Twin Flames to light up The Carleton for Prismatic Arts Festival

The husband-wife duo joins other performers for the multidisciplinary arts festival that focuses on celebrating Indigenous artists and artists of colour

HALIFAXtoday\ Jordan Parker

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Folk artists Twin Flames are set to light up The Carleton’s stage this weekend for the annual Prismatic Arts Festival.

The Indigenous, highly popular husband-wife duo — Chelsey June and Jaaji — honour their ancestors through their music, and together they create magic onstage.

“It’s such an honour to come to the East Coast and play live,” June said. “To be on the road for a substantial amount of time will be so fun.”

She is Métis (Algonquin Cree) from Ottawa while Jaaji is Inuk and Mohawk from Nunavik. The two create a beautiful blend of genres and give audiences a transformative experience.

“We always felt fortunate to be on stage, but it’s even more incredible to be on stage as an Indigenous act,” Jaaji said. “When we were playing virtually, we were fine, but we first got back on a stage in June.

“It felt like we were always in Ontario, so this is just going to be an amazing experience.”

The two have put their heart and soul into ensuring they remember where they came from, and they instill that in their music.

“I was raised in an Inuit community, and there was always a pride in where I came from,” Jaaji said. “My grandparents raised me to remember people are human first and the essence of what Inuit and Inuk actually means. We write about stories and our upbringings, and it’s evident.”

His wife feels much the same about it and loves finding ways to connect to people through their music.

“We’ve been at this music thing for seven years; we both love music and it helped us feel better,” she said. “We figured if it can help us, we can help others. We have seen the power of music to reach people of different cultures or religions. We have seen the industry change and Indigenous music and culture become more important.

“Canadians need to begin to listen and be awakened by what has happened in this country, and why things are the way they are. The more people open their hearts and minds, the easier it becomes. We never set out to be cultural ambassadors, but we do want to share stories, and celebrating overcoming struggles. Music has been a way to connect.”

The two met on a television set for APTN show TAM in 2014, and there was an almost immediate connection.

“I had just put out my first solo, and he had singles out. We were brought in separately,” June said. “I missed my casting call and he was on tour and missed his initial date. So we ended up going on July 6. Someone cancelled and I got a spot, and that was the day he rescheduled.

“We really found something amazing during a campfire when he was singing ‘Outside’ by Staind. I started singing along, and the harmonies were amazing. It was instant. We exchanged CDs after the show, and now we live together, got married and have children.”

The two agree on the way to work and live well together: they don’t hold onto things.

“We rarely fight,” Jaaji said. “When we do, it gets resolved right away. We are together so much of the time, and we always ensure we communicate.

“We have fun together, play together and go on the road. This East Coast tour is like a road trip, but we just happen to have our instruments, and it’s always an adventure.”

June says they both find themselves consistently working in tandem, and it helps their music.

“We have such unique brains, and it might sound cliche, but our strengths and weaknesses combine and we make each other stronger,” she said. “That’s why we are Twin Flames. It just kind of sums up what happened since we met.

“We have all lived multiple lives. He and I had terrible relationships before each other, but now we appreciate each other so much more. This is a constant collaboration, and we’re consistently holding onto the beautiful things.”

The Ottawa band has seen huge success, including two nominations this year for the Canadian Folk Music Awards, three successful albums, a popular cover of The Tragically Hip’s “Grace, Too” and a chance to make music they truly enjoy.

“We grew up with 70s and 80s music, and I also really enjoy 90s alternative rock,” Jaaji said. “The messages in those songs are still real, and we love that. It’s not all about sex, money and cloud nine relationships — we pay ode to those eras.

“I think of Paul Simons and all the great names. That was back when hit music had  purpose, and we love to make music that means something, just like that.”

The two have begun an incredible journey in the back half of 2021, and it was highlighted by playing the halftime show at the Ottawa Redblacks football game on Sept. 28.

“We played to 15,000 people,” Jaaji said. “And it was just so cool. Now we’re doing the East Coast and we have Prince George and some important time at home. But we’ll also hit Lunenburg, Labrador and we are also prepping two albums. Things are going to be busy.”

The Prismatic Arts Festival — a multidisciplinary arts festival celebrating Indigenous artists and artists of colour — features Twin Flames on Sunday, Oct. 3 at 7 p.m.