Released on YouTube for National Native American Heritage Month, "Rez Life" is a precursor to Above Boy, a documentary film from Believe Media premiering in 2022. The song was written and performed by Opijata Okanko Chipps (Opi), the son of Godfrey Benjamin Chipps, a fourth-generation descendant of Horn Chipp – the Medicine Man for legendary Indian chief, Crazy Horse. While filming at the Chipps' home in Wanblee, South Dakota, documentary filmmakers Sebastian Funke, Jan Vogel, and Lucy Martens discovered Opi's interest in hip-hop music and songwriting. The video is a glimpse into the consequences of forced destabilization of Indigenous culture and ruggedness of life on the reservation.
About Above Boy
"Above Boy" is a documentary short, set to release in 2022, about the the Chipps family, members of the Oglala Lakota Nation on the Pineridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota. Spotlighting the spiritual foundation of Godfrey Benjamin Chipps “Above Boy,” the film takes a deep dive into the modern realities of the reservation through the experiences of his wife (Beverly Red Elk), sons and daughters.
Visit www.aboveboy.com for more information.
