September 30 marked the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation in Canada. It’s a day that recognizes the troubling legacy of Canada’s residential school system—a government-sponsored attempt to destroy the culture and identity of Indigenous people—and honors all of those impacted by it: the Survivors, the families, the communities, and the children who never returned home.
The conversation about Reconciliation goes beyond just a single day of the year. That’s why we’re putting a focus on Indigenous artists from different communities as part of the CAN You Hear Me series, which champions the unique music and perspectives of artists in Canada. Right now we’re putting the spotlight on Haisla rappers the Snotty Nose Rez Kids.
Originally from Kitamaat Village, British Columbia, Darren “Young D” Metz and Quinton “Yung Trybez” Nyce first met in high school, where they realized they had a talent for poetry and storytelling. In January 2017, the duo dropped their self-titled Snotty Nose Rez Kids debut, and right out of the gate their single “Skoden” (meaning “Let’s go then”), which features a sample from Kwakwaka’wakw artist Beau Dick, was named one of the year’s 100 best songs by CBC Music. Since then, the duo has consistently released albums with high acclaim and industry nods following closely. Their subsequent albums, 2017’s The Average Savage, 2019’s TRAPLINE, 2021’s Life After, and last year’s I’M GOOD, HBU? were all shortlisted for the Polaris Music Prize.
With tracks like “The Resistance” and “I Can’t Remember My Name,” to “Red Sky at Night” and “KIDS COME UP, IT’S SUPPERTIME!,” the Snotty Nose Rez Kids press hard on subjects of ignorance, stereotypes, climate change, and the ongoing reverberations of colonialism with furiously fast-paced rhymes over bars so sharp they cut.
For the Record caught up with the boldly political duo to talk about growing up, bringing their perspective into their music, and more.
What was your experience like growing up in the Haisla Nation?
Despite what the media and statistics say about living on a Reservation, our experience growing up on Haisla was beautiful. We weren’t just raised by our parents; we were raised by the community. We had the freedom to run around doing anything from fooling around on the playground to swimming down by the bay. We had that freedom because everyone looked out for one another. If one of our parents or grandparents was trying to get hold of us, word would travel fast and we’d eventually find out. Being rez kids may have made us a little rough and raw around the edges, but there’s beauty in that. If there’s one thing that we could do in this life it would be to be able to go back and be rez kids again, for sure.
How important is it to incorporate your experiences and culture as First Nations artists into your music?
It’s always important for us in one way or another. Many of our community tell stories through carving, painting, through education, or whatever their passion is. And for us, storytelling came in the form of hip-hop. We want our stories to be told the way they were meant to be told and we want them to be heard the way they were meant to be heard. So it’s always important.
We’re two Haisla men that were raised traditionally. By that we mean that we come from the land, and were taught how to respect it and live off of it without taking too much. From those teachings we became land defenders and that’s what Snotty Nose Rez Kids was built off of, the idea that we need to appreciate what we have and project it.
What does Reconciliation mean to you?
It means that we need to put in a lot of work, on ourselves and our communities. However, Reconciliation isn’t for us, for Indigenous People. It’s for settlers and allies.
For us, the National Day of Truth and Reconciliation has always been tough because we’ve always understood our truth and for many years we’ve been trying to tell that truth and be heard. The job of Truth and Reconciliation is on settlers to reconcile with their own history and acknowledge the truths of how our lands and identities were taken from us. We need that before we can ever begin to reconcile.
For us as Indigenous people, it’s our job to decolonize and to understand who we are and where we come from and to resurge as we move forward.
Learn more about what drives the Snotty Nose Rez Kids and listen to all the essential tracks in one playlist
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