Nahko and Medicine for the People is an American

world music "World music" is an English phrase for styles of music from non-English speaking countries, including quasi-traditional, Cross-cultural communication, intercultural, and traditional music. World music's broad nature and elasticity as a musical ...

group headed by Nahko Bear. As of , they have released five studio albums.

Background

Nahko Bear was born in Portland, Oregon. Nahko is short for ''Nahkohe-ese'', "little bear" in the

Cheyenne language The Cheyenne language (, , informal spelling ) is the Native American language spoken by the Cheyenne people, predominantly in present-day Montana and Oklahoma, in the United States. It is part of the Algonquian language family. Like all other ...

. He self-identifies as being of

Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...

, Chamorro,

Mohawk Mohawk may refer to: Related to Native Americans *Mohawk people (Kanien’kehá:ka), an indigenous people of North America (Canada and New York) *Mohawk language (Kanien’kéha), the language spoken by the Mohawk people *Mohawk hairstyle, from a ...

, Puerto Rican, and Filipino descent. According to Indianz.com, he has not specified which Apache or Mohawk tribes he descends from. Adopted by a white middle-class Christian family, he learned of his heritage after reconnecting with his biological mother as an adult. His birth was the result of rape, and his biological father had been murdered. He learned to play the piano at the age of six and the guitar at fourteen. He began his musical career by

busking Street performance or busking is the act of performing in public places for gratuity, gratuities. In many countries, the rewards are generally in the form of money but other gratuities such as food, drink or gifts may be given. Street performa ...

and formed the band in 2008. Nahko and Medicine for the People play a fusion of styles often called

, or

worldbeat Worldbeat is a music genre that blends pop music or rock music with world music or traditional music. Worldbeat is similar to other cross-pollination labels of contemporary and roots genres, and which suggest a rhythmic, harmonic or textural co ...

. The group's lyrics present a message of social and environmental consciousness.

Tours and festivals

Nahko and Medicine for the People have toured with Nattali Rize, Rebelution,

Michael Franti Michael Franti (born April 21, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, poet, activist, documentarian, and rapper. Known for his participation in many musical projects, most with a political and social emphasis, including the Beatnig ...

, Trevor Hall, Dispatch,

Xavier Rudd Xavier Rudd (born 29 May 1978) is an Australian singer, songwriter, musician, and multi-instrumentalist. Several of Rudd's songs incorporate socially conscious themes, such as spirituality, humanity, environmentalism and the rights of Indigen ...

, and SOJA. The band largely appears at alternative music festivals, including the

Greenbelt Festival Greenbelt Festival is a festival of arts, faith and justice held annually in England since 1974. Greenbelt has grown out of an evangelical Christian music festival with an audience of 1,500 young people into its current form, a more inclusive f ...

, the ARISE Music Festival, and Tour de Fat.

Solo work

In 2017, Bear released a solo album titled ''My Name Is Bear'', under the name Nahko.

Controversy

On July 8, 2020, following accusations from multiple individuals of sexually inappropriate behavior, Bear resigned from the board of

Honor the Earth Honor the Earth is a non-profit organization dedicated to Indigenous peoples, Indigenous environmental justice. The organization's mission is to protect the lifeways and sovereignty of Indigenous Peoples around the globe. The organization is ded ...

. In their statement, "Regarding Nahko", the board stated that they have "a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment and inappropriate sexual behavior". After the initial surge of public interest, Bear responded to the accusations made against him. On August 10, 2020, he shared a statement on the band's Facebook page, in which he expressed regret to the women he had harmed through his inappropriate actions and disputed allegations against him as false.

Band members

Current * Nahko Bear – vocals * Justin Chittams – drums * Joe Hall – lead guitar * Patricio Zuñiga Labarca – bass guitar * Max Ribner – trumpet * Tim Snider – electric violin * TJ Schaper – trombone Past * Hope Medford – hand percussion and rhythm * Don Corey – bass (recorded on ''Dark as Night'') * Chase Makai – lead guitar

Discography

Nahko and Medicine for the People

Studio albums * ''Dark As Night'' (2013) * ''On the Verge'' (2014) * ''HOKA'' (2016) * ''Take Your Power Back'' (2020) * ''Trenches'' (2023) Singles

Nahko

* ''My Name Is Bear'' (2017)

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Musical groups established in 2008 American world music groups