Samuel Tremblay, better known by his stage name Samian (born 11 July 1983),Samian
at the First Nations Youth Network. is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

rapper who performs in both

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

and Algonquian.

Biography

A member of the

Abitibiwinni First Nation The Abitibiwinni First Nation (french: Première Nation Abitibiwinni) is an Algonquian First Nation in the Canadian province of Quebec, residing primarily in the community of Pikogan in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region. The First Nation had a ...

, Samian was born in Amos and grew up in the community of Pikogan in Abitibi-Témiscamingue and in several other cities in the province of Quebec. His father is Québécois and his mother is Algonquin. He was first noted by participating in the Wapikoni film project in 2004 and would later perform on stage with the Quebec Rap group

Loco Locass Loco Locass are a Canadian hip hop group from Quebec formed in 1995. The group often defends the role of the French language, and champions Quebec sovereignty. Songs such as " ROC Rap" and "Résistance" highlight the band's political leanings, a ...

. In 2005, Samian collaborated on several projects with Canada's National Film Board, the Department of Indian Affairs and ''HARRO décrochage scolaire'' (school dropout Network), AIDS and problems related to compulsive gambling. In 2006, he won first prize for best music video for his clip ''Courage'' at the United Indigenous Peoples Festival in Pau, France. During this festival, he will play the first part of Florent Vollant, member of Kashtin music group. He was the first musician to sing in both French and Algonquin. He is an inspiration to many Aboriginal youth. His popularity is growing since his revelation to the Festival Voix d'Amérique (America's Voices Festival). The same year, he met with

Anodajay Stephen Jolin, better known as Anodajay, is a rapper from Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec in Canada.

and wrote the song "La Paix des Braves", which referred to the agreement signed respecting a new relationship between the Cree Nation and the Government of Quebec. The song became his first single.

later invited Samian to perform his song on stage at the

Place des Arts Place may refer to: Geography * Place (United States Census Bureau), defined as any concentration of population ** Census-designated place, a populated area lacking its own municipal government * "Place", a type of street or road name ** Often ...

in Montreal during the ''Loco Locass Symphonique'' event. He released his debut album, ''Face à soi-même'', in 2007 on Anodajay's 7ième Ciel Records. He has performed across Canada and internationally, including shows in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

and at the

2010 Winter Olympics )'' , nations = 82 , athletes = 2,626 , events = 86 in 7 sports (15 disciplines) , opening = February 12, 2010 , closing = February 28, 2010 , opened_by = Governor General Michaëlle Jean , cauldron = Catriona Le May DoanNancy GreeneWayne Gretz ...

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. In 2007, he was one of the spokesmen at the Quebec Social Forum with Paul Piché and Raoul Duguay. At the

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day (french: Fête de la Saint-Jean-Baptiste, la Saint-Jean, Fête nationale du Québec), also known in English as ''St John the Baptist Day'', is a holiday celebrated on June 24 in the Canadian province of Quebec Que ...

festivities on June 24, 2008, Loco Locass and Samian performed "Paix des Braves" before tens of thousands of spectators at Maisonneuve Park, as well as millions of viewers on television. His 2010 album ''Face à la musique'' includes a hip hop remake of

Kashtin Kashtin were a Canadian folk rock duo in the 1980s and 1990s, one of the most commercially successful and famous musical groups in First Nations history. Career The band was formed in 1984 by Claude McKenzie and Florent Vollant, two Innu musicia ...

's "Tshinanu". His rendition does not

sample Sample or samples may refer to: Base meaning * Sample (statistics), a subset of a population – complete data set * Sample (signal), a digital discrete sample of a continuous analog signal * Sample (material), a specimen or small quantity of s ...

the original recording; instead, he collaborated directly with the members of Kashtin on a new recording of the song's guitar line and chorus. On May 2, 2010, he appeared on '' Tout le monde en parle'', bringing awareness to the fact that the Algonquin language was endangered. In 2013, he acted in the Quebec film ''

Rock Paper Scissors Rock paper scissors (also known by other orderings of the three items, with "rock" sometimes being called "stone," or as Rochambeau, roshambo, or ro-sham-bo) is a hand game originating in China, usually played between two people, in which each p ...

(Roche papier ciseaux)'' alongside

Roy Dupuis Roy Michael Joseph Dupuis (; born April 21, 1963) is a Canadian actor best known in America for his role as counterterrorism operative Michael Samuelle in the television series '' La Femme Nikita''. In Canada, specifically Quebec, he's known for ...

. On August 4, 2014, Samian did a concert at the ''Festival Présence Autochtone'', held at Place des Festivals in Montreal, where he was joined by several guests including Loco Locass and Kathia Rock. In 2014, Samian also took part in a program which was broadcast on APTN titled ''Le Rhythme''. Alongside Dany Bédar, Samian was the mentor of several Aboriginal musicians, singers, writers and performers, aged 18 to 30, guiding them through an artistic journey of intensive training, ultimately leading them to the recording of their first album as a group. He has also had acting roles in the films '' Scratch'' (2015), ''

Hochelaga, Land of Souls ''Hochelaga, Land of Souls'' (french: Hochelaga, Terre des âmes) is a 2017 Canadian historical drama film directed and written by François Girard and starring Gilles Renaud, Samian and Tanaya Beatty. Dramatizing several centuries of Quebec ...

'' (2017), '' Bootlegger'' (2021) and '' The Inhuman'' (2021). He won the award for Best Actor at the 2022

American Indian Film Festival The American Indian Film Festival is an annual non-profit film festival in San Francisco, California, United States. It is the world's oldest venue dedicated solely to Native American/First Nations films and prepared the way for the 1979 formati ...

for ''L'Inhumain''."BROKEN ANGEL and POWERLANDS Win Top Awards at 2022 American Indian Film Festival"
''Vimooz'', November 16, 2022. He was a

Felix Award Felix may refer to: * Felix (name), people and fictional characters with the name Places * Arabia Felix is the ancient Latin name of Yemen * Felix, Spain, a municipality of the province Almería, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, S ...

nominee for Indigenous Artist of the Year at the

44th Félix Awards The 43rd Félix Awards were held on November 6, 2022 to honour achievements in Quebec music. The gala was hosted by Louis-José Houde, and televised by Ici Radio-Canada Télé. The advance ceremony announcing the winners in categories not se ...

in 2022.Myriam Bercier
"Les résultats du gala de l’ADISQ 2022"
''Le Canal Auditif'', November 6, 2022.

Discography

*''Face à soi-même'' (2007) *''Face à la musique'' (2010) *''Enfant de la terre'' (2015)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Samian 1983 births Canadian male rappers 21st-century Canadian rappers First Nations musicians Musicians from Quebec People from Abitibi-Témiscamingue Living people Algonquin people Canadian male film actors Male actors from Quebec First Nations male actors 21st-century Canadian male musicians 21st-century Canadian male actors