Buffy Sainte-Marie

Buffy Sainte-Marie
OC
Sainte-Marie in 2015
Sainte-Marie in 2015
Background information
Birth nameBeverley Jean Santamaria
Born (1941-02-20) February 20, 1941 (age 83)
Stoneham, Massachusetts, U.S.
Genres
Occupations
  • Musician
  • singer-songwriter
  • composer
  • record producer
  • visual artist
  • educator
  • social activist
  • actress
  • humanitarian
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals, guitar, piano
Years active1963–2023
Labels
Websitebuffysainte-marie.com

Buffy Sainte-Marie, OC (born Beverley Jean Santamaria; February 20, 1941[1]) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and social activist.[2]

Sainte-Marie's singing and writing repertoire includes subjects of love, war, religion, and mysticism. She has won recognition, awards, and honors for her music as well as her work in education and social activism. In 1983, her co-written song "Up Where We Belong", for the film An Officer and a Gentleman, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 55th Academy Awards.[3][4] The song also won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song that same year.[5]

Since the early 1960s, Sainte-Marie claimed Indigenous Canadian ancestry, but a 2023 investigation by CBC News concluded she was born in the United States and is of Italian and English descent.[6] Some Indigenous musicians and organizations have since called for awards she won while falsely claiming an Indigenous identity to be rescinded, including her induction to the Canadian Music Hall of Fame.[7][8][9][10][11] In her work, she has focused on issues facing Indigenous peoples of the United States and Canada.

  1. ^ "Encyclopedia of the Great Plains | SAINTE-MARIE, BUFFY (b. 1941)". Plainshumanities.unl.edu. Archived from the original on May 25, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2022.
  2. ^ More than 26.5 million copies sold worldwide as per Buffy Saint-Marie biography/profile Archived May 31, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Manoukian, Marina (April 20, 2021). "Buffy Sainte-Marie: The First Indigenous Person To Win An Academy Award - Grunge". Grunge.com. Archived from the original on October 13, 2022. Retrieved October 13, 2022.
  4. ^ ""An Officer and a Gentleman" (NY)". Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. September 16, 2014. Archived from the original on June 3, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2019. Academy Award winner: Music – Original Song ("Up Where We Belong", Music by Jack Nitzsche, Buffy Sainte-Marie; Lyrics by Will Jennings)
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference Sheward-1997 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Leo, Geoff; Woloshyn, Roxanna; Guerriero, Linda (October 27, 2023). "Who is the real Buffy Sainte-Marie?". CBC News. Archived from the original on October 27, 2023.
  7. ^ The Canadian Press (November 5, 2023). "Indigenous musicians upset over Buffy Sainte-Marie ancestry revelations". The Star Phoenix. Retrieved November 26, 2023.
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference Colesawards was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Francisaptn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference CP24 2023 h358 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference sfchron2023 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).