A TRIBE CALLED RED, KEYS N KRATES, AND ISKWÉ
TO PERFORM FREE CONCERT AT YONGE & DUNDAS SQUARE

Toronto, ON – June 20, 2018 – On June 27^th, the 2018 Indigenous History Month Celebration will take over Yonge & Dundas Square with a family-friendly event that will feature Indigenous arts, crafts, entertainment and the vital work of Indigenous community organizations. Together with the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto (NCCT), the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund (DWF) will present a free concert that will wrap-up the one-day celebration. Today, they are thrilled to announce the stellar acts that will perform that evening: JUNO Award-winning DJ crew, A Tribe Called Red, JUNO Award-winning EDM group, Keys N Krates, and JUNO Award-nominated Electronic artist, iskwé.

“We are very happy to be able to do this show in support of the NCCT,” says A Tribe Called Red’s, Bear Witness. “I spent a lot of my childhood years in the NCCT building. When my family first moved to Toronto in 1984, it was because my mother was working at Native Earth when it was housed in the attic. I remember some of Native Earth's earliest performances being in the gym and spending long hours wandering the NCCT halls during rehearsals. I even got some of my first performance experiences there. I also took powwow drumming lessons there for a short time and even sat on a youth council. It was with that council that I first had the opportunity to travel to the Gathering of Nations powwow in Albuquerque, NM. So, you could say we are really just giving back to a place that has helped at least one member of ATCR, and helps the community every day.”

“The Downie Wenjack Fund is doing truly great work to improve the lives of First Peoples,” adds Keys N Krates. “We all must DO SOMETHING. We are honoured to be playing at this year's event in support of the Native Canadian Centre of Toronto. We fully support this great cause and we are looking forward to performing in our hometown of Toronto with our great friends, A Tribe Called Red.”

"Being a part of such a strong and awesome community is nothing I take for granted,” remarks iskwé. “It's such a beautiful thing, being able to come together with friends and share the celebrations of who we are, where we come from, and where we're going!"

Indigenous History Month (June) was first proposed in 1995 by Elijah Harper, and was officially declared in Canada in 2009. Indigenous History Month provides an opportunity to recognize not only the historic contributions of Indigenous peoples to the development of Canada, but also the strength of present-day Indigenous communities and their promise for the future. Indigenous History Month is a time to acknowledge the role Indigenous peoples played in the development of Canada, to honour Indigenous heritage and to celebrate Indigenous cultures. It is also an opportunity to reflect on the strength of present day First Nation, Métis and Inuit communities, and their hopes for the future.

The 9^th annual Indigenous History Month Celebration is made possible with the generous support of Miziwe Biik, Heritage Canada, Rogers Communications, The Native Canadian Centre of Toronto (NCCT), and the Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund, with Lead Support from TD Bank Group, and media sponsorship by BellMedia.

About A Tribe Called Red
Native  Producer  and  DJ  crew  A  Tribe  Called  Red  (ATCR)  straddles  a  broad  range  of  musical  influences  based  in  modern  hip-hop,  traditional  pow  wow  drums  and  vocals,  blended  with  edgy  electronic  music  production  styles.  Currently  made  up  of  Bear  Witness  and  2oolman,  ATCR  are  part  of  a  vital  new  generation  of  artists  making  a  cultural  and  social  impact  in  Canada  alongside  a  renewed  Aboriginal  rights  movement  called  Idle  No  More.  ATCR  has  performed  high  profile  festival  dates  at  Coachella,  Bonnaroo,  AfroPunk,  Osheaga,  and  New  Orleans  Jazz  Fest  to  list  a  few.  In  2014,  they  garnered  mainstream  recognition  when  the  band  became  the  first  Indigenous  group  to  win  the  Breakthrough  Group  of  the  Year  award  at  the  JUNO Awards. Their latest album, We Are The Halluci Nation was released in September 2016 to critical acclaim. The record earned the group a spot on the 2016 Polaris Music Prize Short List, a JUNO win at the 2017 Awards for Producer of the Year, and a 2018 JUNO Award win for Group of the Year. atribecalledred.com

About Keys N Krates
Since forming a decade ago in their native Toronto, Keys N Krates have carved their own path via a bass-centric, sample-driven sound which melds the realms of electronic, hip-hop and beyond. The group-composed of drummer Adam Tune, keyboardist David Matisse and turntablist Jr. Flo., has built a venerable reputation as one of the leading live electronic acts today on the strength of their onstage instrumentation and energetic sets. Keys N Krates first broke into the mainstream with the SOLOW EP (Dim Mak, 2013), featuring the breakthrough single, "Dum Dee Dum", which received gold certification in the US in 2017. Since its release, the track's cheeky official music video was nominated for a Prism Prize by the Association for Music and Innovative Arts in Canada as well as a Berlin Music Video Award in Germany in 2014. Elsewhere, the group released "Keep It 100" (Mad Decent, 2014), a collaboration with producer/DJ Grandtheft, which was featured in a trailer for the animated film Minions in 2015 and won Best EDM/Dance Video at the 2015 Much Music Video Awards in Canada. In 2016, Keys N Krates took home their first win at the JUNO Award in the Dance Recording of the Year category for their song "Save Me," off the Midnite Mass EP (Dim Mak, 2016), featuring British singer/songwriter, Katy B. Their debut full-length album, Cura, was released in 2018 and sees Keys N Krates evolving from revered instrumental beat-makers into musically sophisticated producers and songwriters. www.keysnkrates.com

About iskwé
Bridging cross-cultural aesthetics while exploring her own struggle to both fit into and breakaway from modern Western archetypes has been an important part of iskwé’s artistic vision since the release of her WCMA nominated self-titled debut album in late 2013. Her 2017 album, The Fight Within, has been long listed for the 2018 Polaris Music Prize, garnered a 2018 JUNO nomination for Indigenous Music Album Of The Year, and won both the Electronic/Dance Artist of the Year at the 2017 Western Canadian Music Awards, and the 2018 Jim Beam Indies Indigenous Album award. The album’s lead single, “Nobody Knows,” produced by Juno Award nominees The Darcys and featured in the Netflix series Between, captivated audiences by turning a stark spotlight on the more than 1200 missing and murdered Indigenous women here in Canada. Blending soulful, breathlessly delivered lyrics coloured by the many shades of human nature with a sonic palette that takes its cue from the shadowy atmospherics of the 1990s Bristol sound, iskwé’s music revels in her strength of self and that is her true rallying cry. www.iskwe.com 

About The Native Canadian Centre
The Native Canadian Centre is a membership-based, charitable organization located in the heart of downtown Toronto in a beautifully renovated heritage building. NCCT offers a wide range of programs and services based on Native cultural traditions and teachings. All are welcome. www.ncct.on.ca @NativeCentre

About The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund
The Gord Downie & Chanie Wenjack Fund (DWF) is part of Gord Downie’s legacy and embodies his commitment, and that of both the Downie and Wenjack families, to call Canadians to learning and action in solidarity with Indigenous peoples of this land. The goal of DWF is to continue the conversation that began with Chanie Wenjack’s residential school story, and to support the reconciliation process through awareness, education, and action. www.downiewenjack.ca @downiewenjack

#DoSomething #ReconciliACTION #IndigenousHistoryMonth

DOWNLOAD – hi-res photos of A Tribe Called Red, Keys N Krates, and iskwé