Kaia Kater on Emancipation Day TV special: 'I hope Black Canadians feel seen'

August 1 marks the 189th anniversary of the Abolition of Slavery Act, which freed more than 800,000 people of African descent across former British colonies, including Canada. 

Although the act became law in 1834, it wasn't until 2021 that the Canadian House of Commons voted to officially recognize August 1 as Emancipation Day. 

To celebrate, commemorate, and bring awareness to the history of Black Canadians, the television special FreeUp! Emancipation Day 2023 will air on CBC TV (Aug. 1 at 8 p.m. E.T. /8:30 NT) and stream on CBC Gem. 

FreeUp! is a partnership between CBC Arts and Emancipation Arts, directed by Ngozi Paul and co-written by Paul and Aba Amuquandoh. The special pays homage to Rosemary Sadlier, a former president of the Ontario Black History Society and an advocate for the recognition of Black Canadian history and Emancipation Day. 

Riveting, thought-provoking and joyful performances by rapper Dijah SB, Rudi Quammie Williams and African drumming group Adinkra Farm Ensemble, singer and dancer James Baley and folk singer-songwriter Kaia Kater are all part of the TV special.

CBC Music spoke with Kaia Kater ahead of the broadcast about her personal relationship with Emancipation Day, reclaiming the Black histories of the banjo, and the story behind her performance. 

What does being a part of FreeUp! mean to you?

I split my time between Canada and the States for work, so I'm currently in New York, and I celebrated Juneteenth recently with my friends. Being part of FreeUp! I realized that growing up I learned more about American civil rights history than about the Black experience in Canada. And I really only learned about Emancipation Day in 2021. Emancipation Day happens at the same time as all of these Caribbean celebrations like Caribana in Toronto. My dad is from Grenada and they have Spicemas and Jab Jab, all in that first week of August. I never actually put it together, that all of these celebrations happen around Emancipation Day because most of these islands were formerly British colonies, too. 

Emancipation Day just feels like something that more Black Canadians should know about. And especially this production, that's celebrating creativity and artistry and all of the multifaceted ways in which we express ourselves as Black Canadian artists. We're not a monolith. So, I was really thankful to be part of it, as a mixed race folk singer who plays the banjo. 

The instruments that the modern banjo is derived from came to this side of the Atlantic during the transatlantic slave trade, brought over by enslaved people. I think having someone performing music on the banjo at this kind of event makes so much sense but I'd love to hear your perspective on that.

I agree with you and especially in the context of more of us discovering and unearthing a lot of Black history and specifically Black musical history. The history of the banjo is not really a known thing, outside of my community of like 20 Black banjo players. Its true history is that it comes from Western and Central African instruments, and I hope it can shed this identity of being this white southern country bluegrass instrument. 

You performed your song "Poets Be Buried" from your 2018 album Grenades for the special. Can you tell me about that song choice? 

That album was about exploring my dad's story of coming to Canada as a refugee from Grenada and it includes interviews with him that are spliced into the music. "Poets Be Buried" is the last track off of that album and it's sort of like a summary of what is it to experience displacement, what is it to experience self doubt. What is it like to, you know, to truly want to make a difference, but to look outside and realize how much work there is to do and to be scared of that. Honestly, performing it for FreeUp! was like the ideal space for it — it was written five years ago and found its home in this specific production. 

What do you hope people take away from FreeUp!?

I really hope that folks, especially Black Canadians, feel seen in one way or another. Whether it's through an artist, a musician, or a writer, because they had a lot of guests and a lot of different conversations. And I think that's important [because] one person or one group of people can't represent all Black Canadian experiences and so I really hope that this program grows and keeps expanding and that this conversation keeps happening. I hope that the right audience finds it and I hope that people leave it feeling empowered, even if it's just one piece of information that they've learned from the conversation or the music.

For more stories about the experiences of Black Canadians — from anti-Black racism to success stories within the Black community — check out Being Black in Canada, a CBC project Black Canadians can be proud of. You can read more stories here.