Heavy Metal on Blackfeet Nation
“Watching band members scream into the mic, the students nodded their heads and tapped pencils on their desks. Robert Hall, director of Native American studies at Browning Public Schools, shook his head in an exaggerated headband. Speicher flashed the ‘rock on’ hand gesture before pausing the video,” writes reporter Nora Mabie.
“Facing darkness head on is the guiding principle of a new class offered at Browning High School and Buffalo Hide Academy, public schools on the Blackfeet Reservation. During the 18-week class, students learn about heavy music through a suicide prevention lens.”
‘There’s just such power here,’ [Speicher] told Montana Free Press in May. ‘It provides us with the tools to be able to deal, to face our anguish and not just be prisoner to it.’”
Written by Nora Mabie for Montana Free Press
Charlie Speicher, found of a non-profit called Firekeeper's Alliance, listens to a song with a student after teaching a heavy metal music class at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Monday, May 19, 2025. The class is based on the idea that dark stuff can get you through a dark time.
Band artwork created by a student for their heavy metal music class at Browning High School on Monday, May 19, 2025.
Musician Drew Landry plays guitar for the students during a heavy metal music class created by a non-profit called the Firekeeper’s Alliance at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
A student laughs during a heavy metal music class taught by Drew Landry and Robert Hall at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
Robert Hall, director of Native American studies at Browning High School, takes a break from playing guitar during the heavy metal music class on Monday, May 19, 2025. The idea behind the class is that dark stuff can get you through a dark time, Hall explained.
The whiteboard in Mr. Sibbernsen's classroom at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
Students paint their nails during a heavy metal music class created by a non-profit called the Firekeeper’s Alliance at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. The Firekeeper Alliance is focused on addressing suicide and building Indigenized mental health resources for Montana’s Tribal communities.
A whiteboard in the Blackfeet language classroom at Browning High School on Monday, May 19, 2025.
Karrie Monroe, 48, director of Sukapi Lodge, poses for a portrait on the Blackfeet Nation outside of Browning, Montana, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. Sukapi Lodge is the first tribally run mental health care center in the U.S.
Karrie Monroe, 48, director of Sukapi Lodge, poses for a portrait on the Blackfeet Nation outside of Browning, Montana, on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. Sukapi Lodge is the first tribally run mental health care center in the U.S.
Unique decor on Mr. Sibbernsen's desk at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
Dylan Williams, 16, who showed a lot of interest in the heavy metal music class, poses for a portrait at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
Aerial views of Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025.
Charlie Speicher poses for a portrait at Browning High School on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. Speicher is the founder of a non-profit called the Firekeeper's Alliance, which is focused on addressing suicide and building Indigenized mental health resources, including the heavy metal music class, for Montana’s Tribal communities.
Charlie Speicher and Robert Hall, members of a non-profit called Firekeeper’s Alliance, pose for portraits at Browning High School on the Blackfeet Nation on Tuesday, May 20, 2025. The duo have been teaching a heavy metal music class twice a week at Buffalo Hide Academy and Browning High School to create coping and healing mechanisms for suicide through heavy music.