The Indigenous Performing Arts Alliance (IPAA) hosted a luncheon to honour Susan Aglukark and celebrate her groundbreaking music career at Yogi’s Barn in Ohsweken on Wednesday, March 25, 2026.
The event, which featured a panel of speakers and performers, shortly followed a keynote address by Aglukark, who discussed the role of music in ceremonies and celebrations, sharing insights into how music is intertwined with cultural practices.
Joe Martin kicked the luncheon off with a Thanksgiving Address and an explanation of its origins. Following the meal, Master of Ceremonies January Rogers welcomed everyone to the event.
“We are here gathered to celebrate someone, an artist amongst us, who has done so very much throughout her whole career in support of other artists from the First Nations, Inuit and Métis communities, and I’m just so glad that we have this opportunity to welcome and to celebrate Susan Aglukark,” she said.
Sherri-Lynn Hill, the 59th elected Chief for Six Nations of the Grand River, then congratulated Aglukark on her achievements.
“You are a trailblazer, one of the first voices to show this country that our Indigenous stories are not just important, they are essential to the fabric of Canada,” said Hill. “Congratulations on all your remarkable achievements and Nua:weh for sharing your gift with us today, enjoy your time here on our territory.”
Métis folk singer-songwriter Amanda Rheaume was then welcomed to the stage to perform her song Unforgettable.
Following a brief word from Sara Kae, IPAA Grand Council member and youth ambassador, who recalled the first time she met Aglukark when she was 14, singer-songwriter Julian Taylor shared his song Seeds.
Andrés Mendoza, vice president of the Canadian Academy of Recording Artists and Sciences/Juno Awards, then took a moment to speak about some of Aglukark’s achievements.
“Susan, your name holds a very important place in JUNO history. In 1995 you won your first two JUNO Awards, Best New Solo Artist, and, of course, Best Music of Aboriginal Canada Recording. That was for your first single, Arctic Rose, and you became the first ever Inuk Juno Award winner. It was a significant moment for the JUNOS, and more importantly, a significant moment for Canadian music,” he said. “That moment represented something larger than an award. It represented visibility. It represented possibility. It represented the presence, and it represented a voice that carried stories, language and experiences that this country and the world needed to hear. In the early 2000s I had the opportunity of working with you while I was at EMI Music Canada, your record label, and I was fortunate enough to lead marketing for your 2003 album “Big Feeling.” The following year at the 2004 Juno Awards in Edmonton, “Big Feeling” won the JUNO for Aboriginal recording of the year.”
“Awards often capture a moment in time, but what matters most is what happens after and in Susan’s case, her impact continues to resonate through her music. She’s moved audiences everywhere with her songs and stories from the North,” continued Mendoza. “Through her advocacy, leadership and the creation of the Arctic Rose Foundation, she created safe spaces for others to learn, grow and heal. Work for which Susan was presented, the Humanitarian Award in 2022 in Toronto at the JUNO points. Through her presence, she’s helped ensure that Indigenous voices and music are heard, respected and celebrated.”
He said that the event was about recognizing a career that continues to open doors, to inspire artists and communities and strengthen the cultural fabric of Canada.
“Susan, your work has meant a great deal to audiences across this country, and it’s also meant a great deal to the JUNOS. Your place in art history is permanent, and we are grateful to everything you have contributed, not just to music, but to all the communities you continue to represent and uplift,” said Mendoza. “I also want to acknowledge the Indigenous Performing Arts Alliance for hosting this gathering and for the important work you do to support Indigenous artists and cultural leaders across the country. Moments like this matter, they allow us to pause, reflect and recognize the people whose work helped move our industry and our country forward. Susan, thank you for your music, your leadership, your courage and the path that you’ve created for so many who have followed, it’s an honour to celebrate you today.”
Rogers then welcomed Cree singer-songwriter Wyatt C. Louis to the stage to sing their song Bobtail Road.
After a few words from Jesse Kumagai, director of programming, marketing, and business development for the Corporation of Massey Hall and Roy Thompson Hall, the Manitou Mkwa Singers from Mississauga for the Credit First Nations performed their round dance song Me & You.
Rogers then officially welcomed Aglukark to the stage.
“Today we honour Susan Aglukark, who is an award winning Indigenous singer-songwriter whose music blends Inuit storytelling with contemporary folk and pop,” she said. “She became the first female Indigenous artist to win a JUNO Award and has been recognized nationally and internationally for powerful songs that explore identity, resilience, healing and community. Beyond her music career, Aglukark is a passionate advocate for Indigenous youth and mental health, using her platform to inspire dialogue and empowerment across Canada.”
Aglukark, who introduced herself by her traditional name Uuliniq, said she was honoured to share the space with fellow musicians.
“What a privilege to share the stage with all of you,” she said. “Where we come from and who we are is a big part of where our music and our essence comes from.”
After thanking IPAA for putting on the event as well as her husband for all of his support, she sang two of her songs, Walk With Me and O Siem.
Speaking about Walk With Me, Aglukark said it tells the story of walking two paths.
The first path is that of healing, and on that healing journey is the discovery of self and the reconnecting of self, and then sharing that path as you keep moving forward. And the other one is discovering how truly incredible our ancestors were in correcting that narrative,” she said. …”This song honours those two paths and challenges all listeners to walk alongside and with, not in front of or behind.”
On the topic of O Siem, Aglukark acknowledged the role it played in her career since its release in 1995, and invited those in the room to join her on stage.
“We’re living in a time when there’s some pretty awesome, incredible things happening, but also some very scary things globally,” she said. “And what a time to be in the company of some incredible artists and musicians, because together, we can fight for peace in this world, and that’s really what we are working hard towards, especially in our own community. So this song is simply that song that says we are all one. We are all one family.”
After the event wrapped and everyone said their goodbyes, Cathy Lickers-Sage, executive director of IPAA, said she and her team were thrilled to have put on the event.
“We were excited to celebrate Susan Aglukark and all the incredible achievements that she’s done over the years,” she said. “The timing was perfect because we had the JUNOS happening just in our backyard, and we had so many people from across Canada already in attendance, so we thought, what better time? It actually started off as a little dinner we were going to have, and it just kind of blossomed from there.”
Lickers-Sage said she couldn’t have been happier with how the day turned out.
“I’m still wiping away tears of joy. Today was so emotional. The energy in this room was so dynamic and it was just such a lovely atmosphere,” she said. “The people were really just engaged and just here to celebrate the incredible achievements of Susan Aglukark, and hearing how she touched so many people’s lives in this room in some way or another, it just speaks to the legacy and impact; that’s the matriarch’s uprising, right there.”
Aglukark herself later told the Brant Beacon that event and what it represented, was an honour to be part of.
“An event like this is pretty incredible,” she said. “We had some wonderful musicians here and it’s just a privilege to be an Indigenous artist and an Inuk artist in this time with the access to a platform from where we tell our truths. It’s a time when we utilize the platform and art to correct narratives and to do that with all these wonderful musicians today, was an incredible honour. It really was.”
Aglukark also offered some advice to young Indigenous artists looking to share their music
“The one piece of advice that I feel is very important is to encourage anyone who wants a career in this to write. Write your own songs, write your own stories, be in control of your writing and narrative. There’s no good writing or bad writing in the beginning, you know, just put it out there,” she said. “That’s one and the other is, take care of yourself. I always say the business isn’t a beast, and when it’s good, it’s good, when it’s not good, it’s not good. When it’s not good, have a fall back, have a net, have a friend, but if you can, stay in it. So those are always the two pieces of advice I would offer.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
