Fresh Air Weekend: Best Of - Julian Brave NoiseCat & Laufey
Air Date: October 18, 2025
Host: Terry Gross (with Sam Briger)
Guests: Julian Brave NoiseCat, Laufey (musician)
Episode Overview
This “Best Of” Fresh Air Weekend features two in-depth interviews:
- Julian Brave NoiseCat—journalist, filmmaker, and activist—discusses his new memoir We Survived the Night and the Oscar-nominated documentary Sugar Cane about Canadian missionary boarding schools for Indigenous children, exploring family trauma, survival, and cultural loss.
- Laufey, Grammy-winning Icelandic singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist, performs songs, shares stories about her multicultural upbringing, her musical roots, and how she blends classical, jazz, and pop influences.
The episode delves into intergenerational trauma, identity, reconciliation, and the reinvigoration of Indigenous and classical music traditions through personal stories, poignant conversations, and live music.
Segment 1: Julian Brave NoiseCat — Trauma, Survival, and Reclaiming Heritage
Introduction to Julian’s Work & Family Story
- [02:41] Terry Gross introduces NoiseCat’s background:
- His father, Ed Archie NoiseCat, was abandoned in a boarding school trash incinerator room minutes after birth and survived.
- Sugar Cane (documentary) investigates missionary school abuses & Julian's family story.
- Julian’s memoir We Survived the Night interweaves memoir, history, and Indigenous Coyote stories.
- “Coyote is the shape-shifting trickster who was regarded by many Native tribes as the ancestor sent by the Creator to finish creating the indigenous world.” – Terry Gross [04:49]
Discovering His Father’s Hidden Origin
- [05:11] Julian reveals:
- He and his father only learned the details of the incinerator incident while researching the film and book.
- Their last name, NoiseCat, originated as a mis-transcription by missionaries—ironically, connecting name and story.
“My father was discovered in the trash incinerator at St. Joseph's Mission on the night of August 16, 1959… the night watchman Tony Stoop described his cries for life as sounding like the noise of a cat.”
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [05:34]
Intergenerational Trauma, Silence, and Shame
- [06:10] Both church/government and families “internalized the denial,” making the trauma an unspoken legacy.
"There's also an element of that silence that has been internalized by native families like my own."
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [06:10] - [07:42] His grandmother was the only person ever punished for infanticide at St. Joseph’s despite clear systemic complicity.
- Survivors internalize oppression, leading to damaging cycles within families.
“Fanon… talked about how the colonized subject internalizes oppression… children grew up to themselves become abusers… These schools broke families and passed along wounds.”
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [07:42]
The Difficulty of Speaking (“Open Secret”)
- [10:14]
- Within the community, stories of infanticide were so traumatic some dismissed them as “ghost stories.”
- His “Kia” (grandmother) symbolizes both cultural endurance and survival through silence.
“…internalized the denial even within Native communities… I didn’t believe those stories when I heard them back then…”
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [10:14]
Cultural Survival and Revival
- [12:39]
- Syncretic mix of Catholic and Native customs survives; much was lost and is now reviving (e.g., language, stories).
- Traditional funeral rites (lahal games, crossover song, goods redistribution) endure.
“Our way of life really did nearly die out until recent decades. It started to finally come back… Our language is almost gone now, but it is starting to come back, which is a really beautiful thing.”
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [12:39]
The Lahal Game and Mourning
- [14:51] Julian explains singing, gambling game at funerals as a spiritual act and a means of communal support and remembrance.
- He sings a Lahau/Protest song:
“Hey, hey O hey, hey, hey oh… Canada is all Indian land…” [16:22]
- He sings a Lahau/Protest song:
Notable Moment — Protest Song
“Canada is all Indian land… Sometimes they do sing that for lahal, though, so that counts.”
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [16:22–17:07]
Segment 2: Family Relationships, Artistry, and Reconciliation
His Father’s Escape, Art, and Struggles
- [18:29]
- Ed Archie NoiseCat left the reservation in his twenties, escaping the stigma of being “the garbage can kid” and severe social dysfunction.
- Became distinguished printmaker and sculptor; work featured at the Smithsonian.
"He began his career as a fine art printmaker, but he could never really suffer a boss. So he ended up becoming an artist."
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [19:50]
Addiction and Patterns of Abandonment
- [20:50]
- Ed’s alcoholism led to Julian feeling abandoned after his parents divorced.
- [21:33] Clip from Sugar Cane documentary: Julian confronts his father about their shared story of abandonment.
- Julian: “I guess I just feel like I'm here trying to help you when you don't really fully recognize the thing that we share… your story is someone who is abandoned, but also who abandoned.” [21:33]
- Ed: “You’re looking for some kind of acknowledgment from me?... I didn’t leave you, son.”
Julian: “Yeah, you did.” [21:52–22:05] - Ed: “I was lost in a drunk… I don't know why. That's what I said to her.” [22:08]
Memorable Moment — On Camera Confrontation
"After not living together for 22 years… Suddenly we were living across the hallway from each other… We really did become like best friends."
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [23:06–24:11]
Healing and Reconciliation
- Julian moved in with his father for two years during the making of the film/book, allowing for genuine reconnection and difficult conversations.
“That relationship… was really rebuilt because I did make the choice to move back in with him to create some opportunity for reconciliation.”
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [24:11]
Segment 3: Laufey — Multicultural Jazz-Pop & Musical Storytelling
Laufey’s Musical Breakout and Identity
- [33:03] Terry Gross introduces Laufey’s genre-blurring background and breakthrough:
- First artist to top jazz/traditional jazz charts with debut album in one week.
