In title and spirit, The Truth We Hold is a collection of songs of Métis people, places and stories, across centuries. A Métis songbook for future generations, the new album maps events, place names and family history with a careful, loving hand, drawing untold and unacknowledged experiences into the light.
Tracklisting:
I Won’t Hide
One of these Days
Unforgettable
#44
Distant Drum (feat. Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk)
Better Part of Town
Dream If You Want To
Down the Line
Big John MacNeil (feat. Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuck)
Flossie’s
Annie’s Whip
Can’t Make Us Gone
Steps of the Old Ones (feat. Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk)
“For her sixth release, The Truth We Hold , produced and mixed by Grammy-award winner Colin Linden at his Nashville studio, Rheaume offers 10 new songs that chronicle the Métis spirit; she sings for those that came before, those here now, and those not yet born.
Altogether, The Truth We Hold is a beautiful ode to the Métis
”
I Won’t Hide
On October 22 1993, Steve Powley and his son Roddy shot and killed a moose to feed their family for the winter, like they had always done. One week later, they were charged for hunting without a license. This song was inspired by the courage of the Powley family and their fight for their rights..
“I’ve always hunted. Lived off the land. I mean, it's always been that way. I’ve hunted moose from the day I was 12, 13. My parents taught me and I’ve always hunted. I know in my family, we eat moose meat in everything… we make moose chilli, hamburgers, steak, roast. It’s a way of life with us…and I’ve always hunted, the only thing was…we had to hide it.” - Steve Powley
For over ten years, the Powleys fought their case in every level of court. On September 19, 2003, the Supreme Court of Canada, in a unanimous judgment, said that the Powleys, as members of the Sault Ste. Marie Métis community, can exercise a Métis right to hunt, protected by s. 35. The pathway for the Powley decision to be possible was created by the incredible work of Harry Daniels, who fought to have the Métis included in Section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982.
2. One of These Days
“I’ve lived my life for this place, I’m just trying to die here, one of these days” - Dolores Pinder (granddaughter of Dave Bussineau)
In the early 1900’s, after losing their traditional river lots in the 1850s, a group of Métis families moved from Sault Ste Marie up to Agawa Bay. This group included individuals such as Dave and H. Bussineau, W. Roussain, M. Roussain, Edna Roussain, and A. Davieaux.
One particular family, the Bussineaus, bought land from the Hudson’s Bay Company. At the time, Dave Bussineau didn’t receive the deed to the land. He was to receive the deed once the highway being built went past his property.
Between 1959 and 1968, the Ontario government systematically seized all land within the park, including the land the Métis families had been living on.
In 1967, government officials arrived at Agawa Bay by float plane and informed the families that they had to leave. The officials called them “squatters” with no legal right to live there. The newly established Lake Superior Provincial Park, they explained, was meant to be “for the enjoyment of all, not just the few.”
The final phase in this forced relocation took place in 1968 when government workers burned the Métis homes to the ground. One Crown employee later recalled that they had “torched a lot of the buildings that had to go,” adding that “nobody considered anything here of historical significance.”
This song was inspired by a visit to Agawa Bay and the generosity of friend and Métis historian Mitch Case.
3. Unforgettable
This song was inspired greatly by a conversation I had with Chantal Fiola (Michif author from Red River). I asked Chantal what she would want to “sing to her daughter” as the next generation of Métis. I asked myself how can we show the younger generation and those on their way here that they matter, that they are magical? How do we ensure that our young ones feel that they belong and know where they come from? Métis people are often referred to as “The Forgotten People”. To this day, both the federal government and provincial governments have avoided taking accountability for the mistreatment of Métis peoples and displacing them from their homelands. I feel this has led to a lot of Métis people feeling invisible. This is a love song to my community. You are loved, you exist, and you matter.
4. #44
Île-à-la-Crosse is a Métis community in Saskatchewan. Sakitawak, (the Cree name for Île-à-la-Crosse which means “where the rivers meet”), is the second oldest community in Saskatchewan, after Cumberland House, and played an important role in the development of Western Canada. From the 1820’s to the 1970’s (over 150 years), hundreds of Métis children went to the Île-à-la-Crosse Residential School.
In the 1990s, the Canadian government determined that because the school was funded by the provincial government, survivors were ineligible for compensation through The Indian Residential Schools Settlement Agreement (IRSSA).
The school was also not recognized in the Indian Residential Schools Settlement. Negotiations and the fight for recognition of the survivors, many of whom have already passed, continues to this day. This denial is unacceptable.
This song is about a man who attended the Ile-a-la-Crosse Residential school, Robert Merasty. He is still alive today. This is his story, which he has graciously given me permission to share.
