I woke up this morning and said Thank You for one more.
Rolled up some sage and laid it up on my smudge bowl.
Opened up the blinds just to see what the sun saw.
Now, this what I live for.
There are songs that entertain. And then there are songs that account for something. Smudge Bowl, the new release from Drezus, is the second kind.
From the first line, the tone is set. Waking up with gratitude. Opening the blinds. Letting the sun in. These are not dramatic gestures. They are the quiet, daily acts of someone who has chosen to stay present and keep going.
Living For Something Bigger
The heart of Smudge Bowl is accountability. Not the kind that is forced or performed, but the kind that comes from genuinely looking at your past and deciding to do better.
Drezus has spoken openly about his journey through substance abuse, incarceration, and reconnection with his culture. This song lives inside that story without being defined by it. The lyrics wrestle with guilt, with the gap left by past choices, and with the weight of carrying that forward. But they do not stay there. They move toward something. Toward family. Toward purpose. Toward the version of yourself that your children are watching.
A Father, A Role Model, A Creator
One of the most striking moments in the song is the shift toward fatherhood. The acknowledgment that his kids are watching. That they are taking notes. That being present for them is not just a personal goal but a responsibility.
This is what makes Drezus such a powerful voice for Indigenous youth. He is not speaking from a place of having it all figured out. He is speaking from the middle of the work. The daily practice of choosing better, showing up, and passing something real on to the next generation.
Why This Song Matters
Smudge Bowl is not a complicated song. It does not need to be. Its power is in its honesty. In the willingness to say: I have made mistakes, I have felt that weight, and I am still here, still building, still grateful for the morning.
For young people who carry their own weight, who wonder if change is actually possible, this song is an answer. Not a lecture. Not a lesson plan. Just one person saying: I made it through. You can too.