hewhowowsthecrowd

First of all, let me start by congradulatin' SBZ, YB, the 'Zads, and everyone else who placed at g.o.n...............but do you really think Thunderhill deserved the z?? I dunno cause I wasnt there, could anybody shed some light on the subject for me?? did they mess up?? miss roll call?? not crewed up?? who was the head singin' judge??

Chilimama

The head Southern singing judge was Nashoba Simmons. I thought Thunderhill sang some beautiful songs and should have placed. And I believe they were all there on time for drum roll call. So, it's probably all political. You know how people are, they're afraid of anything that's good. If my hearing was right, the judges were mostly northern.

chazziff

soooo ^^ it would have been better if all the judges were mostly southern then?

just put it this way ... you cant place every weekend or everytime you sing ... no matter who judges someone always gets the shaft

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mnx_str8_up

As singers, we have to be able to "take 'em like we give 'em", but i understand how it is when peeps be tellin' you your jammin', then when winners are called, its not the way we think it should be. You just have to understand that anyone can win at anytime,anywhere, that's how many good groups there are in todays powwow world. Much respect to all the drums who placed, and all that didnt.Keep jammin'.

kiyaanii mom

I didn't hear Thunder Hill sing at Gatherings. I only made it to one session. But I know those guys can JAM.

To be honest, all the southern drums are extremely competative. And they all sound good. If I were a judge I would have a hard time picking who is the best.

You never know how the points end up. So my advice to TH is keep singing the songs, and keep showing respect. It will be your time soon enough.

TacO5000

gwah dang... I thought this tread was about tryna get some "Z".... I better shut up now..... were dem kiowas at???!!

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Dayum I make some keen DrumSticks!!!!!!

oneidagirl22

alright im going to start off by saying this is just my personal opinion so take it however you want. my boyfriend sings on that drum and i was taping them when they sang. they sounded completely awsome each time they were judged. they never missed a drum roll call where i know of at least one drum that had placed and missed a roll call. each lead was done the way nashoba wanted it and sounded very strong, the songs were beautiful. standing right there taping, i could feel the love and good feelings coming from them. that drum was dancing as they were singing. all of their voices sounded so great and blended just right. can't forget the backup singers, those women sounded kick a%$ too. you could hear them clearly and had good volume. i honestly do not see how they didnt place. ok maybe if peole want to say they didn't sing as well enough to be in the 1st place spot, then they shouldve placed some where. it's a real kick in the face when another drum misses their roll call and places. i know how politics are at powwows and they can get pretty ridiculous, so whatever to that. if you can't be fair picking judges and choosing the best sounding drum then just grow up. i just hope that people heard how great they really were and not what the judges heard. their cd will be out soon so lookout! THUNDERHILL B$#@%ES!!!! besides all that im not going to be a hater on anyone and the drums sounded good, so congrats to all who placed and good luck on the rest of your powwow trail. see y'all around!

southernsky

Gathering of Nations is and always was one of the most political wanna be pow wows ever period. I don't think I've ever seen the contests judged fairly, ever! Not just the drum contest but all contests during the two days. I've seen drums win there that sounded crappy while drums that sounded dam good didn't place. Vice versa with dancers. Happens everywhere I guess, but seems to happen most often @ G.O.N. Our group just straight up quit going to gathering becuase of this very reason. I have nothing against the cozads, but they couldn't beat thunderhill on their best of days. I think both groups are outstanding, but if judged fairly thunderhill would kill em. But the black guy has to keep his constituants happy, that's why it seems the same winners every year, just maybe different places. Who ever kisses a$$ the most....wins, and it has always been that way. Like I said, it happens everywhere, but just too much at GON.

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oO0southernsky0Oo

southernsky

and how is Nashoba all of a sudden that knowledgeable of singing to be a Singing contest coordinator?

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oO0southernsky0Oo

mnx_str8_up

Whoa!! Some pretty big words there...........only thing i can say(wasn't at G.O.N. to listen) is the Cozad Family been around a long time.....how long has thunderhill been around?? Sometimes as singers we realize that it takes a while to get your name out there, and for some it takes a little longer than others. I think Thunderhill is a very good sounding group, but they are still fairly new to the scene,and i wish them the best of luck bringing their music to the powwow world.(yo cheevers, i want a cd) Just some words of encouragement for an up-n-coming drum from another.
peace.

rezofwar

Ouch!
Wow! Cozads have been singing before Thunderhill singers were born. You don't have to bash them. Thunderhill singers are very accomplished singers and i have talked with the guys before. they are very down to earth and talented as singers. Cozads have been around for along time. they have seen talented drums rise and break up throughout years. I wasn't there for G.O.N. but am pretty sure both sounded good. But if yellowhammer was there it woulda been over! aye!

1badazzndn

In my opinion, hes been around powwows and singing with diff groups for a while. I think he did his job and did it well. I know he felt bad for Thunderhill not placing too....he even went up to them almost in tears at the end of the powwow.

rezofwar

ok Nashoba we know its you! Jokes! he aight!

southernsky

Let's get one thing straight. I am not bashing the Cozads...I'm one of their biggest fans. In my opinion they have the best southern songs there are. I'm talking about judging fairly. I've seen this happen with many drums but the zads are notorious for it, if you watch and pay attention especially to straight or buckskin/cloth contests when cozads are singning.....you will notice almost every dancer get off beat when it comes to the 3 beats in the middle of the song. It is because they "rush" thru them to fast. Now if a dancer cannot stay in beat with your drum and it is your fault, how can you win a drum contest? Now don't get me wrong, we all do this from time to time, but it is most noticeable when cozads sing. I don't know how many times I've heard men and women gripe about this, it is because it is too hard for them to stay in beat with the drum. Especially the women, it is beautiful to see bucksin dancers dance so elegantly, but it is a pain to see them all trying to catch up with the 3 beats in the middle of the song because the drum goes thru them way too fast. I've been singing for 29 years now, and back in the day rushing thru them beats was pretty common. That was before drum contests existed for southern drums. Our group (yellowhammer) concentrated on this factor immensely. I have heard many judges that have judged us comment on this, and I know this has helped us win so many times. And as far as Nashoba goes, I've known him since he was like 2 feet tall. I know who he is and where he comes from. My point on that is...pow wow committees need to do more thinking when it comes to persons they get to coordinate drum contests. You can't pick just anyone, and I know he did the best he could do with that position. That's all we ever ask...is to do your best. There is always controversy in contests, always will be. No one is ever happy, I'm just talking about judging "fairly", that seems to be the issue here.

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oO0southernsky0Oo

rezofwar

and that is why i said if yellowhammer was there it woulda been over. one more thing i have to ask, then i'm done because G.O.N is in the past. No future in the past right! In Oklahoma among the different tribes. is the singing and drumming style different from one tribe to another?