< >Melisa Pash
Although her songs can be classified as pop rock, or contemporary, Melisa's unique sound stems from her native inspirations. Almost every song she has created has been borne out of personal experience. Growing up in Val d'Or she witnessed the hurt of racism from the front line, which inspires her today to share her native culture, and work towards strengthening friendships between different nations.
Ancestry: First Nations
Genre: Acoustic, Folk
Albums
Biography
Fearlessness, fortitude, valor: small words in comparison to the unbeatable drive and determination of Singer-Songwriter, Melisa Pash. Representing the Northern Cree community of Chisasibi, Quebec , Melisa is making significant inroads into the music industry. Like her ancestors who possessed the spirit to survive the harsh climate of the James Bay region, her creativity and strength of spirit knows no bounds. Her music may sound modern, but its roots are thousands of years in the making.
Melisa has shared the music stage with one of her idols, former Kashtin member Florent Vollant, as well as legendary guitarist Bob Cohen, and she already holds three film credits to her name for SEBJ, as well as a forth film credit with the National Film Board movie The Last Walk, a film about the Crees of James Bay before their land was flooded when the EM-1 dam was opened, and an estimated 176,000 acres of Cree land was destroyed. Another of Melisa's recent accomplishments her album launch concert which was sold out and presented a second night to supply the demand, after which she was signed for a tour of concert halls with Spectourne which took place through out October to early November 2007.
Melisa Pash has just won a 2007 Canadian Aboriginal Music Award. She was awarded for making a significant positive impact on the Canadian Aboriginal Music Industry by being an accomplished musician in songwriting, vocals, cello, guitar and piano who works to create bridges between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal audiences.
Although her songs can be classified as pop rock, or contemporary, Melisa's unique sound stems from her native inspirations. Almost every song she has created has been borne out of personal experience. Growing up in Val d'Or she witnessed the hurt of racism from the front line, which inspires her today to share her native culture, and work towards strengthening friendships between different nations. Melisa can proudly say that she has already begun to break down such cultural barriers. Today you can hear the traditional drums of her album playing on a rock station, or non-natives singing along to her song Nymwaytann which means "I am happy" in Cree. She is hopeful that her people will see this as inspiration and motivation to do great things.
With her education and experience in business as well as the professional music industry, Melisa is currently preparing a "Protege Program" where she will lend a helping hand to other Cree artists trying to start their careers in music. Melisa firmly believes that Cree musicians should strive to be high-grade professional artists. Her program will consist of helping motivated Cree musicians to find funding for their albums, hiring producers, photographers, and stylists, as well CD production, mixing, and mastering. Once an album is finished, Melisa will then help launch the artist's album into the market.
Melisa has already produced her first CD, and hopes for a second before the year's end. She has a good portion of her second album written already. She also loves to paint and work with clay sculpting when there is a spare moment. When one considers the demands that Melisa has with two children, and her pursuit of assisting other Cree musicians, it is absolutely amazing how she finds time to pursue her music. Undoubtedly her fearless passion and dogged determination are blazing a path for many Crees to follow into the music industry.
