Home of Asiginaak-Negamojig (Blackbird Singers)
Asiginaak-Negamojig (Blackbird Singers) is a circle of women committed to singing solely in Ojibwe. We gather for the joy and often the healing power of raising our voices together, strengthening both language and community. Our songs take flight beyond our circle—through community outreach, public events, and cultural gatherings.
The blackbird—Asiginaak—is a vital presence in the swamps, a reminder that voices can rise together even in challenging places. Our name honors that resilience and vitality.
Our circle is part of a living lineage of women's singing and drumming in our Ann Arbor area community. That story began in 2009 with Miiskwaasining Nagamojig (Swamp Singers), when Stacie Sheldon and Marsha Traxler Reeves first began getting together to sing and drum. Soon a third woman, Linda Purchase, joined and began singing in Anishinaabemowin—sparking even more joy and energy in the group. Not long after, Margaret Noodin brought her beautiful voice and original Anishinaabemowin compositions, deepening the songs and the spirit of the circle. Soon many women were gathering once a week, overcoming shyness and learning how to sing in Anishinaabemowin and drum at the same time.
Over the years, the Swamp Singers grew to include many women from Ojibwe, Odawa, Passamaquoddy, Haudenosaunee, Oneida, and Potawatomi nations, ranging in age from eleven to eighty. They met weekly to share stories, food, and ceremony in Ann Arbor, supporting one another through life's changes and gathering in solidarity to protect language, culture, and community.
Eventually, as people moved, lives shifted, and new paths unfolded, the Swamp Singers' chapter came to a close. But the songs remained—carried, in spirit, by the blackbirds of Miiskwaasining.
From that spirit, Asiginaak-Negamojig emerged: a new circle with a renewed dedication to Ojibwe language revitalization and to supporting one another in both music and life. While the Swamp Singers and the Blackbird Singers are distinct, they are connected like relatives—rooted in the same lands and language, honoring the past while creating something new.
Featured Programs & Community Offerings
From language and storytelling to community gatherings and traveling songs, our programs honor Ojibwe culture and the connections between land, water, and people. Here are some highlights from our recent cultural work:
Sounds of Ojibwe
Stacie Chitwaadewegekwe Sheldon has created a show in partnership with Asiginaak-Negamojig called Sounds of Ojibwe that teaches about how the Great Lakes Watershed is the ancestral home of the Ojibwe language and what it teaches about place, how we see the world, and how the language is key to survivance. Throughout this program the group sings songs and even invites the audience to sing and dance.
Manoomin's Journey
Manoomin's Journey: Wild Rice & the Anishinaabe People is a Crankie Box Show about Manoomin or Wild Rice. Children learn about manoomin from the perspective of the manoomin to understand our relationships with all living things while having fun searching for items in the beautiful illustrations and learning to say words in Ojibwe.
What is a Crankie Box? A crankie theatre is a box built with two spools inside. The spools have handles that can be 'cranked' to bring movement to an illustrated scroll that helps tell a story. Our Crankie Box was designed, built, and painted by Natalie McCabe.
Community Event Programming
Asiginaak-Negamojig is often invited to share Welcome Songs, Honor Songs, and Travelling Songs, along with teachings and reflections that enrich community gatherings. Our songs have been part of feasts, water-focused events, school programs, land justice initiatives, art exhibits, and many other cultural events.
Booking: Asiginaak-Negamojig has brand materials as well as payment procedures and guidelines to help us share our music in good ways. If you are interested in booking the Blackbird Singers please contact Stacie Sheldon.
Gallery
