Franciscan and Friends Music Mission’s leader, Denis Grady, spent two years building relationships with band members across Southern Alberta. Capacity Builders introduced Grady to a champion at the Government of Alberta and started a partnership that led to the creation of the Indigenous People Have Talent Project. With support from over a dozen music professionals, the project will mentor and showcase the gifts and talents of 75 members of the Siksika and Tsuutina First Nations Bands from Southern Alberta. It’s designed to develop young First Nations members interested in a career in musical performance, technical areas or management and publicity.

To start, it will identify 10-15 people in each First Nation, first among Siksika band members, then from the Tsuutina band. A human resources consultant will interview each one and do an assessment that measures their strengths in life and social skills, and talk about their career interests. All of the participants will be teamed up with professionals from the music industry who will serve as their mentors. These include performers, sound engineers, producers and promoters with a long history in the music business. Together, they’ll visit studios, concerts and other musical venues. Talent contests will pick winners who will go on tour in the US.