Bio

who is Mitchell Makoons?

Mitchell Makoons (he/him) is a Roots/Rock musician from Brandon, Manitoba, who currently resides in Winnipeg. At the age of seven, Mitchell began playing the guitar to accompany his grandfather and brother as they played Metis fiddle tunes. Makoons continues to be an active member of the Manitoba Metis community and writes songs that combine traditional Ojibway music and culture with modern influences.

Makoons has toured several times across Western Canada and has begun to break into the Canadian festival scene. Over the last few years has performed at Dauphin’s Countryfest, Harvest Sun Music Festival, Gentlefest, and Trout Forest Music Festival, to name a few. In the fall of 2025 Mitchell toured Southern Australia presented by the Adelaide Guitar Festival.

Makoons released his debut album “Lady Boots” in April of 2024. Of the 8 tracks on the album, 4 have reached the top 10 on the Indigenous Music Countdown with “Courage” and “Changing Man” becoming his first and second No. 1’s. Mitchell’s music is spun frequently on Canadian and American radio and receives international play on Sirius XM. Since 2022, Makoons has been nominated for 12 Manitoba Country Music Awards and won the Emerging Artist of the Year Award in 2024, and Roots Artist of the Year in 2025

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First and foremost, Mitchell is a songwriter. He has been writing songs for as long as he can remember. Mitchell is hugely influenced by his musical family, including his grandpa and famous Metis fiddle player, Eldon Campbell. Some of Mitchell’s first memories are watching his family playing on stage at old-time dances and wishing someday he’d join them.

Mitchell is an active member of the Manitoba Metis community, with specific ties to the Manitoba House Metis community. He comes from a long line of voyageurs and HBC workers and is a citizen of the Northwest region of the Manitoba Metis Federation. Mitchell has familial ties to the community of Ebb & Flow First Nation. In June 2024 he was asked to represent the Metis nation, accompanying fiddler Morgan Grace in Normandy, France for the D-day 80th Anniversary Commemoration Ceremony.

In 2021, he updated his stage name to “Mitchell Makoons,” though he previously released 5 EPs under his legal name, “Mitchell Mozdzen.” Each of these EPs were in a different genre - a long term project with the intent of working on his production skills in these styles and learning from each genre. This had a huge influence on the current music he makes. In 2022, he completed his second degree at Brandon University and currently holds a B.A. 3Y.R in Music and a B. Mus. in Jazz Performance.

Under the moniker “Mitchell Makoons,” he has thus far released 1 EP and 1 album. In addition to his own music, he is also known to produce records for others and do session recording work. He has recording credits for bass, guitar, banjo, and mandolin, and also works as a side player for artists like Quinton Blair, Kwiat and Ila Barker.

Another passion of Mitchell’s is teaching Metis culture workshops in schools. Often teaching fiddle, songwriting, and giving history presentations, students learn about Metis art and history, which offers opportunities for continuing traditions and conversations about our collective past.