The history and traditions of the tribe who responded to Billie Eilish's Grammys speech has been revealed after the singer was accused of 'hypocrisy'.
The 24-year-old won the 'Song of the Year' award at the ceremony for her tune 'Wildflower', taking to the stage with her brother and longtime collaborator Finneas.
Eilish showed her gratitude for the award, but got a dig at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) into her speech, saying: "I honestly don’t feel like I need to say anything but that no one is illegal on stolen land."
The artist was referencing the European colonisation of the Americas between the 15th and 17th centuries, adding: "It’s just really hard to know what to say and what to do right now, and I just feel really hopeful in this room, and I feel like we just need to keep fighting and speaking up and protesting, and our voices really do matter, and the people matter."
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"And f**k ICE, that's all I'm gonna say. Sorry!" the artist concluded, in a powerful political message.
However, some claimed there was an element of hypocrisy to the 'bad guy' artist's words.
According to a representative of the Tongva people, Eilish's reported $3 million (£2.1 million) family home located within the Highland Park neighbourhood of Los Angeles, is on land originally belonging to the tribe.
A law firm has since come out and offered to evict the musician from her home, as the speech received mixed responses from the public.
The Tongva people have since addressed the speech, with a spokesperson telling MailOnline: "As the First People of the greater Los Angeles basin, we do understand that her home is situated in our ancestral land.
"Eilish has not contacted our tribe directly regarding her property, we do value the instance when Public Figures provide visibility to the true history of this country."
While indicating that they felt 'appreciation' for her statement at the Grammys, they urged her and other big names to reference their nation when speaking out about the US.
They hope that 'the tribe can explicitly be referenced', as 'the greater Los Angeles basin remains Gabrielino Tongva territory'.
Who are the Tongva?
The Tongva people, also known as Gabrielino-Tongva, are the indigenous people of the Los Angeles Basin and Southern Channel Islands in California.
They have lived in the 4,000-square-mile area for the last 3,500 years or so, with the culture having strong links with the land and sea.
There are over 700 citizens living across the city and county of Los Angeles, according to Gabrielino/Tongva nation - they do not have a federal reservation of their own, like other Native American tribes in the US.
According to the Los Angeles Times, the Tongva people called their territory Tovaangar, which literally means 'the world'.
It originally consisted of 5,000 people across 100 villages and spanned from Palos Verdes to San Bernardino, and from Saddleback Mountain to the San Fernando Valley.
The Tongva also call four Southern Channel Islands, including Santa Catalina and San Clemente, home.
Britannica explains they were one of the wealthiest and most technologically advanced tribes in the region.
They lived in houses made out of poles and tule-reed mats and their economy was mostly based on acorns and wild plants, along with fishing and hunting.
While they were originally called the San Gabriel Indians, or Gabrieleño, named after the Spanish mission to which they were taken during the period of colonization, in 2007 they changed their name to the Gabrielino/Tongva Nation.
They are currently campaigning to gain federal recognition, having already been recognised by the State of California, the California General Assembly, and the Los Angeles City Council.
They wrote on their website: "Without Federal recognition, we cannot claim and repatriate our ancestors’ remains. We cannot participate in scholarships for Native Americans. We cannot practice our religious traditions with full freedoms."
Topics: Billie Eilish, Grammys, Music, US News
Joshua Nair