5. Distant Drum (feat. Alyssa Delbaere- Sawchuk)
“Distant Drum is a heartfelt nod to the artistry of John Arcand, whose compositions and playing have carried the spirit of the Métis fiddle tradition to so many hearts. This tune echoes the pulse of our communities, like a drumbeat that stretches across time and distance, connecting us to one another and to the land. In every note, I hear the stories of Métis gatherings—of dances in kitchens and halls, of laughter and resilience, and of the quiet strength that holds our people together. The distant drum reminds us that even when scattered, we are united by the rhythms of our shared heritage and the songs that bring us home.”
- Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk
6. Better Part of Town
Clean your slate, put your guns to lay
No need to knock the lights out of today
Sebastian Gaskin and I wrote this song as a call for kindness and a commentary on how vicious the internet can be. I dream of a world where we return to our humanity, thinking and acting from a place of love and kindness for each other.
7. Dream if You Want To
A continuation of Robert Merasty’s story and his experiences growing up in Île-à-la-Crosse and attending the Île-à-la-Crosse Residential School. It’s free if you want it, we all deserve a clean start.
8. Down the Line
My great grandmother Stella was born in Lac Seul, Northwestern Ontario, to her parents Margaret Wahweya and James Bannatyne. She had two brothers Charlie and Gerald. Stella’s father died suddenly and she was moved to Winnipeg, where she was brought up by her father's family, The Bannatynes. She knew she had two brothers, but it wasn’t until she was 67 years old that she finally got to meet them. This is a story of a sister longing to find her brothers.
9. Big Joh McNeil
A popular tune across the Métis Nation, attributed to Peter Milne.
“Big John McNeil is a tune that has found a home in Métis communities, where fiddle music carries both the joy of dance and the deep roots of tradition. Passed from player to player, its lively strains have filled kitchens, dance halls, and gatherings for generations, becoming part of the heartbeat of our culture. This tune speaks to the resilience and spirit of the Métis people, who adapted and made it their own, embodying the strength, creativity, and connection that define our fiddle tradition. In every bow stroke, “Big John McNeil” brings us back to the shared moments of laughter, movement, and music that continue to bind our communities together.” - Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk
10. Flossies
Aunt Flossie loved to throw parties in Lac Ste. Anne, Alberta, originally called Manito Sahkahigan (Cree for “Lake of the Spirit”). Every Sunday after mass, the community would head over to Flossie’s for a Métis kitchen party with fiddles, dancing, and the popular Métis dish “bullets and bang”.
11. Annie’s Whip
“Many wealthy people are married to half-breed women, who having no coat of arms but a “totem” to look back to, make up for the deficiency by biting at the backs of their “white” sisters.“ - Charles Mair
Charles Mair, a member of the Canada First party and a writer for the Toronto Globe, managed to thoroughly piss off Annie Bannatyne, a well known woman in Red River and an ancestor of mine.
In the late 1860s, she got word that Mr. Mair was writing derogatory comments about Halfbreed women in the Globe, and horsewhipped him to teach him a lesson.
Throughout the Resistance, the contributions of Métis women were invaluable - hunting, trapping, melting metals to make bullets, caring for injured soldiers, raising the children, acting as interpreters, and more. We are well overdue to celebrate and lift up our women.
12. Can’t Make Us Gone
Another little-known story in Métis history is about the many Métis families who lived near what is now called ‘Rivière aux Îlets de Bois,’ near Carman, Manitoba. Before 1871, Rivière aux Îlets-de-Bois was home to Métis families. The land was meant to be reserved as a part of the families’ land allotment after Manitoba joined Confederation. In the Spring of 1871, after returning from the seasonal hunt, these Métis families found that many Ontario Protestants (The Orangemen) had moved onto their lands.
The settlers renamed the river, the ‘Boyne’, to insult the Métis, referencing the historic battle in Ireland of the Protestant forces over the Catholic forces of the day. After protesting that the settlers leave, the Métis were forced to abandon their homes, and everything they had built at Rivière aux Îlets-de-Bois. Despite many attempts to erase the existence of Métis and Halfbreed peoples, we are still here.
Photo from https://metisrightsizzy.weebly.com/scrip.html
After the Red River Resistance 1869-1870, led by Louis Riel, the Canadian Government began to issue scrip.
Scrip was a piece of paper that could be redeemed for land or money. The scrip system was created to “deal” with the Halfbreeds / Métis / Michif.
“Indians” would sign treaty and Métis would be given scrip. Both of these systems were created to control or extinguish the rights of Indigenous people.
The value of scrip ranged from $160 or 160 acres of land to $240 or 240 acres of land. Scrip was issued to an individual where treaties applied to groups of people.
13. Steps of the Old Ones
“Steps of the Old Ones is a tribute to our beloved ancestors, who walked in reverence and love, creating communities grounded in equity, connection, and belonging. This tune honors the spirit of those who came before us, carrying their stories, resilience, and traditions forward. In a time when disconnection and fear of the other so often divide us, may their footsteps remind us of the power of unity and inspire us to build relationships rooted in understanding and kinship. This piece celebrates the enduring legacy of the Métis homeland and the strength of community that continues to guide us”
- Alyssa Delbaere-Sawchuk