A contemporary roots duo featuring sibling songwriters Leela Gilday and Jay Gilday. Sechile Sedare (pronounced ‘seh-chee-leh’ 'seh-dahr-eh') means ‘my younger brother, my older sister’ in the Dene language. This musical collaboration sees Jay and Leela co-write and co-create new repertoire together, harnessing their talents as deeply insightful and genuine storytellers. Their voices blend in perfect harmony, hitting notes of nostalgia, hope, humour and reflection. The songs, created during lockdown in 2021 and during a residency at the Banff Centre, share stories about their family history, their connection to the land and water, and the twists and turns of fate.
About Jay Gilday
A vagabond turned mailman, Jay Gilday has searched for himself in the depths of Folk, blues, traditional, rock and most recently soul music. The quest continues as Jay takes his experiences as a half Dene, half Canadian-Irish youth traveling the roads of Canada, the daily roller-coaster of work, family, and performance and weaves them into song. Jay’s live performance is executed with a trained voice and a passion to drive it backed up by a heavy hitting guitar, finger-style or flat-picked, your choice!
About Leela Gilday
Born and raised in the Northwest Territories, Leela Gilday writes about the people and the land that created her. The power in her voice conveys the depth of her feelings of love and life in a rugged environment and vibrant culture, as if it comes straight from that earth. Leela’s family is from Délįne on the shore of Great Bear Lake and her rich vocals dance across the rhythmic beats of traditional Dene drumming as smoothly as a bass line onstage the largest venues in the country. And she has played them all. Leela is the recipient of the 2021 JUNO Award for Indigenous Artist of the Year.