Celebrating Canada, from its first people to its newest – Calgary Herald

July 1, 2015 |

Every single dance Blake Yellowhorn performs is unique, including the one he has just done for the audience gathered on Prince’s Island for a Canada Day powwow. Each time is based on the same steps, but he says it branches off into a different direction every time.

“Everything I do comes from my heart,” the 23-year-old Blackfoot aboriginal from the Piikani Nation said.

“When I feel the beat, it’s like a trance in a way. It comes over my body and it just moves me.”

Crowds formed eagerly around him, vying for a photo. It’s not hard to see why — his regalia, entirely handmade by his father and stepmother, is magnificent. Its brightly-coloured fringe and intricately arranged feathers swayed with Yellowhorn as he danced, perfectly in step with the heartbeat-like rhythm of the drums.

Read More: http://calgaryherald.com/news/local-news/celebrating-canada-from-its-first-people-to-its-newest