A hoop dancer can now reach millions without waiting for a television producer. An Inuk mother and daughter can bring throat singing into phones around the world. A comedian can turn one perfectly observed auntie into an internet legend.
That is the power running through this list. These creators are not one movement, one Nation or one kind of storyteller. They work in dance, music, comedy, gaming, wellness and education. What connects them is the decision to speak in their own voices and build audiences on their own terms.
Who are 10 Indigenous creators worth following? Our editorial countdown includes the 1491s, Brett Mooswa, Deanne Hupfield, Shayla Stonechild, Fawn Wood, Kairyn Potts, Tonia Jo Hall, Tia Wood, Shina Novalinga and James Jones, better known as Notorious Cree. The order is subjective; cultural impact, originality, reach and the ability to open doors for others all matter.
10. The 1491s: the comedy pioneers who changed the frame
Before Native comedy had a comfortable place in mainstream television, the 1491s were making sharp, strange and proudly Indigenous sketches for YouTube. The group says it came together to make funny videos and has been building a global audience with satire and live performance since its first release in 2009.
Members Ryan RedCorn, Dallas Goldtooth, Sterlin Harjo, Migizi Pensoneau and Bobby Wilson went on to work across film and television. Several contributed as writers, actors, directors or producers to Reservation Dogs, while Harjo co-created the series. Their importance is bigger than one show: they proved Native humour did not need to translate itself for an outside audience first. Start with the 1491s’ own story, then explore Powwow Times’ guide to the Native talent behind Reservation Dogs.
9. Brett Mooswa: prairie humour with a healing purpose
Brett Mooswa is a member of Makwa Sahgaiehcan First Nation in Saskatchewan, and his comedy lands because the details feel lived-in: family conversations, reserve routines and the tiny social moments that can turn into a full sketch.
His videos have travelled far beyond the people who immediately recognize every reference. That reach has never required him to flatten the context. In an Eagle Feather News profile, Mooswa described humour as something that helped him heal; the Assembly of First Nations later introduced him as a creator who uses comedy to share Cree culture and connect Indigenous and non-Indigenous viewers. Follow @brettmooswa for short-form comedy with warmth behind the punchline.
8. Deanne Hupfield: making the path into the powwow circle clearer
Deanne Hupfield is an Anishinaabe educator and Temagami First Nation citizen who has taught powwow dance and regalia making for more than 20 years. Her online lessons give Indigenous learners, especially people living away from their home communities, a practical place to begin.
That distinction matters. Hupfield does not treat powwow as an anonymous fitness trend. Her teaching connects movement, making and cultural reconnection, while recognizing that families, Nations and dance communities carry their own knowledge. Her official site offers dance and regalia courses, and her widely shared videos include lessons for children. Follow @deannehupfield, visit Deanne Hupfield’s teaching hub, and use Powwow Times’ powwow dance styles guide for broader context.
7. Shayla Stonechild: wellness grounded in voice, lineage and community
Shayla Oulette Stonechild identifies as a Red River Métis and Nêhiyaw iskwêw with roots in Muscowpetung First Nation. Through the Matriarch Movement, she brings Indigenous women and Two-Spirit people into conversations about representation, leadership, movement and wellness.
The platform has grown from an interview series into a podcast, nonprofit work and Indigenous-led workshops. Stonechild’s presence is polished, but the work is not simply lifestyle content. It asks who gets centred in wellness spaces and what healing looks like when land, community and Indigenous knowledge are part of the conversation. Follow @shayla0h and learn about the Matriarch Movement.
6. Fawn Wood: a voice that made JUNO history
Plains Cree and Salish singer Fawn Wood carries Round Dance and hand-drum music into recordings that circulate through community gatherings, streaming services and countless social posts. Her songs do not feel built for an algorithm, yet the emotion in them keeps finding new listeners.
In 2022, Wood’s album Kâkike won the inaugural JUNO Award for Traditional Indigenous Artist or Group of the Year. The JUNOS later described the creation of separate traditional and contemporary Indigenous categories and Wood’s place as the first traditional-category winner. Search @fawn.wood, listen to the full recordings behind the viral clips, and meet more artists in Powwow Times’ list of Indigenous Grammy winners, nominees and producers.
5. Kairyn Potts: Two-Spirit visibility with room for joy
Kairyn Potts is a Two-Spirit creator from Paul First Nation and Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation in Treaty 6 territory. He moves easily between comedy, fashion, gaming and direct conversations about mental health and queer Indigenous life.
