Klee Benally
Encyclopedia
Klee Benally is the lead vocalist and guitarist
of Navajo
punk rock
band Blackfire
. Benally is also an activist, artist, silversmith, and filmmaker. He also performs traditional Navajo dances and is a champion fancy war dancer.
, Navajo Nation
.
in 1989. They have toured internationally. They incorporate aspects of traditional Navajo music in their songs. They were also influenced by bands such as the Ramones
, Dead Kennedys
, Subhumans
, Crass
, Bad Brains
, and other punk bands. The name refers to the pollution, especially from coal mining, on the Navajo Nation.
at the Museum of Northern Arizona
in 2004 and 2005. He has co-founded grassroots projects such as the Taala Hoghan Infoshop, Indigenous Action Media, Outta Your Backpack Media Project, Flagstaff Activist Network and the Save the Peaks Coalition. "Our generation has a whole lot of anger," says Benally. "We can try to turn negative into positive, be productive."
In May 2010, Klee was part of a direct action where he and 5 others locked down at Tucson Border Patrol Head Quarters to protest border militarization on Indigenous lands and SB-1070.
in Phoenix and was the first student to win Best Show at the Navajo art show at the Museum of Northern Arizona
in 1991. In 2010, Benally was awarded the Livable Community Award by a Flagstaff
community group for his work for social and environmental justice.
Guitarist
A guitarist is a musician who plays the guitar. Guitarists may play a variety of instruments such as classical guitars, acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and bass guitars. Some guitarists accompany themselves on the guitar while singing.- Versatility :The guitarist controls an extremely...
of Navajo
Navajo people
The Navajo of the Southwestern United States are the largest single federally recognized tribe of the United States of America. The Navajo Nation has 300,048 enrolled tribal members. The Navajo Nation constitutes an independent governmental body which manages the Navajo Indian reservation in the...
punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band Blackfire
Blackfire (band)
Blackfire is a Navajo traditionally-influenced, high-energy, politically-driven musical group composed of three siblings: two brothers and a sister...
. Benally is also an activist, artist, silversmith, and filmmaker. He also performs traditional Navajo dances and is a champion fancy war dancer.
Background
Benally was born in 1975. His parents are Jones, a traditional Navajo medicine man, and Berta Benally, a folk singer and songwriter born to Russian-Polish Jewish parents. His sister is Jeneda and his brother is Clayson. They are of the Wandering People, and born for the Bitter Water Clan. Together they grew up in Black MesaBlack Mesa
Black Mesa may refer to:Places in the United States:* Black Mesa , in Colorado, New Mexico, and the highest point in Oklahoma* Black Mesa Test Range, a United States Army rocket testing facility...
, Navajo Nation
Navajo Nation
The Navajo Nation is a semi-autonomous Native American-governed territory covering , occupying all of northeastern Arizona, the southeastern portion of Utah, and northwestern New Mexico...
.
Music
Klee, Jeneda, and Clayson formed the punk band, BlackfireBlackfire
Blackfire is a supervillain that appears in the fictional DC Universe. She is the older sister of the Titans member Starfire and Omega Men member Ryand'r. The character first appears in New Teen Titans #22, and was created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez.-Fictional character biography:Komand'r...
in 1989. They have toured internationally. They incorporate aspects of traditional Navajo music in their songs. They were also influenced by bands such as the Ramones
Ramones
The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...
, Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys
Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band formed in San Francisco, California in 1978. The band became part of the American hardcore punk movement of the early 1980s. They gained a large underground fanbase in the international punk music scene....
, Subhumans
Subhumans
Subhumans may refer to:* Subhumans , featuring singer Dick Lucas*Subhumans , featuring singer Wimpy Roy and bass player Gerry Hannah...
, Crass
Crass
Crass are an English punk rock band that was formed in 1977, which promoted anarchism as a political ideology, way of living, and as a resistance movement. Crass popularised the seminal anarcho-punk movement of the punk subculture, and advocated direct action, animal rights, and environmentalism...
, Bad Brains
Bad Brains
Bad Brains is an American hardcore punk band formed in Washington, D.C., in 1977. They are widely regarded as among the pioneers of hardcore punk, though the band's members objected to this term to describe their music. They are also an adept reggae band, while later recordings featured elements of...
, and other punk bands. The name refers to the pollution, especially from coal mining, on the Navajo Nation.
Video and film
Benally has made many documentary shorts. He directed a documentary called "The Snowbowl Effect," which addresses proposed ski area development on Arizona's San Francisco Peaks.Community work
He was also the coordinator of the southwest Native American Film and Video FestivalNative American Film and Video Festival
The Native American Film and Video Festival is a noncompetitive showcase of film, video and audio productions held biennially in New York City. Each festival screens between 50 and 80 documentaries, short features and animations, introduced by their producers and members of the native communities...
at the Museum of Northern Arizona
Museum of Northern Arizona
The Museum of Northern Arizona is a museum in Flagstaff, Arizona, USA, that was established as a repository for Native American artifacts and natural history specimens from the Colorado Plateau.The museum was founded in 1928 by zoologist Dr. Harold S...
in 2004 and 2005. He has co-founded grassroots projects such as the Taala Hoghan Infoshop, Indigenous Action Media, Outta Your Backpack Media Project, Flagstaff Activist Network and the Save the Peaks Coalition. "Our generation has a whole lot of anger," says Benally. "We can try to turn negative into positive, be productive."
In May 2010, Klee was part of a direct action where he and 5 others locked down at Tucson Border Patrol Head Quarters to protest border militarization on Indigenous lands and SB-1070.
Awards and recognition
He won numerous awards for his art at the Heard MuseumHeard Museum
The Heard Museum of Native Cultures and Art is a museum located in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. There is also the Heard Museum North Scottsdale branch in Scottsdale and the Heard Museum West branch in Surprise....
in Phoenix and was the first student to win Best Show at the Navajo art show at the Museum of Northern Arizona
Museum of Northern Arizona
The Museum of Northern Arizona is a museum in Flagstaff, Arizona, USA, that was established as a repository for Native American artifacts and natural history specimens from the Colorado Plateau.The museum was founded in 1928 by zoologist Dr. Harold S...
in 1991. In 2010, Benally was awarded the Livable Community Award by a Flagstaff
Flagstaff, Arizona
Flagstaff is a city located in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In 2010, the city's population was 65,870. The population of the Metropolitan Statistical Area was at 134,421 in 2010. It is the county seat of Coconino County...
community group for his work for social and environmental justice.
External links
- Save the Peaks
- Interview with Klee Benally about the LA Anarchist Bookfair
- Blackfire, official website
- Indigenous Action Media, Indigenous Action Media
- Outta Your Backpack Media, Indigenous Youth Empowerment
- Taala Hooghan Infoshop, Indigenous Established Infoshop Flagstaff, AZ