Transmenu powered by JoomlArt.com - Mambo Joomla Professional Templates Club

If you've been to a powwow, chances are you've seen Scott Abraham. He's a young man with a good heart who loves his culture and wants to encourage other Native youth to learn their songs and dances.

Tell me about yourself?
Well, I'm 21 years old and I'm from the Lake Babine Nation in Burns Lake, British Columbia (Canada). I'm a member of the Frog Clan.

When did you start drumming/singing?
I started singing about 4-5 years ago. I started my own drum group called Carrier Nation. We kept practicing and eventually when you practice you get better, and then a big name drum group wanted me to sing with them, so I got excited and now I'm singing with a group called Eya Hey Nakoda. I sing because i love it.  There's no other feeling like singing and dancing.

Have you won any contests/awards?
With my first group "Carrier Nation," we won a few small pow wows here and there but when I started singing with Eya Hey Nakoda, we won a lot of pow wows! Brandon, Manitoba, Chilliwack, Kamloopa, Morongo, California - just to name a few. We hosted a lot of pow wows as well (Bearspaw, Morley, Alberta; Seattle, Arizona State University) and we have a lot more pow wows coming up that we are going to either contest or host.

Do you dance at powwows or just sing? 
I sing and dance.  I dance grass and traditional.

Do you see more or less young Natives drumming/singing? Why do you think that is?
I've been seeing a lot more youth singing this past year which is great. I hope they keep it up. It's a good way to stay to your own culture and also away from drugs and alcohol.

How many powwows do you attend a year? Do you normally drive or fly?
It's hard to pin point how many pow wows a year I attend, probably more than 25 a year. Driving and flying is about equal to each other, depends on how far it is.

How many songs do you know? What is your favorite song? Why?
I know way to many songs to count them all. It's hard to pick a favorite song, so I dont have one. Whatever song I sing is a good song, you know.

Why is it important for Native children to learn their songs and dances?
Because it's the only thing we have left in this world. Pretty soon we won't have our land, so our songs and dances keep our tradition alive, so we must keep teaching our youth, and our older kids.

What types of adversity have you been through and what have you learned as a result?
You don't go through much adversity during the pow wow way of life, but I have had a few. There was a car wreck me and my family were in a few years ago, coming back from a pow wow in Williams Lake. We hit a moose and it shocked us. We just about lost our mom , but she is strong and so is our prayers and she is still here. What I have learned about it is, life is fragile, but it's also wonderful so live with pride, sing with joy, dance with heart, and live your own life!

What is your message to Native youth?
My message to Native youth is, do what you love. Your heart is free, have the courage to follow it, no matter what it is. You can do anything if you truly believe in yourself, don't do drugs or drink alcohol. It will only lead you away from your culture, be proud of who you are and what you stand for, learn your ways and nothing can stop you.