Today I want to tell y’all about Sicangu Lakota rapper Frank Waln. He has won three Native American Music Awards, several other awards and written on indigineity and decolonization for a number of publications. I’ll be honest; I feel a bit silly “boosting” someone so accomplished on my tiny little blog, but at the same time I know even accomplished artists are not always super well-known outside of particular circles, and if nothing else I’m at least pretty sure that my readers over here in Sweden are unlikely to have heard of him. That little disclaimer aside… if you like hiphop at all, you have got to listen to his music.
As I’m typing this, I’m realizing that I can’t actually remember how I first came across him, I just know that it was over Twitter and that from the first time I listened to his single My Stone, which continues to regulary make me tear up on the bus, I was hooked. His lyrics are sharp, at times brutal in the best of ways and very emotionally poignant, even for someone like me who really knows very little about indigenous issues and experiences. Once the Christmas period of brokeness is over, I really need to buy his album! Some songs you just want to have in a physical format, or at least I do. Anyway, I’m not the right person to go on about why Frank Waln is an amazing artist, so I’ll just tell you to GO LISTEN!
You can by Frank Waln’s music here on BandCamp and follow him on Twitter @FrankWaln.
Over on Zero, Eight Love, today’s calendar post is full of saffron.