Gary, who had developed a passion for writing in high school and a love for dancing and hip hop music… found those worlds come together while visiting his mom, who had since moved back to California.

His younger sister who was living with his mom in California. She was an aspiring singer and busy recording a demo with some local producers that she had met. She had asked Gary if he’d like to come along and write a rap for one of her songs? He agreed and after writing the rap, the producers asked him if he would like to lay down a “scratch” vocal track of the rap, so, “…whomever would actually end up performing the rap would have an idea as to how it should be delivered…”.

Gary got in the vocal booth and that 16 bar verse would become his first performance as a rap artist. He immediately fell in love with recording and making music.

Upon returning to Oklahoma he started writing his own songs and putting together dance routines for each one knowing that one day he would perform these songs and he wanted to be ready.

He soon found a studio to record in but he was in search of a “rap name”. He wanted a name that reflected his Native American heritage, but it also had to mean something more personal.

While at a pow wow one weekend with friends, he heard the announcer call a dancer up to receive his winning prize money. The last name of the dancer was “Lightfoot”. The name immediately resonated with Gary; it was Native and had meaning to Gary as it reflected his passion for dancing and the choreographed routines he was making for all of his songs. He didn’t want to offend the “Lightfoot” family by using their name – so he changed the spelling to “Litefoot”.  

Litefoot was now recording his own music and performing at talent shows and clubs in the area as the first Native American rap artist.

Soon he was performing for tribes across Oklahoma and not long after that he was traveling in Native communities from Alaska to Maine and everywhere in between.

Litefoot would perform his music and always deliver a message at every show encouraging the people in the communities he was visiting.

His musical pursuits turned into his first business, Red Vinyl Records. Gary started the company in 1992 with the core value, that if you “do good”, you will “get good”.

Litefoot desired to encourage Native people, increase awareness in mainstream society and ultimately to make a difference for future generations of Native American people through his music.

Litefoot soon found himself performing constantly across the United States and in Canada. His fan base was growing from a relentless touring schedule that constantly had him on the road.

In January of 1994, He was asked to travel to Rome, Italy with a group of Native musicians to perform at a festival. The trip was being facilitated by the American Indian College Fund, which was at the time based in NYC, and Litefoot was asked to represent the contemporary aspect of Native music. The trip was the first time Litefoot performed internationally and he was a hit. He performed at the Palazzo de Esposizioni in the heart of Rome and was interviewed by Radio Rai and even made the city newspaper.

As soon as he returned back to the United States he returned to a crazed touring schedule. While on tour in Oregon performing for the Burns Paiute Tribe, Litefoot received a phone call that Paramount Pictures had called and requested that he travel to New York City to read for a forthcoming Paramount Pictures film entitled, The Indian in the Cupboard.

The casting for the film was being done in New York City and they had reached out to the American Indian College Fund inquiring as to Native American actors who might be candidates to audition for the film. The college fund mentioned Litefoot and even though he was not an actor at the time, that he might be someone whom should audition for the role.

After receiving the call from Paramount Pictures, Litefoot traveled to New York City and auditioned. He was asked to stay and meet the Director and audition for him, which he did. Having never acted before, Litefoot won the role of “Little Bear” and The Indian In the Cupboard became his first starring role in a major motion picture. Litefoot had made it to Hollywood.

Litefoot filmed the Indian In The Cupboard from late 1994 through early 1995. The film was released in July of 1995 and Litefoot received raves for his portrayal of Little Bear.

After filming had wrapped Litefoot returned to touring and delivering a message of empowerment on reservations across North America. He released the album, “Good Day To Die” which has become a classic amongst fans and he also did more films, including Mortal Kombat, Annihilation, The Song of Hiawatha, Kull, The Conqueror and Adaptation to name a few.

He landed roles in such television shows as, Family Law, Any Day Now, and CSI Miami.

In late 1997, Litefoot met his future wife, Carmen, and the two were married in 1998. The couple welcomed their first child, Quannah, in 1999.

Litefoot continued to release music independently on Red Vinyl Records at the rate of almost one album per year between 1998 and 2004.

He had also become known as a powerful speaker. His message of self empowerment through “living your purpose” resonated with audiences. He was able to reach, engage, motivate and inspire people of all ages in a very effective way and it made him a highly sought after public speaker.

Litefoot continued to tour across the country with his wife and young son, performing and speaking to packed crowds on reservations everywhere.

Litefoot and his wife Carmen, also started the Native Style clothing and apparel brand during this time. The two traveled and sold Native Style everywhere that Litefoot performed. The brand quickly became a success and is available online at: www.nativestyleclothing.com

In 2005, Litefoot and his wife planned, produced and facilitated an unprecedented effort of nationwide outreach to tribal nations across the United States called, the Reach the Rez Tour.

