WAG-Qaumajuq and The Live Mixtape Project Celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day with Rooftop Concert and Workshop

Culmination of Threads of Kin and Belonging Programming wraps up on June 21 & 22

Winnipeg, Manitoba, June 17, 2025: In celebration of National Indigenous Peoples Day, the Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG)-Qaumajuq is excited to host and partner with Trinnipeg Live Mixtape and Synonym Arts Consultation for a rooftop concert and workshop. On Saturday, June 21, 2025, the community is welcome to attend an incredible lineup of artists that brings together Prairie poets, performers, producers, and artists to create new collaborative work with a hip-hop/R&B base. Then on June 22, Trinnipeg Live Mixtape will host a workshop with Shad, 2oolman, and Kimmortal for an afternoon where emerging musicians, writers, and producers can connect.

Featured performers for the concert include SHAD, 2oolman, Kind Heart Women Singers, INGIA, Bret Parenteau, Andrew O, CEC, Chimwemwe Undi, Osani Balkaran, Rayel, and Mattmac. This celebratory night of music and artistry is curated by Nestor Wynrush and Julia Lafreniere, co-curators of the exhibition Threads of Kin and Belonging. The workshop on June 22 is open to everyone and is meant to facilitate a causal conversation exploring community and collaboration on both hyperlocal and international scales.

This weekend programming is the final phase of Threads of Kin and Belonging: A Trinnipeg Live Mixtape Project, a multi-tiered exhibition centering and celebrating Black and Indigenous voices, communities, and Nations. Launched during Black History Month, Threads of Kin and Belonging is an intervention and conversation between Indigenous Nations and Black communities on Treaty One Territory. This project is about creating, defining, and collaborating in a space by us-our kin. The exhibition will remain open until Fall 2025.

WAG-Qaumajuq will be open late (until 10pm) and ShopWAG will be open until 9pm on Saturday, June 21. Tickets are pay-what-you-can and can be purchased on our website. Attendance for the June 22 workshop is free. WAG-Qaumajuq is an accessible space. There are gender neutral washrooms on every floor of WAG-Qaumajuq. Quiet spaces are available if needed and armless chairs are available.

Quick Facts:

• The community is welcome to attend a rooftop concert at WAG-Qaumajuq for National Indigenous Peoples Day on June 21 from 7-10pm. This event is pay-what-you-can with suggested donations of $20, can be purchased on our website.
• The event will include an incredible lineup of artists that brings together Prairie poets, performers, producers, and artists.
• Featured artists: include SHAD, 2oolman, Kind Heart Women Singers, INGIA, Bret Parenteau, Andrew O, CEC, Chimwemwe Undi, Osani Balkaran, Rayel, and Mattmac. This celebratory night of music and artistry is curated by Nestor Wynrush and Julia Lafreniere.
• WAG-Qaumajuq will be open late this Saturday, June 21 (until 10pm). ShopWAG will also be open late, until 9pm.
• On June 22, we invite folks to join us for a Live Mixtape Workshop featuring Shad, 2oolman, and Kimmortal where emerging musicians, writers, and producers can connect and converse about community and collaboration.
• This weekend programming is the final phase of Threads of Kin and Belonging: A Trinnipeg Live Mixtape Project, a multi-tiered exhibition centering and celebrating Black and Indigenous voices, communities, and Nations. The exhibition is on view until Fall 2025.
• National Indigenous Peoples Day and National Indigenous History Month is a time to celebrate Indigenous nations, history, and people.

Quotes:

“Threads of Kin and Belonging is such an important exhibition for us at WAG-Qaumajuq, and the accompanying programming has sparked incredible conversations and understanding amongst participants. I am really looking forward to this weekend’s events, including a rooftop concert on National Indigenous Peoples Day and a workshop the following day. The timing of this show is monumental, opening during Black History Month and the programming concluding during Indigenous Peoples History month. Thank you Julia and Nestor, all the artists, community members, supporters, and folks who participated, this has been a wonderful partnership.”

— Stephen Borys, Director & CEO, WAG-Qaumajuq

“National Indigenous Peoples Day is a celebration of Indigeneity and culture. I am so excited for this rooftop concert, not only to celebrate this important day and Indigenous culture, but as the final phase of Threads of Kin and Belonging. This exhibition and all the programming has been so special to me and I am grateful to work with amazing folks from Trinnipeg Live Mixtape Project, Synonym Arts Consultation, and all the artists who have participated. I look forward to folks coming by and having a good time.”

—  Julia Lafreniere, Head of Indigenous Ways & Partnerships, WAG-Qaumajuq

“The goal has always been sharing – generations sharing space and creativity. Emerging and experienced artists building relationships while a song is put together, eat a meal, or they go through rehearsals. Taking up space in institutions. People as waves of change connecting to like-minded folks. The beauty of the process. The bliss of performance, the powerful euphoria of community in celebration.”

— Nestor Wynrush, Founder, Trinnipeg Live Mixtape

Presenting Partners

Trinnipeg Live Mixtape and Synonym Arts Consultation

Support

Canada Council for the Arts and Downtown Winnipeg Biz

Associated Links

National Indigenous People’s Day Rooftop Concert
Live Mixtape Workshop
Threads of Kin and Belonging

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For more information or to arrange interviews, please contact:

Katryna Barske
Public Relations Officer
Winnipeg Art Gallery
204.789.1295
kbarske@wag.ca

About Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG)-Qaumajuq
The Winnipeg Art Gallery (WAG)-Qaumajuq is a cultural advocate using art as a catalyst for change. The Gallery features an impressive collection of nearly 30,000 artworks spanning centuries, cultures, and media, including the largest public collection of contemporary Inuit art in the world. Each piece has its own story to tell. Sharing these stories with the world is at the core of WAG-Qaumajuq. This is an engaging, accessible space where visitors can experience art and learning in new ways. Principles of equity, care, trust, and responsibility guide the institution towards meaningful impact and transformation. To learn more, visit wag.ca.

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