By Frances Herrod, Reporter
City, Ariz. – Artificial Red’s Randy Kemp (Tzo-Ya-Ha/Mvskoke/Chahta), along with his accompanist Phillip Empey, have been nominated for two Native American Music Awards this year. The first for Best Instrumental Recording for the album “Raven Speaks” and Best Live Performance Music Video for “Live At The Heard Museum.”
The recognition is all the more enjoyable because Kemp isn’t supposed to be here. A child of The Bureau of Indian Affairs Relocation Program, a federal government program designed to further assimilate Natives by promising more opportunities in cities nationwide, another Indian Removal that created the division between those raised traditionally and those displaced to urban areas by creating a large diaspora. He found himself with his family in Los Angeles, where the mix of cultures and people was a far cry from his Native Oklahoma. It was these experiences that shaped his formative years before a move back to Oklahoma.
Even then the multi talented Musician/Actor/Mixed Media artist struggled to find his place.
“We got back to Oklahoma. That set up a whole new set of problems, because there was some dislike of Natives in the town and in school. So there was a lot of fights and misunderstanding,” Says Kemp.
Kemp cut his long hair and became involved in extracurriculars as a way to bridge the gap between himself and the Bixby community. He took part in football, basketball, wrestling, track, and drama.
“If you, if you made the team, then, you know, parents seem to kind of take you under their wing because my parents were always working class, they were just working all the time. So there were surrogate kind of parents out there. Now all of a sudden it carried into the school.”
Still the struggle for place and belonging continued.
“People had to say kind of like ‘hello’ but they really never asked me who I was. They never asked me about what tribe or what are you? What do you guys do today, or any of those questions that, that would make, you know, someone curious about, you know, knowing.”
That’s why reclaiming his cultures when he was called home was important.
“My mom is (Tzo-Ya-Ha). She was Grandma Josephine. She found out for me that there’s a story about the flutes and it was actually told to her that it was used as a calling device,” Kemp said. ‘When we used to live in the Southeast and in the woodsy area the river cane flits were used. So if you would play one note really loud that would pierce the forest more than a human voice would, and that people would know, and be alerted to, to come back into the Township.”
“So I thought, wow…that’s all I need to know is that this is a gathering device or instrument that I can use in the modern sense to help gather people.”
Despite the accolades it’s the feeling of community that strikes a chord with Kemp.
“It’s a yearning because I’ve been away from it for so long but…the Muskogee Art Market pulled me back in within the tribe,” he says about being welcomed back.
“I’ve heard that tribal folks were very kind of hard to meet and greet or just to talk. You seldom see them. But this administration was accessible,” Kemp said. “So, it’s amazing our tribe is running at this caliber in that sense. I’m looking forward to that in the future and seeing with us what we can do and be so that I can be more involved.”
You can hear “Raven Speaks” on the Artificial Red Bandcamp. “Live At The Heard Museum” is available on YouTube. You can vote for both at the Native American Music Awards.
