WINNER OF BELL MEDIA’S ‘THE LAUNCH’, LOGAN STAATS, SIGNS WITH RED MUSIC RISING
WATCH / SHARE “DEADMAN” HERE
BUY / STREAM “DEADMAN” HERE
Photo Credit : Trung Hoang // DOWNLOAD HIGH-RES
Acclaimed Indigenous storyteller and activist Logan Staats returns with his newest single “Deadman” following his rise to fame as the first winner of Bell Media’s ‘The Launch’. “I wrote ‘Deadman’ while in rehab,” says Staats. “It’s not about a girl; the culture is the love that I’m asking for. The love for myself. That was stolen from me - by the government, the crown, the church. When I sing ‘GIVE ME BACK MY LOVE’, I'm speaking about my culture, my pride, and my love for myself.”
As Staats’ ancestors were residential school survivors, the video for “Deadman” was partially filmed on the property of the Mohawk Institute, a former residential school in Brantford, Ont. (The Six Nations of the Grand River has since called for that location to be among grounds searched for remains.) The video follows Staats through his community, including Land Back Lane, where Six Nations land defenders have mobilized to protect the area from proposed subdivision development.
“Recently I’ve been spending a lot of time on the west coast in Wet’suwet’en territory after answering the call of the Hereditary Chiefs there and standing in solidarity with the land defenders on their sovereign ground," says Staats. "After serving an eviction notice to Coastal Gas Link, a for-profit corporation conducting illegal activities on Wet’suwet’en territory, heavily armed RCMP officers were flown in and conducted a raid on the traditional lands or 'Yin’tah'.
During that raid I was punched in the ear. My head was slammed into the frozen pavement by my braids. And I was kneed in my spine and held down while I was handcuffed and bleeding... all after I was only peacefully singing our water song and hugging/protecting a 70 year old matriarch. I was hauled off to jail along with my sister, Layla Black, several other land defenders, elders, along with members of the press. With the support of my community and people rallying across nations, I was free’d and remain steadfast and committed to defending the land from sea to sea all across Turtle Island."
WATCH / SHARE “DEADMAN” HERE
BUY / STREAM “DEADMAN” HERE
MORE ABOUT LOGAN STAATS
In 2018, veracious Mohawk singer-songwriter Logan Staats was chosen from 10,000 hopeful contestants vying for a spot on musical competition show ‘The Launch’. Before an audience of 1.4 million viewers, Staats won, officiating the breakthrough that would lead him to Nashville and Los Angeles, and to his single “The Lucky Ones” winning the Indigenous Music Award for Best Radio Single. “The Lucky Ones” also occupied #1 in Canada.
In the years between now and then, Staats has come home, making the intentional decision to re-root at Six Nations of the Grand River. “I wanted to bring my songwriting back to the medicine inside of music, to the medicine inside of reclamation,” he says following a phase of constant travel and intensity.
To Staats, music is a healing salve, contemplatively composed and offered to listeners in need of comfort. Since returning home, Staats has been able to create music authentically again, reclaiming his sound through honest storytelling and unvarnished, sometimes painful reflection.
