Injunuity is a Native American flute-centric roots group forged in 2007 by award-winning composers Brad Clonch (Mississippi Choctaw) and Jeff Carpenter (Chickasaw). Since their inception, Injunuity has released three full-length albums, snatched up multiple national music awards, performed across the U.S. and Europe and has been featured in radio, tv, documentaries and feature-length films.
Injunuity’s primary focus is to preserve the Native American flute, an instrument almost lost to the North American Indians during the turn of the 1900’s. Solo pianist Clonch was gifted his first flute by a Chickasaw in early 2002. His piano work brought him to a career with the Chickasaw nation tribal government in Oklahoma, where he met fellow band member Jeff Carpenter and a duo was formed.
Immediately this cultural sound and blend of genres drew attention, leading to the addition of other members. Philip Sullivan and Kade Norton began work with Clonch and Carpenter through Chickasaw Multimedia, a media group owned and operated by the Chickasaw nation. Through preserving tribal history with their film work and documentaries, Sullivan and Norton were a perfect addition to the musical group Injunuity.
WATCH A PERFORMANCE OF INJUNUITY FILMED FOR THE VIRTUAL MOUNDVILLE FESTIVAL 2020.
All four band members did not grow up traditionally Native, as throughout American history, some families censored and suppressed their Native American ancestry. Through their film work and music of Injunuity, each has drawn a deep spiritual connection to the past and to where they came from; even prompting members Sullivan and Norton to trace their ancestry and roots to both the Choctaw and Chickasaw tribes.
The inspiration drawn for all original tracks and compositions are based off the ability to experience tribal culture and life daily in Oklahoma, as well as interaction among other tribes, historians, storytellers and even trips to the original homelands of the Chickasaw, Choctaw, and Cherokee people. Native Americans have profoundly helped shape the United States. The music of Injunuity helps revisit these times and keep them alive through song.
“We like to consider our sound to be uniquely Oklahoman. All members of Injunuity are born and raised Oklahomans, and have carried that honor with us all over the world,” said Carpenter. “Our state and its thriving music community has been supportive from our inception. It’s given us the launching pad we needed in order to take our sound and story across the country. We’d like to thank all of those Oklahoma artisans who paved the road before us, to give our state such a revered status in the music industry.”
Injunuity’s music promotes the introduction of Native American music and history into popular culture, helping break stereotypes about Native Americans and the music within the Indian culture. Simply put, “we’re not your grandfather’s flute music”.
For more information about Injunuity and to listen to their music, visit their listing in the Oklahoma Music Directory.