The purpose of the Reach the Rez effort was to proactively travel to tribal communities across the United States and deliver a message of hope and prayer to Native people.

Litefoot, his wife and son, and a small crew held 211 motivational speeches and inspirational performances that traveled them 54,000 miles across the United States between 2005 and 2006. That happens to be approximately the same distance as traveling twice around the earth.

The effort included a weekly satellite radio show called “Reach The Rez Radio” that was broadcast nationwide which Litefoot produced and hosted.

The Davis family continued the exhaustive effort for four additional years, traveling nationwide to tribal nations and communities delivering a messages of hope and empowerment.

By 2007, Gary “Litefoot” Davis had linked up with Jay-Z’s camp and began working on what would become his 11th studio album, Relentless Pursuit. The album was released in 2008.

During this time Litefoot found himself spending more and more time providing his services as a business consultant. He served as Vice-President of Native Affairs for the Triple Five Group, owners of the Mall of America and West Edmonton Mall located in Edmonton, Alberta Canada. He served as co-chair of the National Indian Gaming Association’s, American Indian Business Network. And Mr. Davis also began facilitating an array of cross sector business opportunities in Indian Country.

When not dedicating his time to growing his consulting business, he was busy delivering speeches across North America. In 2009, given his accomplishments as an entrepreneur, Litefoot began hosting national Tribal business conferences across Indian Country.

In 2010, Mr. Davis authored his first book entitled, The Medicine of Prayer (available at litefoot.com, iBooks, Amazon and at Barnes and Noble.com).

Mr. and Mrs. Davis also welcomed their second child, Sequoyah, in 2010.

in 2011, Mr. Davis was asked to host the National Center For American Indian Enterprise Development’s (NCAIED), Reservation Economic Summit (RES) for the third time in as many years. At the event the leadership of the NCAIED asked Mr. Davis to join its Board of Directors. Mr. Davis accepted and served on the board until being asked in January of 2012 to serve as the NCAIED’s President and CEO. Mr. Davis accepted and served in that position until resigning at the end of September 2016.

Mr. and Mrs. Davis welcomed their third child, Qwnuseia, in 2013.

During Mr. Davis’s tenure at the NCAIED he promoted economic development and business opportunity for all of Indian Country by expanding the NCAIED’s RES events nationwide. Mr. Davis promoted Indian business globally and was invited by the U.S. Department of Commerce to travel with its delegation to Hanover Messe, the world’s largest business trade show located in Hanover, Germany. Though Mr. Davis was busy with his duties to the NCAIED, in 2014 he appeared in the Netflix series, House of Cards.

Mr. Davis became a recipient of the prestigious Sevenstar Award from the Cherokee Nation Historical Society, presented to a Cherokee who is accomplished in a chosen field, brought honor to the Cherokee people and serves as an inspiration to others.

In 2015, Mr. Davis received the Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency National Director Special Recognition Award and was appointed as an Ambassador of the Department of Energy’s, Minorities In Energy initiative.

Also in 2015, Mr. Davis was recognized as one of the “Fifty Faces of Indian Country” by Indian Country Today Media Network. In May of 2016, Mr. Davis was appointed to the United States Small Business Administration’s Council on Underserved Communities.

In Late September of 2016, Gary “Litefoot” Davis was named the new Executive Director of the Native American Financial Services Association (NAFSA).

“The appointment of Gary Davis will be transformative for our organization and the tribal communities we serve,” said Otoe-Missouria Chairman John R. Shotton who serves as NAFSA’s Chairman. “Gary has been a passionate and tireless advocate for creating new economic opportunities for Indian Country and nobody has fought harder to ensure the preservation of our tribal sovereignty. We are thrilled to have him joining our NAFSA team.”

The mission of NAFSA is to advocate for tribal sovereignty, promote responsible financial services, and provide better economic opportunity in Indian Country for the benefit of tribal communities.

“I am excited to begin serving as the new Executive Director of NAFSA where I believe we can help create greater awareness about the financial services provided by tribally owned companies and the positive impact those companies have in tribal communities,” Davis said. “Since its founding, NAFSA has been a catalyst to help its tribal members grow and flourish and I want to expand its portfolio to create even greater growth in the tribal financial services sector for the benefit of all of Indian Country.”

Mr. Davis has also served as a member of the Forbes Finance Council since 2018.

In late 2016 Gary and his wife Carmen began Davis Strategy Group, which works with a select list of clients focused on growing business and economic opportunity in Indian Country.

In 2017, Davis also began an inspirational daily video series called “Footnotes” which are short motivational and informative video recordings.

