14-year-old Jordan Daniels was one of a few Indigenous youth chosen to perform at the arts festival following a talent show on Thursday night. Photo by Joel Willick.
For the first time ever, Indigenous talent from around the world will gather in Saskatoon to showcase their skills.
The Saskatchewan World Indigenous Festival for the Arts (SWIFFA) is scheduled for next week at the Delta Bessborough Gardens.
Festival organizer, Curtis Standing says it will be a great opportunity to showcase Indigenous talent in the province.
“It will be nice if we can start bringing some of our music. Not only the traditional music, but contemporary music as well to give some of our youth and amateurs an opportunity to play on a big stage,” said Standing.
Festival organizers held a talent show on Thursday night to select several Indigenous youth to perform in the festival. Jordan Daniels of Mistawasis First Nation was one of several youth chosen.
SWIFFA will coincide with the first ever World Indigenous Business Forum to take place in Canada with Saskatoon as the host.
Board chair for the WIBF planning committee, Milton Tootoosis says this is the first time a music festival will be tagged onto the business forum. He says the festival will help showcase Indigenous culture in Saskatchewan beyond the economics to be discussed at the forum.
“We want to tell the world that the values of sharing, preserving and building sustainable economies is all embedded within our culture and we can share those messages through our music,” said Tootoosis.
The festival has also partnered with the organization Woman Walking Together to raise funds for missing and murdered Indigenous women.
While festival organizers say they are using the WIBF as a launching pad, they hope to make SWIFFA as staple arts festival in Saskatchewan.