Frayed Feathers is going to Gathering Our Voices!! 🥳🥳 

So, Frayed Feathers (FF) has been officially accepted as both an exhibitor and workshop facilitator at Gathering Our Voices 2025.

Gathering Our Voices is Canada’s largest Indigenous youth conference, and I’ll be delivering two workshops, the first on freestyle dance and the second on youth reconciliation advocacy.

I found it funny when the organizers called me to clarify how the heck these two workshops connect, and it got me thinking.

Frayed Feathers is a bit confusing because we offer hip-hop dance and beatbox workshops in addition to creating youth reconciliation strategies with executive-level teams.

In this edition of the FF newsletter, I will unpack why these skill sets complement each other in this sector and why it’s important to know!

Last edition, we discussed the communal approach to policy and that young Indigenous people are born into a political discussion no one taught them how to communicate about.

Dancing is a cornerstone of Indigenous culture, but I didn’t grow up around cultural singers and dancers; I got into breakdancing because of my two older non-Indigenous cousins.

By relentlessly practicing my dancing as a kid, I built my confidence and the framework to learn new skills.

Fast-forward to my teenage years, when I started to learn more about my Indigenous identity and, to my surprise, found the Indigenous hip-hop scene.

I found so many Indigenous artists talking about colonization and the harsh realities they contend with. I was surprised and refreshed at how political their raps were.

It’s as though hip-hop finally gave them an opportunity to share what is really going on in Canada, and it inspired me!

Young Indigenous people are finding unique ways to have their voices heard, and through hip-hop art, they are reaching millions of people’s hearts.

FF is no different. I’ve created dance routines to tell my story and continue dancing to Indigenous rap music today; it’s how I connect with people.

So to bring this together, I’m going to tell a story about youth reconciliation and hip-hop.

TRC Call to Action #66 reads as follows: “We call upon the federal government to establish multiyear funding for community-based youth organizations to deliver programs on reconciliation, and establish a national network to share information and best practices.”

In 2016-18, the Canadian Roots Exchange (now Indigenous Youth Roots) engaged young Indigenous people nationally to inform how the government should answer the Call to Action.

Here’s a link if you’re interested: https://youthrex.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/Indigenous-Youth-Voices-Roadmap-to-TRC-66.pdf

Also, here’s my video on it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnAfCisCpxA

They had community dialogue with Indigenous organizations and leaders, an online survey and a National Gathering of Indigenous Youth Leaders.

I was studying at Seneca College to be a Social Service Worker SSW from 2016-18, and I had no idea this crucial engagement was happening.

Reflecting back, I think that a 20-year-old status Indigenous male studying to be an SSW working in Indigenous organizations would be an ideal candidate for such engagement.

The thing is, their messaging never reached me, and I didn’t learn what the TRC was until my second year in college in my Policy course. But you know what I did know about?

The Indigenous hip-hop scene and the many personal stories that these rappers from all over Canada share through their music.

So now, as a policy analyst, I reflect on this experience and consider how hip-hop music taught me so much about colonization, mainly because the music was fun to consume.

I was finally taught what the TRC was at the age of 21 by a colonial institution. So, it’s my job as a youth reconciliation strategy consultant to be creative about how we get my peers involved.

I use hip-hop dance workshops to teach dance and make connections to the Indigenous perspective. I use Indigenous hip-hop music, and I can see participants’ faces light up when they recognize the relatable lyrics.

There are so many parallels to connect between hip-hop and Indigenous ways of knowing.

For instance, at hip-hop events we always invite original gangsters (OGs) to witness the new generation and ensure we keep true to the traditions in their scene.

I feel this is extremely similar to inviting Elders into our gatherings to ensure cultural etiquette and staying honest about the traditional ways in which ceremony is conducted.

Here are my takeaways from today’s newsletter:

1. Hip-hop is a form of resilience that speaks to young Indigenous people.

2. Indigenous rappers connect Indigenous youth by sharing their experiences and playing shows that congregate the community.

3. Even Indigenous youth who are passionate about policy may not know what is going on in government.

4. Where there is resilience, there is potential, and Indigenous youth are some of the most resilient communities in Canada.

Peace ✌️