Attawapiskat, ON via Winnipeg, MB — Northern Canadian musician Adrian Sutherland is pleased to be releasing Respect the Gift today, an upbeat song of celebration.
“Respect the Gift is about using our ‘gifts’ for good, and not taking for granted the everyday freedoms and luxuries we have. There’s never been a more important time to appreciate all that we find precious, especially given the world we’re living in today,” says Sutherland about his second solo single.
LISTEN NOW: Respect the Gift
ABOUT THE SONG
Respect the Gift was co-written one year ago by Adrian and brothers Chris Gormley and Matt Gormley – the same songwriting team behind Adrian’s solo debut Politician Man. While Respect the Gift was essentially completed in January 2020, as the pandemic unfolded, it was decided to wait for a better time to release. That time is now.
“Anyone who hears this song just feels happy, it has a positive vibe, and it’s a great dance tune,” says Sutherland. “We found this out when I played the demo for my family for the very first time. They all jumped up and started dancing – including my two-year-old grandson Ezra! It was an unexpected moment, and it made us realize we have something pretty special here.”
Respect the Gift was produced and mixed by Carl Jennings (Hamilton ON), who performs on the track along with Sutherland and the Gormley brothers. It was engineered by Darren Magierowski and Jill Zimmermann at Jukasa Recording Studios (Ohsweken ON), and mastered by João Carvalho at João Carvalho Mastering (Toronto ON). Beautiful artwork for the single was designed by Nick Perreault (formerly St. John’s NL, now Nashville TN).
Watch for the super-cool dance music video to be released soon! More info to come.
ABOUT ADRIAN SUTHERLAND
Adrian Sutherland is from Attawapiskat First Nation on the James Bay in remote Northern Canada. He’s a musician, songwriter, speaker, writer, advocate, and the fascinating frontman and founder of roots-rockers Midnight Shine. He’s also a father of four, a grandfather to four, a hard-working husband, and a respected cultural leader, proud of who he is and where he comes from. Adrian is fluent in Cree, practices traditional ways of the land, and is a genuine example of someone who lives authentically. He is currently writing his first book for Penguin Random House Canada, and working on music for his debut solo album slated for release this summer.
SPECIAL THANKS
We would like to acknowledge funding support from the Ontario Arts Council, an agency of the Government of Ontario (Music Recording Projects program). We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts (Digital Originals program).