Nunavut rapper releases first single on struggle to survive

Brian Tagalik, shown here at last summer’s Alianait Arts Festival in Iqaluit, has released his first single, “the Struggle.” (PHOTO COURTESY OF B. TAGALIK/FACEBOOK)

On Sept. 10, World Suicide Prevention Day, Brian Tagalik, 28, of Iqaluit, released his first single, “the Struggle.”

The song is a story about the hardships and struggles of Inuit, as seen through the eyes of three generations, a grandfather, father and Tagalik himself.

“As a child, everyday was a struggle, not for food or shelter but for life and, as I came of age and realized the trials my parents and their parents had survived, it put my generation into a position of action,” Tagalik said in a news release about the song. “This [song] represents the battle and the fight the three separate generations encountered and our ability to gather together to fight against the plague that has become suicide. Together as Inuit we must unite to fight for the cause and save our dying culture.”

The song had its debut at the 2013 Alianait Arts Festival in Iqaluit where Tagalik won first place at the “Battle of the Bands” contest, and left many members of the audience — as well as the contest jury — in tears with the song’s powerful message, the release noted.

This past August, Tagalik teamed up with manager Nastania Mullin and music producer Thor Simonsen, also of Iqaluit, and singer-songwriter Kelly Fraser to complete the song, which you can listen to here.