Mali Obomsawin

Mali Obomsawin is an Indigenous musician from Abenaki First Nation at Odanak. An award-winning bassist, vocalist, songwriter, and composer, Obomsawin is a cross-genre artist specializing in free-jazz, rock, and American roots music. Her debut solo album Sweet Tooth received international acclaim.

Early life Obomsawin was born in Stratford, New Hampshire. She is an enrolled member of Abenaki First Nation at Odanak in Quebec, and of Sephardic Jewish Descent. She is the granddaughter of writer/activist Paul Goodman, and cousin of renowned Abenaki musician, filmmaker and activist Alanis Obomsawin. Obomsawin grew up in Farmington, Maine, and began playing double bass at age ten.

Education Obomsawin attended Berklee College of Music in 2013 before transferring to Dartmouth College where she obtained dual degrees in French and government in 2018.

Career

Music In 2014, Obomsawin joined her first band, the folk-rock trio Lula Wiles, who would go on to tour extensively in the US, Canada, and Germany, receiving acclaim for their renowned three part harmony singing and innovative songwriting. Signing with Smithsonian Folkways Recordings in 2018, Lula Wiles released three well-received recordings before disbanding in 2021.

Obomsawin performs as an accompanist with Jake Blount, Peter Apfelbaum, Taylor Ho Bynum, Bill Cole's Untempered Ensemble. and The Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band.

Obomsawin's debut solo album, Sweet Tooth was released October 28, 2022 on Out Of Your Head Records to international acclaim, receiving praise from Jazz Times "album of the day" Financial Times “Critic’s Choice,” and The Guardian’s "Folk Album of the Month" for November 2022. The album was coproduced by Obomsawin and Taylor Ho Bynum.

In 2023, Obomsawin's music was featured in season 3 of the television series "Reservation Dogs" (Deer Lady, episode 3) on FX on Hulu. She also scored the National Geographic Documentary Sugarcane, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival in January 2024.

In 2024, Obomsawin independently released her sophomore album under the alias Deerlady, a duo with guitarist Magdalena Abrego. She also released a collaborative album with Jake Blount, titled "symbiont" on Smithsonian Folkways Recordings. On December 10, 2024, National Geographic released Obomsawin's original score of Sugarcane on Hollywood Records.

Discography

As Mali Obomsawin Title Details TypeSugarcane (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) Label: Hollywood Records Release date: Dec 10, 2024SoundtrackSweet Tooth Label: Out Of Your Head Records Release date: Oct 28, 2022Studio AlbumAs Deerlady

Title Details TypeGreatest Hits Label: Self-released Release date: Jan 19, 2024Studio Album With Lula Wiles Title Details TypeShame and Sedition Label: Smithsonian Folkways Release date: May 21, 2021Studio AlbumIt's Cool Label: Smithsonian Folkways Release date: Nov 8, 2019SingleWhat Will We Do Label: Smithsonian Folkways Release date: Jan 25, 2019Studio Album With Jake Blount Title Details TypeSymbiont Label: Smithsonian Folkways Recordings Release date: Sep 27, 2024Studio Album