Passing the Baton: Hear, My Indigenous Sounds.

In 2020, Ponay, a Amis youth from Taitung, uploaded a series of indigenous-style covers on YouTube and has accumulated nearly 3.7 million views so far. His mashups of popular songs, indigenous languages, traditional ballads, and various indigenous punchlines introduce different aspects of the indigenous peoples to the audience.

As a singer, he boldly created something new with indigenous music; as a designer, he goes beyond the existing impressions of indigenous totems and created a modern visual glossary. No matter which field he is working in, Gelresai Chen always manages to break through existing situations and create something different.

Independent music development in Taiwan boomed in the late 1990s with independent bands and musical composition increasing rapidly. Practicing bands, taking part in competitions, and performing at various music festivals became the goal and everyday life activity of many youths. Indigenous youth with unique life experiences and cultural nurturing displayed the outstanding singing skill and passion for music cultivated growing up, reversing the general public’s imagination of indigenous peoples with their one-of-a-kind music styles.

Blues is an important genre of music created by African Americans. Blues not only influenced the development of jazz and rock, its traces can also be found in the works of indigenous Taiwan musicians, such as Parangalan’s “Sky High Mountain Blues” and Dakanow’s “Abandoned Blues” style. How did this melancholy-tinted music come about? How does it relate to African cultures and African American history?

In an interview in 2020, I inadvertently overheard that a local government/group had started to investigate the nomination of private antiquities as cultural heritage. That area has been equipped with relevant authorities and capabilities to engage in general surveys of cultural artifacts, and these experts have kept a good grip on the antiquities....