We’re continuing the Homegrown Plus series with a thrilling 2020 video concert by Sihasin, the sibling duo of Jeneda and Clayson Benally. The Benallys are award winning musicians from the Diné Navajo Nation in Northern Arizona. The name Sihasin is a Diné word that means hope and assurance, and the music reflects hope for equality, for healthy and respectful communities, and for social and environmental justice. Sihasin combines harmony vocals with bass and drums, in a style rooted in Native, rock, punk and world music. As usual for this series, you’ll find a concert video, an interview video, and a set of links to explore. But there’s also a bonus this time: Sihasin participated in our 2023 Archive Challenge at Folk Alliance International in Kansas City, so we have embedded that exciting video as well. And if that weren’t enough, the concert features a real, live horse!
Sihasin is the current project of sister and brother Jeneda and Clayson Benally. They come from a family with deep roots in traditional Navajo music as well as folk, punk, and other genres. Their mother Berta Benally is a folksinger and songwriter while their father Jones Benally is a World Champion hoop dancer and traditional healer. They have also made their mark (along with their late brother Klee) as the award-winning “alter-Native” punk band Blackfire.
Originally from Black Mesa on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona, the siblings were born into the heart of a political land dispute, in which a fence separated them from traditional homeland and family. They grew up protesting this separation, as well as environmental degradation and the destruction of their traditional way of life. After spending years in angry protest with Blackfire, they continue to channel their feelings about these important issues into the hopeful music of Sihasin.
Sihasin was booked for our 2020 concert series, which occurred entirely during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Navajo Nation was not spared the effects of the disease, and Clayson and Jeneda do not live in the same household. As a result, they decided to perform their concert video outdoors, which gives the video a vivid sense of place. They were joined by a very special guest: their father, Jones Benally, a singer, dancer, and healer. As I mentioned, the family was also joined by their horse, Moonwalker. Horses are important to Diné culture and music, and Moonwalker’s presence adds a unique and authentic touch to a wonderful concert video. Watch it in the player below!
We followed up the 2020 concert with a conversation in early 2021, which we conducted online from our three separate homes through the magic of the internet. We discussed their lives and careers, the unusual combination of influences in their music, and the importance of both music and activism to their lives and their community. We also talked about the pandemic itself, and among other fascinating details, Clayson and Jeneda revealed that their grandmother was a traditional healer who had bequeathed to the family her knowledge about containing pandemics learned from the 1918 flu crisis. Watch the interview in the player below!
Finally, as promised, here’s a bonus video we recorded as part of our Archive Challenge Showcase in Kansas City, Missouri in 2023. As usual that year, we challenged some fine musical artists to interpret material from our unparalleled archive of traditional folk music. We asked them to put their own spin on these archival treasures, and to perform them at a special showcase during the Folk Alliance International conference. Sihasin rose to this challenge by performing the song “Shi Ni Sha” (Navajo Nation anthem), which they adapted from a field recording of a group of schoolchildren, recorded by Willard Rhodes at the Indian Service Summer School at Fort Wingate, New Mexico, in 1941. (From the Willard Rhodes 1951 field recordings collection, AFC 1941/039: AFS 9527:B5 and B6.) Find the song in the third player, below!
Collection Connections and Links
If you enjoyed these videos of Sihasin, check out the Collection Connections below. You’ll find links to archival collections, guides, and other materials related to Indigenous and Native music and culture.
Blogs Highlighting Native Collections and Events
Find all our blogs with Indigenous American content at this link.
Online Collections
Omaha Indian Music
Ancestral Voices (Native American Cylinder Recordings)
Maine Acadian Cultural Survey Collection
Native American Materials in the Collection
Buckaroos in Paradise: Ranching Culture in Northern Nevada, 1945 to 1982
Native American Materials in the Collection
Montana Folklife Survey Collection
Native American Materials in the Collection
Rhode Island Folklife Survey Collection
Native American Materials in the Collection
Chicago Ethnic Arts Project Collection
Native American materials in the collection
Videos
- Jones Benally Family Dancers (Performance and Interview)
- Dineh Tah Navajo Dancers
- Nakotah LaRance 1989-2020: Traditional Hoop Dance and Beyond
- Hoop Dances by Dallas Chief Eagle and Jasmine Pickner
Find all AFC’s event videos featuring Indigenous American content at this link.
Find out more about the concert at this link
Many Thanks
Thanks for watching and listening! As always, you can find the whole Homegrown Plus series at this link.