Zoongde`e
Toronto collective Zoongde`e releases its third song through the Culture to Wellness program with Aboriginal Legal Services and Make Music Matter
“Shake the Rattles” by Zoongde`e has been released,marking the third release by the collective made up of staff at Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) in Toronto. The song has come out of the Culture to Wellness project, a collaboration between ALS and non-profit Make Music Matter that’s exploring holistic approaches to healing trauma.
“Shake the Rattles” is a catchy, introspective folk-pop song that gives voice to the intergenerational trauma stemming from Canada’s colonial history. For group member Beau Neveau Jr. who has worked with ALS as a Traditional Elder's Helper, the song symbolizes resilience.
“There are many demons of our past that can come to haunt us. There can be things that are done to us that, and things that we have done to other people that we wish we could take back. All we can really do is acknowledge our truth, our wrongs, our rights, and reflect on the different paths that we could have taken in life. In the end, we choose to overcome those demons of our past and reclaim our truth, and take hold of our journey,” says Neveau Jr.
The guidance and wisdom of community Elders was integral throughout the songwriting and recording process. They shared traditional teachings that grounded the experience in cultural and spiritual connection, encouraging members of Zoongde`e to reflect on their own identity. It was a unique opportunity for these front-line workers to address their own mental health and process the vicarious trauma they carry from the stories they encounter every day.
The group therapy is a blend of Make Music Matter’s Healing in Harmony music therapy model for trauma survivors with Indigenous healing methodologies and traditions such as rattle-making, highlighted in an earlier cycle of the program by Canadian rockers Billy Talent.
ALS has recently launched a new phase of the Culture to Wellness project to offer support to youth clients and members of their women’s circle.
Listen now to “Shake the Rattles” by Zoongde`e, available on all major streaming platforms via A4A Records.
To listen/download, visit: https://lnk.to/MMMPShakeTheRattles
Producer: Desiree da Silva
Mixing Engineer: Robert L. Smith (Defy Recordings)
Mastering Engineer: Erman Aydöner
Artwork: Karen Cull Seidel
About Aboriginal Legal Services
For over 30 years, Aboriginal Legal Services (ALS) has been one of the leading non-profit organizations supporting Indigenous people and communities and a national leader in Indigenous justice and advocacy. ALS’ mission is to strengthen the capacity of the Indigenous community and its citizens to deal with justice issues and to provide Indigenous-controlled and culturally-based justice alternatives and healing.
About Make Music Matter
Make Music Matter uses the creative process as a therapeutic tool to help empower marginalized individuals and communities to recover, reintegrate, and reclaim their future with hope and dignity. Its groundbreaking Healing in Harmony music therapy model has been clinically proven to help reduce PTSD, anxiety, and depression.
Healing in Harmony has helped transform the lives of over 18,000 individuals in nine countries worldwide. Participants emerge with a renewed sense of agency and self-worth. Their original songs are professionally produced and released globally, serving as advocacy tools to promote human rights and combat stigma.
Website: makemusicmatter.org