Digging Roots

WINNER OF THE 2023 CANADIAN JUNO AWARD FOR CONTEMPORARY INDIGENOUS GROUP OF THE YEAR, the 2023 Canadian Music and Broadcast Industry Awards’ The Allan Slaight Humanitarian Spirit Award, and the Summer Solstice Indigenous Music Awards’ Social Voice Award. Nominated for the 2023 International Folk Music Awards, 3 x 2023 Canadian Folk Music Awards, 2 x 2023 Canadian Indie Awards, and 2 x 2023 Folk Music Ontario Awards.  

Digging Roots breathe life into songs from their land, Turtle Island, to raise their voices in solidarity with a global chorus of Indigenous artists, activists and change-makers. For over a decade, 2 x JUNO Award winners Digging Roots have traveled the world with a joyful message of resistance, celebrating Anishinabe and Onkwehón:we traditions of round dance and interconnectedness interwoven with the bedrock sounds of blues, soul, and rock n’ roll. 

The beating hearts of Digging Roots, founding duo ShoShona Kish (she/her) and Raven Kanatakta (he/him), have built a home for a talented community of players and collaborators including their son, drummer Skye Polson, and Hill Kourkoutis. More than a band, Diggings Roots have taken their place at the frontline of the fight for equity and representation in the arts, with involvement in industry advocacy and organization, including the International Indigenous Music Summit and Ishkode Records, to empower arts communities worldwide. 

“Uncompromising and uplifting, powerful and tender all at the same time.” 

— Roots Music Canada