MoD Talk to feature Academy Award winning Indigenous artist

Written By Paula Brown

Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Academy Award-winning Indigenous singer-song writer, Buffy Sainte-Marie is set to guest in an upcoming session of MoD Talks hosted by the Museum of Dufferin. 

Sainte-Marie will join in for a discussion with Nanci Malek, the museum's marketing and events coordinator, on Aug. 1 where the two will talk about everything from her digital artwork to her life in Hawaii. 

“We talk about things people are not generally going to have the opportunity to know, unless they follow non-stop,” said Malek. “She's unbelievable.” 

Sainte-Marie debuted her first album It's My Way! In 1964 and was named Best New Artists by Billboard Magazine. In the early 1970s', her recording of “Soldier Blue” was in the UK Top 10, and “Mister Can You See”, a top-40 hit in the U.S. 

In 1982 she would become the only Indigenous person to win an Oscar co-writing “Up Where We Belong” for the movie An Officer and a Gentleman. 

Sainte-Marie has also been making digital art since the 1980s and in 2020 published a children's lullaby book. 

MOD Talks is an interview series that, Malek has hosted over the years for the local museum. Some of her interviews for the series include George Stroumboulopoulos, Jim Cuddy, Terry O'Reilly, and Steve Paikin. 

Through the sessions, Malek said she aims to move away from the typical interviews. 

“I like to give a little look into a different outlook on a celebrity or person high in media,” explained Malek. 

The upcoming MoD Talk with Buffy Sainte-Marie will be presented on Aug. 1 at 1 p.m., and tickets ($20) can be purchased through the Museum of Dufferin website.