RFE2022 • AYSANABEE (Toronto, ON)

Aysanabee is a multi-instrumentalist, producer and singer songwriter currently based in Toronto. Born Evan Pang, he is Oji-Cree, Sucker Clan of the Sandy Lake First Nation. Moving off reserve at the age of 3, Pang grew up in several northern towns across Manitoba and Ontario until settling in Kaministiquia outside of Thunder Bay with his mother and siblings where he taught himself to play guitar and write songs.

His sound ranges from introspective folk and pop-rock to soul anthems with the driving drums, which can be heard in his debut singles, Ocean Breath and Howling.

In 2021 Aysanabe was featured in the Indigenous Music Awards Emerging Artists Series(IMAs) and was in the running for the IMA’s music video competition for his song “The Dawn”. One of sixteen artists, Aysanabee was featured at the 2021 International Indigenous Music Summit in a mini docu-series titled Giiwewizh, in partnership with Apple.

Aysanabee has played in several bands, but over the pandemic, started his solo career under his family name, Aysanabee. He has spent the last 6 years working in journalism for major news outlets, leading him to develop his skills in storytelling, but also dividing his life into two parts.

He is currently working on a full-length project that combines both aspects of his life to deliver the story of his family, his struggle with identity and reconnecting with his roots: a story that is echoed all across Canada.