The Jerry Cans facts for kids

The Jerry Cans (which is Pai Gaalaqautikkut in Inuktitut) are a cool band from Iqaluit, Nunavut. They mix traditional Inuit throat singing with folk music and country rock. Most of their songs are in Inuktitut, the language of the Inuit people. Their lyrics share stories about the fun and challenges of living in the Far North.

In 2016, they released their album Inuusiq/Life on Aakuluk Music. This was Nunavut's very first record label! The band members started Aakuluk Music to help other Inuit and Indigenous musicians share their amazing music.

The band has five members:

• Andrew Morrison: He sings and plays guitar.
• Avery Keenainak: She sings and plays the accordion.
• Gina Burgess: She plays the violin.
• Brendan Doherty: He plays the bass guitar.
• Steve Rigby: He plays the drums.

The band's name came from a funny idea Steve Rigby had. He once tried to build a drum set using old jerrycans!

How the Band Started

The Jerry Cans began as a blues rock band with Andrew Morrison, Brendan Doherty, and Steve Rigby. They were living in Peterborough, Ontario, while going to school.

Later, they moved to Iqaluit, Nunavut. That's when Nancy Mike joined the group. She was from Pangnirtung, Nunavut, and played the accordion and did throat singing. Gina Burgess, who is from Halifax, Nova Scotia, also joined. She visited Iqaluit as part of a special music program and loved playing with them.

Music Career Highlights

The band's first album, Nunavuttitut, came out in 2012.

At first, they were popular mostly in their local area. But things changed after Tanya Tagaq won a big music award called the Polaris Music Prize in 2014. This made Inuit throat singing more well-known, and The Jerry Cans started getting more attention.

Their third album, Inuusiq/Life, was released in 2016. They have traveled a lot, playing concerts all over Canada and at festivals in Australia and New Zealand.

In 2017, The Jerry Cans released a version of "Ahead by a Century" by The Tragically Hip, sung in Inuktitut. That same year, they helped start the first Nunavut Music Week. This event gives musicians from Nunavut a chance to show off their talents.

They also made music for a children's TV show called Anaana's Tent on the Aboriginal Peoples Television Network (APTN). They wrote songs like "Naasailu" (a counting song) and "Uumajut" (about traditional Inuit food). They even wrote the main theme song for the show, "We're Headed to Anaana's Tent."

In January 2020, Nancy Mike left the band. Soon after, the band released two new songs, "Atauttikkut" and "Havava." These songs were a sneak peek of their album Echoes, which came out in May 2020.

Aakuluk Music Record Label

In 2016, The Jerry Cans created their own record label called Aakuluk Music. Their goal was to help other artists from Nunavut release their music.

Besides their own albums, Aakuluk Music has released music by many other talented artists. Some of these include Aasiva, FxckMr, Northern Haze, Riit, Terry Uyarak, and The Trade-Offs.

Awards and Recognition

The band and its members have won some cool awards:

• In 2013, Nancy Mike won the Canadian Folk Music Award for Aboriginal Songwriter of the Year.
• In 2015, the band was nominated for two more Canadian Folk Music Awards.

The Jerry Cans were also nominated for two Juno Awards in 2018: Breakthrough Group of the Year and Contemporary Roots Album of the Year. They even performed their song "Ukiuq" live at the Juno Awards ceremony! They had other musicians from Nunavut, like Josh Qaumariaq, Avery Keenainak, and James Ungalaq, join them on stage.

Books for Kids

In 2017, The Jerry Cans wrote a children's board book called Mamaqtuq!. It was based on their song with the same name. Mamaqtuq! is special because it's written in both Inuktitut and English. Eric Kim created the fun pictures for the book.

Music Albums

Here are the albums The Jerry Cans have released:

• Nunavuttitut / ᓄᓇᕗᑦᑎᑐᑦ (2012)
• Aakuluk / ᐋᑯᓗᒃ (2014)
• Inuusiq/Life / ᐃᓅᓯᖅ (2016)
• Echoes (2020)