In 2018, Gary, and his wife Carmen Davis, founded Native Business Magazine, a digital media company aimed at promoting, inspiring and advancing Native American business, entrepreneurship and economic development. Native Business publishes its content online at nativebusinessmag.com. Gary and Carmen also produced the Native Business Summit in 2019 and virtually as a live broadcast in 2020.

In 2019 Mr. Davis was asked to join the Board of Directors of the Seattle International Film Festival and was chosen by Scholastic, Inc. to appear in their upcoming children’s book, “Native American Heroes”.

Also in 2019, Mr. Davis began his own podcast, “The Litefoot Show” which features his wife Carmen as his co-host.

“For many years I have had the pleasure of speaking in countless Tribal communities and at conferences in many other countries. Podcasts are an excellent way for me to directly express my views, interact with listeners and engage with Indian Country and the world,“ said Davis. “The show is a cool way for me to continue to connect with people everywhere and Carmen and I have a lot of fun doing every episode.”

Audio episodes of the Litefoot Show are available via iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher and Soundcloud, and wherever podcasts can be found.

In 2021, having been a notable figure in Indian Country for nearly 30 years, Mr. Davis  along with his wife Carmen, launched their newest entrepreneurial and creative endeavor – IndigiStudios.

Indigenous people are, and have always been, storytellers.

IndigiStudios is a 100% owned and operated indigenous film and production company, focused on a slate of theatrical, episodic, and documentary projects, all centered around the company’s mission of reclaiming the indigenous narrative in film and television. Beyond dramas, the company will strive to tell fun and fantastical stories, aspiring to create impactful films in every genre – from action to rom-com to documentaries and even sci-fi.

We believe that by sharing and expressing indigeneity cinematically, we will subsequently touch the spirit of people universally.”  – Gary “Litefoot” Davis

IndigiStudios is focused on building bridges for indigenous people through the art of storytelling and in the process reclaiming the inaccurate spoken and written account of connected events related to indigenous history in the United States.

IndigiStudios aspires to utilize its proficiencies in filmmaking to make an impact globally.

Through its films IndigiStudios wishes to coalesce an ever-growing global community in solidarity and partnership with Indian Country to advance indigenous truths and eliminate the falsehoods which have plagued indigenous people since the onset of colonization.

IndigiStudios believes its work will serve to embolden the spirit and strengthen the resiliency of  future generations of native people, so that they are empowered to be unwavering and fierce in their endeavors and live unashamed as indigenous people who each have a purpose on this earth.”

It is a good day to be indigenous!

“The oral traditions of our indigenous people will live on through each of our projects. By telling an array of stories from an indigenous perspective we are advancing our truths, preserving our values, building a global community and reclaiming the indigenous narrative – one film at a time.” – Gary “Litefoot” Davis

Mr. Davis recently wrote and directed the first project released by IndigiStudios, the award-winning documentary short film, Strong Hearts: An Indigenous Love Letter To My Sons.

’Strong Hearts’, is filled with a father’s wisdom and indigenous world view, poetically expressed as a letter to his three sons. The title of the film is inspired by the legendary Oglala Lakota Chief, Crazy Horse. On June 25, 1876, General George Armstrong Custer’s U.S.  7^th Calvary attacked Crazy Horse and his people in what would become known as the battle of the Little Big Horn. That day Crazy Horse implored his warriors to fight for their way of life and exhorted them to action by saying, “Strong hearts to the front, weak hearts and cowards to the rear. Today is a good day to fight for your people. Today is a good day to die for your people.” Crazy Horse’s passionate rallying call to his warriors strikes at the heart of this intimate short documentary film. Through raw vulnerable narration delivered over evocative music, a message of strength, beauty and power emanates with love from an indigenous father to his three sons. The young men are reminded of the struggle of their indigenous ancestors, encouraged to fight for their purpose in life, hold close to their cultural teachings and to not let the world define them. Filmed on location at various battlefields between Crazy Horse and the U.S. military, and at the actual location where he was murdered, historical happenings become the perfect classroom for teaching lessons of strength, gratitude, humility and love. The films messages emanate with the love of an indigenous father speaking truth to power upon his three sons.

‘Strong Hearts’ is the first of several projects Mr. Davis will be involved in developing as either a writer, director and/or producer.

Today, Gary continues to motivate audiences nationwide as a public speaker. Over the years, he has provided hundreds of keynotes and business trainings for corporations and tribes. He has also lectured at a variety of colleges and universities including Virginia Tech, University of Wyoming, University of Wisconsin, University of North Carolina and University of Oregon. He has been a recent featured speaker for corporations and organizations including Amazon, PNC Bank, Sodexo, the FDIC, the United States Navy and the United States Department of Commerce Minority Business Development Agency.

For over three decades, Mr. Davis has meshed his success as an entrepreneur, with his passion to better the future of Indian Country in the hopes that his life and accomplishments will serve as a source of inspiration for others.