Part of a larger movement of artists streaming their work through the internet, the Caremongering Inuvik has had numerous posts from local musicians as well as performances made across the territory under the hashtag #NWTLive. Thanks to the Town of Inuvik, Gwich'in Tribal Council and the Inuvialuit Communications Society, compensation is available for musicians as well.
Organizer Jonathon Michel said the idea was being kicked around before the COVID-19 outbreak, but given the situation it made sense to go ahead with it.
"If people are feeling cooped up or anxious, hopefully these performances will promote sharing storytelling and music from home here in the Beaufort Delta so that folks can feel a bit more connected during this difficult time." said local organizer Jonathon Michel. "Through the partnership with the GTC, Town of Inuvik and ICS, Caremongering can offer performing artists with a bit of compensation for sharing their art, whether it be a storytelling or a musical performance."
He added that if anybody from the Beaufort Delta region is interested or if they have questions, they can email their request to nwtlive@gmail.com.
Artists either share a song they performed or read a piece of writing and are responsible for their own live streaming equipment. Michel said he's asking artists to prepare 45-60 minutes of music for a livestream.
So far we have a kids performance lined up, a talented fiddler and a rapper, so there’s a little something for everyone," he said. "The artists name is Miranda Currie, I'm very excited to tune in and I hope others tune in as well. However, as these are Facebook Live streaming, they can be viewed later whenever people are able either within Caremongering Inuvik or by searching the tag."
Michel said the group plans to host a number of concerts, noting he had a number of musicians offering to perform a set over the next few weeks.
He added that the group Caremongering Inuvik wanted to remind residents to continue working to flatten the curve and avoid gatherings of larger than five people, maintain proper hand washing and staying home if feeling ill.
In the end, he said the main point of ##NWTLive was to help give people in self-isolation a means of reconnecting with the community."
"This project is a thank you for doing those things and can hopefully be a small break from all the scary news outside our homes," he said. "We can get through this together."
All performances can be viewed either by searching the hashtag #NWTLive or by joining the Caremongering Inuvik group.