He didnвЂ™t realize he was hundreds of kilometers away from his family and later froze to death. Chanie eventually ran away from the school and started walking home.

It was an album and graphic novel retelling the sad story of Chanie Wenjack, an Ojibwe (Anishinaabe) First Nations boy who was taken from his family to live at a residential school in Kenora, Ontario. In October 2016 he released The Secret Path.

But the work that meant the most to Downie was yet to come. Throughout their tour, fans and the band alike reveled in the artistry and power of the HipвЂ™s music. The monitors scattered around the stage to help Downie remember the words of the songs we all know by heart.

Other than the dazzling suits and those glorious hats, the only indication that anything was different about this particular tour was invisible to most of the audience. The CBCвЂ™s broadcast of the Kingston show, preempting one of the last days of the 2016 Summer Olympics, was available online and on the radio, was enjoyed by some 11.7 million people in Canada alone, a number that doesnвЂ™t include the dozens, if not hundreds, of viewing parties around the world. While they eventually took their вЂњregularвЂќ places across the floor, the view of the five of them, standing close together with Downie in the middle, was beautiful: itвЂ™s as if the first portion of each eveningвЂ™s performance was for them, they just let the rest of us listen in. It was a concert that lasted nearly three hours, divided into three segments вЂ“ as had all other dates on the Man Machine Poem tour-and started with the band huddled together on the stage. The Tragically Hip opened the K-ROCK Centre in Kingston in February 2008 it was more than fitting that the K-ROCK Centre and nearby Spring Market Square hosted their final concert together. They were named the Group of the Year at the 2017 Junos. The band released 14 studio albums, two live albums, an EP, 54 singles they won 16 Juno Awards and have been inducted into the Canadian Music Hall of Fame and were presented with honourary fellowships from the Royal Conservatory of Music. Downie and Fay joined later, and the groupsвЂ™ longstanding lineup was complete with the addition of Langlois in 1986, the same year one-time saxophonist Davis Manning left. Founded in Kingston, Ontario, in 1984, while Baker and Sinclair were students at Kingston College. The album itself was released in June.Д«y now, most of us know well the story of the Tragically Hip. The band announced two things that day: DownieвЂ™s illness and a small, 15-date Canada-only tour in conjunction with its latest album, вЂњMan Machine Poem,вЂќ to kick off in Victoria a few weeks later. At that point, Downie had undergone treatment and surgery to combat the aggressive, unmerciful and incurable brain tumor. Our identity and culture are richer because of his music, which was always raw and honest - like Gord himself.Gord Downie, leading singer of The Tragically Hip and probably the best loved man in Canada, left us last night.Дownie and his brothers in arms - Rob Baker, Gord Sinclair, Johnny Fay and Paul Langlois -announced his diagnosis of glioblastoma in May 2016. When he spoke, he gave us goosebumps and made us proud to be Canadian. In a statement on the news of Downie's passing, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau writes that the singer 'painted landscapes with his words, elevating Canadian geography, historical figures, and myths. The Tragically Hip would go on to be one of Canada's best-known bands, becoming indelible within the country's pop landscape during its ascent in the 1990s. Guitarist Paul Langlois joined in 1986 while the group was performing in small venues across Ontario. The Tragically Hip - Downie, bassist Gord Sinclair, guitarist Rob Baker and drummer Johnny Fay - was formed in a high school in the Canadian province of Ontario in 1984. No one worked harder on every part of life than Gord. At home, he worked just as tirelessly at being a good father, son, brother, husband and friend. 'As a musician, he lived 'the life' for over 30 years, lucky to do most of it with his high school buddies.

'Gordie said he had lived many lives,' his family writes. His death was announced in a statement from his family. Gord Downie, singer of The Tragically Hip, died of complications from brain cancer Tuesday night at the age of 53. Gord Downie (left) performs with The Tragically Hip in Vancouver during the band's final tour in 2016.

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