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Lisa LaRue

ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO - Lisa LaRue, a Cherokee Nation tribal citizen, recently signed a recording contract with Oyate Music Group, a Native American owned record label based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

“I look forward to going into the studio to work on the next release, later this summer,” LaRue said.

LaRue signed the contract after playing to a sold-out audience at the historic Hiland Theater in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She began her career in the Native American music industry in 1995 as one of the first female artists to sign with a Native American record label. She began playing piano by ear, or by heart, as she says, when she was three years old. Her grandmother realized she was playing Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Are Made For Walking” on her Magnus chord organ, and from that point on, encouraged her to listen to and play every type of music she could.

“I was playing Hammond B-3 organs at Pelletier’s Department Store in Topeka, Kansas and Montgomery Wards, and soon progressed to taking requests at lounges in the area,” LaRue said. “I started playing in cover bands when I was 16.”

She was recently commissioned to score and perform a modern ballet titled, "Voices of the Shuka," in honor of the Northwest Indian nations. Her past accomplishments include recording a CD for the Cherokee Nation titled, “Children’s Songs in the Cherokee Language, “ which earned a NAMMY (Native American Music Award) nomination in 2002, and scoring and performing the soundtrack for "Cherokee Trails," an educational video game.

In her spare time, she is also a photographer and a writer. She has acted as a consultant and cultural editor on numerous book and video projects regarding Native American history and culture. The Cherokee Nation has certified her as a Cherokee Nation history teacher and a Cherokee language instructor’s aide.

Her next CD, “hat Ol' Sofkee Spoon" is scheduled to be released in July.

Related contact information:

Mike Miller, Cherokee Nation Director of Communications Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2210) Fax: 918-458-5580 E-mail: Communications@cherokee.org Larry Daugherty, Advertising Manager Cherokee Nation - Public Affairs Phone 918-456-0671 (Ex.2324) E-mail: ldaugherty@cherokee.org

Steven Swogger, Agriculture Liaison Natural Resources Department Phone: 918-456-0671 (ext.2546) FAX: 918-458-7673 E-mail: sswogger@cherokee.org Bradley D. Peak, Cherokee Nation Natural Resources Specialist Phone: 918-456-0671 (ex.2843) E-mail: bpeak@cherokee.org