Cody Jodoin
Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians
From a young age, he was always drawn to music, but it took reconnecting with his culture to keep it a constant in his life.
“If my mom just didn’t happen to get a job at Bahweting school, I don’t think the opportunity to sit down at a drum would have presented itself,” says Cody Jodoin, of Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.
Cody, 29, is a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians and halfway through his childhood he began attending JKL Bahweting School in the Sault, a charter school founded with the goal to pass on the Anishinaabe culture and language to its students.
“I’m the only member of my family that practices any sort of traditional Native American activities,” said Cody. “Or way of life I guess.”
Cody, 29, is a member of the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
Native people couldn’t legally practice their belief and traditions until 1978 when the American Indian Religious Freedom Act was passed in the United States.
“The language was not allowed to be spoken, ceremonies were not allowed to occur,” he said. “So, you have a generation of people who were essentially stripped of their cultural teachings.”
With his mother being born in the 1970s and grandmother in the 50s, they were a part of the previous generations where it was outlawed, unable to pass their traditional culture down to future ones.
Cody recalls growing up in a Christian household; being baptized and attending his local Episcopalian church, with his first introduction to his Native American culture coming from the tribal run head start.
“They would bring in the hand drums or flutes, and I remember from a very young age being fascinated by that”, he said.
It wasn’t until he was in second grade when his mother got a job at the tribal charter school that Cody learned to drum and sing during the school’s traditional drum dance socials --a smaller and less formal version of a powwow, as he describes it.
“I don’t know what possessed me to get up but I did and went and sat down at the drums for the first time,” said Cody. “And the rest is history.”
When his mother realized how passionate about drumming and singing Cody was becoming, he joined the school's after-school lessons.
Cody recalls catching on to the skills rather quickly, and soon became involved in events around the community that would require Native drummers and singers, however, summer break and eventually moving out of the charter school led to singing fading out of life as he got older.
“It’s not something my family was involved in, my brother played baseball and my sister always had figure skating competitions,” he said. “And I transitioned over to the middle school and that’s not something offered there or high school.”
Cody recalls participating in drumming and singing at ceremonies “here and there” throughout high school but felt there was a stigma surrounding it from his teenage classmates.
“They are quick to make fun of it,” he recalls, crediting their age and lack of knowledge surrounding the culture even with its prevalence in the area.
“They do the chanting, the very stereotypical, like super racist type of stuff,” said Cody. “But it’s an easy vice, if that’s your first exposure to it.”
Thus, he stepped away from the drums until he attended Bay Mills Community College, a tribal-run college in Brimley, Michigan, when he was 18.
During his welcome week at Bay Mills, Cody had a deja vu moment when, once again, he was drawn to the singers performing an honor song.
Cody plays a hand drum traditional in the Anishinaabe culture
“I went up and said ‘can I sit down and sing with you guys?’ I didn’t know what they were going to sing, I couldn’t tell you,” Cody recalls.
The men welcomed him at their drums and invited him to join them Monday nights for their drumming and singing class.
“That’s when I started to learn the advanced intricacies that go into singing,” said Cody. “And that was my adult introduction to what it means to be a serious singer.”
Becoming deeper involved as a singer was also an introduction to other aspects of Native culture and traditions.
The more he drummed and sang, the more Cody was able to learn the Anishinaabe language and understand its history; eventually leading to him to connect with elders in the community to continue his spiritual journey and affirm his identity as an Anishinaabe person.
The first thing Cody wanted to do was receive his spirit name and clan, something that usually occurs in adolescence.
“I felt like there was something missing. You hear people when they introduce themselves in the language, they say their spirit name and clan,” he said. “I wasn’t able to do that.”
Completing his naming ceremony brought a greater sense of connection and reaffirmation to the traditional culture for Cody.
Another confirmation that Cody was on the right path was an experience he had during his first sweat lodge ceremony, a way for men to spiritually cleanse themselves.
“I went into it and was very apologetic,” he said, afraid he might do something wrong. “I just didn’t want to offend anyone.”
Eventually, a traditional healer named Keith Smith from the Red Lake Nation in Minnesota approached Cody, noticing his nerves.
“He said ‘don’t apologize, whatever you’re trying to accomplish, there is no right way or wrong way to do it. As long as you’re doing it with the right intentions.’”
Cody said this conversation reaffirmed he was on the right journey and said those conversations are important for many young people who may feel intimidated taking those first steps to reconnect with the culture.
“I’m sure there are a lot of people who want to know more but they’re hesitant to go out and learn,” he said. “They don’t want to look out of place, they don’t want to offend someone, so they choose not to.”
Creating a deeper understanding of the culture for those seeking more information is more important than any singing work he does, said Cody.
“Helping others kick start their journey and giving them positivity if they’re reaching out is super crucial for me.”
In addition to receiving his traditional name, Cody also taught himself the craft of making drumsticks.
His first sets were made out of old tent poles and the “oldest, crustiest trench coat” that he found at Goodwill.
“I just started to kind of go to town. I never attended a drumstick workshop,” he said.
After two years’ worth of trial and error, testing out different materials and designs, Cody’s work began to catch people’s attention.
“The first order I ever had was a guy from Lawton, Oklahoma,” recalls Cody. “And that was kind of the beginning of the end.”
A set of drumsticks handmade by Cody. Photo courtesy of Cody Jodoin.
Cody has since sent work across the country and Canada, and has even received requests from overseas.
Since honing in on his skills, Cody has been able to use them to give back to the Bay Mills community by helping host a local workshop as well.
“I was hmm’ing and haa’ing the opportunity, like this is pretty advanced,” he said. “But it was phenomenal. It was a great turnout and people enjoyed it.”
Passing on his knowledge of Native culture and traditions is important to Cody, as he hopes to fill that void that he often felt for others.
“I felt it has been very easily eliminated, and I guess I can help ease people into the culture,” Cody said. “I wish I had been afforded that opportunity at an earlier age.”
Helping guide younger generations on their spirituality is also a way for him to honor those who helped him.
“It’s important to me because I see all the people that have helped me on my way,” he said. “So it’s important to show them [that] reaching the next stage of their spiritual journey is obtainable, there are services and people in the community that have that knowledge.”
He hopes to continue making drumsticks, and hosting workshops as he gets older, but for now has slowed down to spend time with his family and daughter.
“Maybe when Harper’s gone off to college that will be an opportunity for me,” he says. “I would love to be able to travel to different communities throughout Michigan hosting workshops.”
“I’m sure it will happen. It’s just a matter of time.”
