Montreal based artist iskwē | ᐃᐢᑫᐧᐤ (short for waseskwan iskwew, meaning “blue sky woman”) is a creator whose catalogue drips of a spectrum of emotions and is powered by resilience.
Her new release, “Sure To Come,” produced and mixed by 7x Grammy nominee Damian Taylor (Björk, Arcade Fire, The Killers, Bomba Estereo) is an assertively sung relinquishing of control.
The textured and beat driven electronic pop song speaks to the sense of calm which iskwē feels knowing that someday she’ll be forgotten.
“We cancel each other at the push of a button, we crumble at the thought of being entirely alone. Whether it be our turn now or tomorrow, that day is sure to come,” explains the artist.
iskwē recently received the Johanna Metcalf Performing Arts Award (2022) and her video for “Little Star” won the Juno for Music Video of the Year (2020). Her 2018 album, The Fight Within was Juno-nominated for Indigenous Album of the Year and garnered her a spot on the Polaris Music Prize Long List.
She has performed hundreds of shows in Canada and internationally, including Canadian highlights at Ottawa’s Parliament Hill on Canada Day and a triumphant performance with Canada’s National Arts Centre Orchestra in October 2019, in New York City at the Met and SummerStage in Central Park, and beyond for the King and Queen of Sweden, Reeperbahn in Germany, and Border Crossing’s Origins Festival in England.
iskwē is an ambassador for the PRS Keychange initiative. Originally hailing from Treaty 1 territory, iskwē now calls Montreal, QC home.