Independence Through Music Concert 6-9-2011 #7

Performance at a free concert at Billy Mills Hall in Pine Ridge, SD 6-9-2011.
Artists: Sheldon Starr
Cody Makes Him First
Independence Through Music blog story wp.me/p57ZB-hR
I.T.M. Official Facebook Page: / 156338044431411
Mission Statement
"We are committed to empowering our Native Youth by sharing our knowledge of the music business and by providing them with resources to promote their talents (with the help of our Native brothers and sisters from Canada) so the Native Youth can in turn give back to their communities. Our combined efforts will help to bring Natives together from all corners of Turtle Island to show that Wolakota has no borders."
How do they intend to fulfill that mission?
There will be a reservation wide talent search on the Pine Ridge Reservation. Following the auditions, 30 artists who have no prior solo demo CD's will be selected to participate in one of 3 weeklong workshops. The workshops, for both selected artists and any other residents of the reservation who wish to attend, will be led by Native mentors from all aspects of the music business, including songwriting, stage presence, marketing, promotions and the importance of staying true to the traditional teachings to stand strong against the negative aspects of the music business. Each young artist will record one original song for a 2-disc compilation CD which will be promoted using the professional musicians radio and media contacts. In addition, each young artist will record a raw demo for personal use courtesy of KILI radio. That demo will be sent to a professional producer to work on. The young artist will receive a Promo Packet via Discmakers which will include 1000 CD's of their song, cover art, download cards, posters, a concert banner, contacts for copyrighting and contacts with outlets such a Itunes. At the end of each weeklong workshop, a musicians showcase concert will be produced in conjunction with KILI radio, which will air the concert live. To promote the project and to enable the planners to carry this program to other reservations in the future, a film crew will be on site to document the week and film the live performances.