Nahko and Medicine for the People is an American
world music group. The six-member band is headed by frontman Nahko Bear.
Background
Born in
Portland, Oregon
Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...
, of
Puerto Rican and
Filipino
Filipino may refer to:
* Something from or related to the Philippines
** Filipino language, standardized variety of 'Tagalog', the national language and one of the official languages of the Philippines.
** Filipinos, people who are citizens of th ...
descent, Nahko Bear was adopted at a young age and raised by a white family. It wasn't until his early twenties that he would meet his birth mother. He wrote the song "Early February" shortly before this meeting; it describes a woman far too young to be pregnant putting her baby in the bed of a woman she'd never met. Bear says his creative inspiration is the desire to bridge cultural gaps,
and that he has been musically inclined since the age of six, when he started learning to play the piano.
Bear has also worked as a piano teacher and music director.
In 2012, he began traveling around the United States in a van with his dog.
In 2017, Bear released a solo album titled ''My Name Is Bear'', under the name Nahko.
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 founded to raise awareness and financial support for Indigenous environmental justice. The organization was founded by Indigo Girls Amy Ray and Emily Saliers after meeting Winona LaDuke, and after consu ...
. In their statement, "Regarding Nahko", the Honor the Earth board stated that they have "a zero-tolerance policy for sexual harassment and inappropriate sexual behavior".
Band members
Current
* Nahko Bear – vocals
* Justin Chittams – drums
* Joe Hall – lead guitar
* Patricio Zuñiga Labarca – bass guitar
* Max Ribner – trumpet, flugelhorn
* Tim Snider – electric violin
* TJ Schaper – trombone
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 rapper, musician, poet, activist, documentarian, and singer-songwriter, known for his participation in many musical projects, most with a political and social emphasis, including the Beatnigs ...
, Trevor Hall Trevor Hall may refer to:
* Trevor Hall (musician), American singer, lyricist and guitarist
* ''Trevor Hall'' (album), an album by Trevor Hall
* Trevor Hall (rugby league), New Zealand landlord, salesman, and professional rugby league footballer
...
, 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.music festival
A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or h ...
s,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 ...
,[
]
Discography
Nahko and Medicine for the People
Studio albums
* ''Dark As Night'' (2013)
* ''On the Verge'' (2014)
* ''HOKA'' (2016)
* ''Take Your Power Back'' (2020)
Singles
Nahko
* ''My Name Is Bear'' (2017)
References
Further reading
;Reviews
*
*
External links
*
*
Musical groups established in the 2000s
American world music groups
{{US-band-stub