- 2023’s Bewitched won Grammy for Best Traditional Pop Album; known for blending jazz, classical, and pop influences.
- Laufey (pronounced “Lau-vay”) is 26, raised in Reykjavik and Washington, DC; mother was violinist, father a jazz aficionado.
Performing “Clockwork”
- [34:52] Live, upbeat, jazz-influenced love song:
“And nothing brings me fear like meeting with my destiny / but like clockwork / think he fell in love with me.”
— Laufey (performance) [35:38]
Performing with Orchestras & Musical Roots
- [36:16] Laufey describes playing the Lollapalooza festival, blending orchestra with modern K-pop and rap, and her deep attachment to “old things.”
- Growing up with her mother’s discipline as a violinist, learning that “hard work never leaves you.”
- “My mom always talked about especially like the beauty of music and how it has to come from your heart.” [37:33]
Musical Upbringing & Influences
-
[38:25] Laufey recalls practicing in a disciplined home; her mother would correct notes “every single day.”
“It was like having a teacher every single day… But I'm so thankful for that… I think it's one of the reasons I'm the musician I am today.”
— Laufey [39:02] -
Her father's jazz record collection influenced her deeply; favorite singers included Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, Julie London.
“Ella Fitzgerald was the very first singer I felt I vocally resonated with. I think she just sounded like a cello.”
— Laufey [39:45]
Breakout During COVID & Viral Videos
- [40:44] Laufey’s early covers (including “It Could Happen To You”) posted on YouTube, singing and accompanying herself on cello/guitar, attracted viral attention.
Live Performance: “It Could Happen To You”
- [41:54] Laufey sings and plays guitar:
“All I did was wonder how your arms would be and it happen to me.”
— Laufey [42:46]
Cultural Identity and Upbringing
- Icelandic-Chinese, raised between Reykjavik and Washington, DC; spent summers in China.
- Iceland: “so small… very hard as a kid to comprehend why I didn’t look like everyone else… I was ready to do anything to get my voice to be heard.”
— Laufey [45:41] - DC: “so multicultural… even within just my neighborhood school, I think 90% of my class was international kids.”
— Laufey [43:55]
- Iceland: “so small… very hard as a kid to comprehend why I didn’t look like everyone else… I was ready to do anything to get my voice to be heard.”
Friendships, Heartbreak, and Songwriting
Live Performance: “Castle in Hollywood”
-
[47:19] Laufey sings about a painful friendship breakup:
“It's a heartbreak marked the end of my girlhood / we'll never go back to that castle in Hollywood.”
— Laufey [48:08]- The “castle” was a storybook apartment in West Hollywood, formerly commissioned by Charlie Chaplin.
Original Jazz Composition
Live Performance: “Valentine”
- [49:37] Laufey’s jazz original, reflecting the innocence of first love:
“I’ve rejected affection for years and years / now I have it and damn it, it’s kind of weird… I blinked and suddenly I had a valentine.”
— Laufey [50:29]
Reflections & Closing
-
Laufey discusses how her sound has matured while retaining the sweetness and naiveté of her earlier songs.
"It's sweet. It's very naive. It reminds me of being 21."
— Laufey [50:32] -
Laufey’s new album A Matter of Time is out now.
Notable Quotes & Moments
-
Julian Brave NoiseCat’s story of survival and family trauma:
“It’s a story and a name that really found its meaning in his survival… there are subjects in the book that get at the presence of ancestors and forces greater than human ones in our present life.”
[06:10] -
On healing intergenerational relationships:
"We really did become like best friends… that relationship was really rebuilt because I did make the choice to move back in with him to create some opportunity for reconciliation."
— Julian Brave NoiseCat [23:06, 24:11] -
Laufey on her unique position in (and outside) genres:
“I've never viewed myself as anything other than a modern artist, but I've always, of course, loved classical music and jazz music… It's so beautiful that all of these different styles of music can exist in one.”
[36:16] -
On culture and isolation growing up:
“There weren't many kids around me taking a competitive pre-professional classical music route. There weren't many kids around me who had to go back home and practice every single day… I knew that the first step to that was trying to get out of Iceland and see if perhaps my voice would resonate more in the big world where I wasn't an odd fish.”
— Laufey [45:41]
Key Timestamps
Julian Brave NoiseCat Interview:
- 02:41 Introduction to the documentary and book
- 05:06 Julian Brave NoiseCat begins interview
- 07:42 On intergenerational trauma and colonial impact
- 12:39 Survivor customs and syncretic faith
- 16:22 Singing of the lahal/protest song
- 18:29 Father’s story, art career, and leaving the reservation
- 21:33 Clip: confrontation with his father
- 23:06 Reflection on reconciliation
- 24:11 Decision to rebuild the relationship
Laufey Interview:
- 33:03 Introduction of Laufey’s background
- 34:52 Performance: “Clockwork”
- 36:16 First music festival (Lollapalooza) with orchestra
- 39:45 On jazz and vocal influences
- 41:54 Performance: “It Could Happen to You”
- 45:41 Being biracial in Iceland and America
- 47:19 Performance: “Castle in Hollywood”
- 49:37 Performance: “Valentine”
Conclusion
This Fresh Air “Best Of” episode offers a profound journey through personal and historical trauma and healing, with Julian Brave NoiseCat’s deeply affecting family story and advocacy, and the global musical tapestry of Laufey’s jazz-pop artistry. Both interviews ultimately reinforce themes of resilience, creativity, and the vital importance of reclaiming, reviving, and sharing cultural traditions—whether through storytelling or song.