Mentor: Litefoot's "Reach the Rez" Tour

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Tsalagi rapper, actor and mentor Litefoot has taken mentorship and community involvement through music to a new level with his Reach the Rez tour and unprecedented effort to inspire Indigenous youth.

For the last 19 years, Litefoot and his red-blooded brand of Hip-hop have traveled to countless numbers of Indigenous communities in both Canada and United States. Known for his acting roles in movies like Indian in the Cupboard and Mortal Kombat, as well as for his prolific career filled with numerous album releases as a rap artist, Litefoot has been putting it down for Turtle Island since the 90's. Owner of Redvinyl Records, Nativestyle Clothing and the new FlexArrow Sneaker brand, he has been a monumental force in the Indigenous music game for almost two decades.

In 2005, Litefoot partnered with sponsors to create the Reach the Rez Tour, and traveled to 211 communities in a year's time to perform free shows and conduct workshops with youth, promoting a drug and alcohol free lifestyle as well as the importance of prayer and cultural pride.

While on tour setting a precedent of so many shows and workshops in a year, Litefoot mentored up to fifteen different at-risk youths per day as assigned to him by the Association For American Indian Development (AAID), while also mentoring hundred's of other youth in the communities he traveled to.

On his tourbus with his wife, son and 10-person team, Litefoot did the impossible and managed to accomplish what no other artist in Indian Country has done thus far. With sponsorship from the Seminole Tribe of Florida, Jeep/Chrysler and others, this non-profit organization has reached out to 211 communities and covered over 54,000 of miles in just that one year of touring, making it the largest effort of outreach to Native communities in North America by a music artist.

Using Hip-hop music to connect with both youth and adults has proved to be a viable tool for mentorship and creation of movements for social change within Indigenous communities. Litefoot has used his determination and success to promote a cultural and healthy lifestyle over the years and still proves to be a force to be reckoned with when it comes to reaching the Rez on a large scale through music.

To learn more or book Litefoot to your community, be sure to visit Litefoot.com

 

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