Potts was named to TikTok’s 2022 Global Discover List as one of its change makers. That recognition fits, but his real strength is the range of what he lets Indigenous youth see: advocacy can be serious without making a person solemn all the time. Style, laughter, games and vulnerability can share the same feed. Follow @ohkairyn and read his Indigenous Artist Spotlight interview.
4. Tonia Jo Hall: Auntie Beachress is still undefeated
Some characters need a movie set. Auntie Beachress needed a floral scarf, sunglasses and Tonia Jo Hall’s ability to spot exactly how a legendary auntie enters a conversation.
Hall, a comedian and creator with Lakota, Dakota and Hidatsa heritage, began posting videos in 2011. The character became a staple of Native internet comedy, while Hall expanded into live performance, motivational speaking and wellness advocacy. The jokes are big, but they come from affection and recognition rather than treating Native community life as a curiosity for outsiders. Follow @toniajohall and visit her official site.
Tia Wood first stopped scrollers with a voice that could move from contemporary R&B phrasing into sounds rooted in the music of her family and home community. A Plains Cree and Coast Salish artist from Saddle Lake Cree Nation, she grew up performing at powwows and community events in a family deeply connected to music.
Her social audience helped introduce that voice, but it was never the final destination. Wood moved to Los Angeles, signed with Sony Music Canada and released her debut EP Pretty Red Bird in 2024. Sony continued releasing new music from her in 2026, evidence of a career growing beyond its viral origin. Follow @tiamiscihk, read Sony Music Canada’s artist profile, and revisit Powwow Times’ story about Tia Wood’s move into the recording industry.
2. Shina Novalinga: Inuit throat singing in a new circle of listeners
Shina Novalinga became known around the world through videos of throat-singing duets with her mother, Caroline. Their warmth is part of the appeal: viewers do not encounter katajjaq as a museum display, but as a living practice shared between two Inuit women who know each other well enough to laugh when the rhythm breaks.
Novalinga, whose family is from Puvirnituq in Nunavik, also shares Inuit fashion, language and daily life. In an enRoute interview with Shina Novalinga, she explained that sharing the practice helps her and her mother feel their voices and their people’s voices are being heard. Her platform can be an entry point, not a substitute for the knowledge held across Inuit regions and communities. Follow @shinanova for a feed where cultural continuity feels contemporary, intimate and self-directed.
1. James Jones, Notorious Cree: hoop dance on a global stage
James Jones can make a complex hoop-dance sequence feel immediate on a phone screen without reducing the dance to a trick. The Nehiyaw artist from Tallcree First Nation was already an accomplished hoop dancer before social media expanded his stage to millions of people.
In 2025, TIME named Jones to its inaugural TIME100 Creators list. The magazine highlighted his appearances at the Olympics and Coachella, his cultural education and humour, and his advocacy around missing and murdered Indigenous women and the harms of residential schools. His work succeeds because spectacle is never the only point: the hoops, timing and athleticism draw attention, then Jones uses that attention with intention. Follow @notoriouscree and read TIME’s profile of James Jones.
Why these creators matter beyond the numbers
Follower totals rise and fall, platforms change, and yesterday’s viral format can disappear by next month. What lasts is control. These creators decide how humour sounds, how contemporary Indigenous life looks, and which parts of their work are for teaching, entertainment, advocacy or community.
Following is a small action. Listening to full songs, buying tickets and art, supporting workshops, crediting original creators and sharing their work without stripping away context are better ones. Add these 10 to your feed, then keep looking for the voices in your own region whose work has not reached the algorithm yet.
Frequently asked questions
Who is Notorious Cree?
Notorious Cree is the creator name of James Jones, a Nehiyaw hoop dancer and artist from Tallcree First Nation in Alberta. TIME selected him for its inaugural TIME100 Creators list in 2025.
Who performs throat singing with Shina Novalinga?
Shina Novalinga frequently performs Inuit throat-singing duets with her mother, Caroline Novalinga, a professional throat singer from Puvirnituq.
Where can Indigenous learners find online powwow dance lessons?
Deanne Hupfield offers powwow dance and regalia-making instruction through her website and video channels. Learners should also follow teachings and protocols from their own families, Nations and dance communities.
Who created Auntie Beachress?
Comedian Tonia Jo Hall created Auntie Beachress and began building the character’s online audience through YouTube videos in 2011.
