WHEN YOU TURN on a radio and search through the dial, you are likely to find an increasing number of stations dedicated to hip-hop and rap. But you are not going to find the story behind one genre: Native American hip-hop.

For many the prospect is almost laughable. "Indians dance at powwows and play drums, they don't rap" is a likely response. But not only are an increasing number of Native Americans rapping, they are using the medium to become both more mainstream in their music and better understood.

Native American rap is relatively new compared to other genres. The founder of the movement, Seattle-based Litefoot, who is of Cherokee and Chichimeca blood, has been a trailblazer for a generation of Indian musicians.

Ever since his first album, "The Money," in 1992, Litefoot has released 13 albums under his Red Vinyl Records label, appeared on television shows such as "CSI: Miami" and "Family Law," started his own clothing line, Native Style, and acted in eight movies, including a starring role in the film version of the children's classic, "The Indian in the Cupboard." During his 2005-06 Reach the Rez tour, he performed at 211 Native American reservations spanning 40 states.

Litefoot recently took time out of his schedule to talk to the Online Gargoyle about his music and his culture.

Where did your love for music start?

After debuting in 1992, Litefoot has built a successful career in both hip-hop and acting. He also has his own clothing line. Litefoot promotional photo (click to enlarge)

I was always playing around the house when I was young listening to everything and anything that I could. I would turn on the radio and listen to different artists. When I started to write my own rhymes I would go to classical music stations [laughs] because that's the only place I could hear good clear instrumentals and beats.

This was way before I ever thought I might become an MC. If the song was mellow and phat, then I might write a song for my girl at the time, or if it had intense orchestration, I would be more serious and talk about my problems. Whenever I hear a track I let it immediately move my emotions and then I work from what I feel.

Who in particular did you listen to while you were growing up?

Obviously I listened to the great crews back in the day like NWA and Public Enemy and even some groups that don't even exist today like the FBI Crew and the Fatboys. I really appreciated what rap had done by taking the great sounds of soul and R&B and integrating intelligent writing into it.

When did you decide on making your own genre and becoming an entrepreneurial artist?

As I got older I noticed that there wasn't anyone that I could see in popular music that represented me or my people. My sister aspired to be a singer, and when she would record things I would go with her to the studio. I came to see recorded music as a perfect way to express myself and my feelings. At the time there was no Native Americans in popular music, especially in hip-hop, where at the time it was hard to find anyone who was not black. I wanted the voice of Oklahoma [where he grew up], the voice of Washington [the state where he has lived since 1997], the voice of the original Americans to be heard.

[Laughs] I don't know what I was on to think that a guy like me could not only do hip-hop but make a difference in my community. But I guess I have to thank my mom and dad for giving me the advice to not let anyone get me down. That's happened my whole career, people saying, "You can't be a successful rapper," and I just say, "Just watch me."

What do you see as your greatest accomplishment?

Being a role model for my people, no doubt. I'm so blessed with my success in music, TV, and film, but it would all be for naught if my people and other people around the world didn't listen and better understand our story. There is a school in Germany (Griefswald University) where they are studying my lyrics in a class about Native American culture. That's exactly what I want, for people to learn about me and my culture.

How important is it for you to be seen as a Native American rapper and not just a rapper who is Native American?

I think it's incredibly important because not many Indian people are recognized for their work. I always try to be the very best I can be, for myself and for my people. It's the pride of my people that gives me the ability to do what I do. I present my native element before my gift of words because my people have to realize that it's possible to succeed. When you can see someone who is like you and has succeeded with what they do, you know that you too can succeed.

How has the community of Native American hip-hop emerged?

While others before me sang and entertained, few attempted to use anything like hip-hop to share the native experience. When I started to share my music, no one else was doing this. Today, though, there are hundreds of artists who have followed in my footsteps, and the movement is growing and thriving. I have always had this warrior mentality and work ethic. I strongly believe that if you can see it, you can do it.

Where do you see Native American hip-hop in five to 10 years?

The most important thing is to achieve mainstream awareness. That's what I'm working so hard for, and whatever Indian artist achieves it, be it me or anyone else, they will have done something that no Indian politician has been able to do, to get a major group of people to listen to and understand the Indian lifestyle and history. Despite our long history, we are a people with little voice in this country, and the day that voice becomes powerful will be a great day. We are climbing the mountain right now, and we just need one final push to succeed.

LONG BEFORE LITEFOOT, back in the 1960s, a musical artist born on a Piapot Cree reservation in Saskatchewan, Canada, attempted to use folk rock to express her beliefs and share with a broader audience the experience of her people. Buffy Sainte-Marie earned a reputation as a gifted song writer, and one of her most popular songs, "Until It's Time for You to Go," was recorded by artists as diverse as Elvis Presley, Barbra Streisand, and Bobby Darin.

But some of her songs, like "My Country 'Tis of Thy People You're Dying," addressed the plight of Native Americans and created controversy. Sainte-Marie was one of the first major Native American artists to break through on the national scene.

Native Americans have been and are participating in the popular music scene without significantly drawing attention to their heritage and culture. Taboo Nawasha (born Jaime Luis Gomez) is of Shoshone and Mexican descent and is best known as a member of the popular group The Black Eyed Peas.

There also have been popular non-native groups that have drawn attention to the plight of Native Americans through song. Paul Revere and the Raiders had a No. 1 hit in the U.S. in 1971 with "Indian Reservation."

What Litefoot and his brethren are doing today in hip-hop is unique in that they are attempting to take a cutting-edge musical form and use it more directly to call attention to their people with the hope of enhancing the understanding of us all.

A number of Native American hip-hop groups are beginning to find more outlets beyond reservations to share their music and express themselves. Some of the more popular acts include Cherokee/Creek native Shadowyze, Oklahoma City's Quese IMC (Pawnee/Seminole), and Pueblo/Sioux Tac Tile.

In fact, the number of artists in the genre has expanded to the point that now at the Native American Music Awards they have a category just for hip-hop, and the coveted Entertainer of the Year award has been won by hip-hop artists Shadowyze and Litefoot. The 11th annual Native American Music Awards were held this past Saturday in Niagara Falls, N.Y. The list of winners can be found at the NAMA website.

But just as Litefoot alluded in his interview, the Native American music scene has not been totally embraced by the mainstream music industry. Indeed a major rift resulted from a showy rendition of the popular song "Hey Ya!" by the group OutKast, performed at the 2004 Grammys. The members of OutKast donned feathers and headbands and other regalia approximating a Native American powwow that prompted heavy rebuke from the Native American community.

Litefoot's own single "What's It Gonna Take" captured the sense of indignity:

We only good with feathers on
Don't exist when they're off
I punch the remote
Feeling like my whole race is a joke.

The rapper's main point comes to the forefront in the chorus of "Different People":

You can't know me now, if you don't know my past
feels like the last is first and the first is last.

Litefoot ingeniously uses today's pop culture to make all of us more aware of America's first people. It's moving, it's powerful, and it's real. So the next time you are listening to music, turn off the radio, and understand their story.

A LOOK AT LITEFOOT