legacy. From the beginning, Johnny Cash, claiming Cherokee heritage, shared Elvis' early rockabilly stage. Gene Clark's Amerindian Midwestern country style lent depth to the original Byrds. Jimi Hendrix credited the storytelling of his Cherokee grandmother as a key to his artistic temperament. James Brown, who claimed in his autobiography to be descended from Geronimo, said the Native American drum inspired his syncopated R&B invention known as "funk." Neil Young of Buffalo Springfield, Rick Danko of The Band, Link Wray … the list goes on.

But few if any rock artists of Amerindian decent have remained as close to the concerns and sounds of the reservation as the metal-punk rockers Blackfire.

Recipients of the 2007 Native American Album of the Year for their work on Silence is a Weapon (Tacoho Records), Blackfire has, since their formation in 1989, garnered respect from their indigenous community as well as the rock 'n' roll world at large. Joey Ramone himself, arguably the co-inventor of punk rock, was attracted to their early work and helped in the production of their first album.Comment:  For more on the subject, see How Blackfire Got Started.

The 2008 NAMMY winners

Congratulations to Native American Music Award Winners 2008Two of the top winners, each capturing double awards, Blackfire and Native Roots, also deserve an award in the "keeping it real" category for their enduring efforts for international human rights, Indigenous sovereignty and the preservation of Native culture.

Blackfire's Klee, Clayson and Jeneda Benally, with their father Jones Benally, have upheld the standard of no compromise in the fight for dignity and human rights for Indigenous Peoples around the world. From their home in Flagstaff, Arizona, with the foundation of their father's homeland in Big Mountain on the Navajo Nation, Blackfire has established a new standard for Native American youths and resistance to colonization.

Blackfire's "(Silence) is a Weapon" captured the Best Record Award for 2008 and the Native Heart Award, with recognition for producer Ed Stasium.

Native Roots, awarded Group of the Year and Best World Recording, is based in Albuquerque. Native Roots has carried this unique reggae, traditional and folk mix of sounds from the Pueblos to the Maori in New Zealand, always inspiring hope and celebrating the beauty of Indigenous cultures.Comment:  Follow the link to see the complete list of winners.