Amelia Schafer
ICT
Tunny Rabbit dreamt of dancing again.
Three years ago, the Cree and Stoney Nakoda Two-Spirit artist would often dream of getting ready to enter the arena again after 15 years. She’d don her old style jingle dress, moccasins and beadwork, but just before she could step into the arena, she’d be jolted awake.
“I’d wake up and think, ‘You know what? I want to try dancing again,’” Rabbit told ICT.
At 23 years old, Rabbit said she was at the end of her addiction. Choosing sobriety had severed several friendships and left her feeling alone aside from support from her family. She was sick of drinking and wanted to make a change, to work towards being a version of herself, she said. So Rabbit re-entered the powwow circle and began dancing.
“Not long after [I started dancing] I got sober,” Rabbit said. “It’s hard to go to powwows every single weekend when I’m drinking during the week. You have to wait like four days for your spirit to come back [after drinking], so it was a tough journey trying to manage my addiction and also be in the circle at the same time. I just decided one day that I’m just gonna be sober… There’s no way to balance your addiction and being traditional, the two just don’t mix whatsoever. So I have to pick and choose and I chose to be a better person.”
The decision to reenter the circle and focus on growth and healing has led to several unexpected changes for Rabbit. The biggest surprise was TikTok fame.
Rabbit describes her style as alternative or gothic. She’s got piercings, tattoos, gothic makeup and at one point had jade green hair. When she decided to re-enter the circle, she took her personal style with her, something that resonated with thousands across the world.
In 2025, a video of Rabbit dancing at the Siksika Nation Powwow in Alberta, Canada, wearing a green and black alternative and western fusion jingle dress with jade green hair blew up on TikTok, amassing nearly 1 million views. People loved seeing her style, watching her express herself, and really feel herself out in the arena.
“It’s nice to feel seen because growing up as an alternative person, especially like Indigenous communities and things like that, you’re kinda made to feel like a black sheep, a little bit of a weirdo,” Rabbit said. “I’ve had a lot of people mention like, ‘I didn’t know you could dance with dyed hair’ and I’m like, ‘Well yeah, I mean it’s not gonna hurt anybody.’ [Having dyed hair] doesn’t make you any less connected to the creator. If anything, it makes you more open because you’re expressing yourself and you’re free to express yourself. Creator sees that and he acknowledges it.”
When Rabbit first re-entered the circle she’d tried fitting in, wearing what others wore, but she’s never been one to blend in, she said. Embracing her style and who she is in the arena was key, she said.
“It’s not hard to dance your own style,” Rabbit said. “You see a lot of old style jingle dancers who also integrate contemporary footwork and flow into their dances and they’re champs, they win. So why shouldn’t I be able to dance how I want? I’m dancing for myself.”
Now at 26 years old, because of the success of her dancing videos, Rabbit has formed friendships with other alternative Native artists across Turtle Island and even gained the ability to pursue a full-time career creating as a seamstress.
A red appliqué jingle dress made by artist Tunny Rabbit. Rabbit is known for her appliqué work which features a mix of traditional and contemporary gothic designs. (Photo courtesy of Tunny Rabbit)
“I am really glad that [my dancing] has reached people who are scared to get out there because I was terrified to get out there,” Rabbit said. “I do it [dance] for myself and just to show people, ‘Hey, you can be a weirdo and you can still go out there and dance, like it’s fine. The Earth’s not gonna set on fire. Nothing bad is gonna happen.’ So I think it has definitely really helped me in my journey to creating a bigger platform. And I only ever wanna use my platform for good. I’m still learning every day and I’m still progressing every day.”
Rabbit created a chat group on Discord, which is a free text and chat website, for other like-minded Indigenous artists to share their work, tips and secrets.
“I remember in the very beginning I felt super alone and kinda disconnected,” Rabbit said. “And then [fast forward] to now, I have a community behind me. I always have people to talk to. It’s exactly what I needed in my recovery and it’s helped a lot. The community that I’ve created for myself and just being who I am has really grounded me.”
Just before Rabbit decided to start on her sobriety journey she picked up sewing again and since then has continued to sharpen her skills, another aspect that she’s been able to use to build a platform.
Rabbit’s creations, which are usually jingle dresses or ribbon skirts, feature unique applique. The designs are a blend of traditional Indigenous floral designs with modern alternative twists such as bugs, spiders or spiderwebs.
“I try to keep it in my own kind of alternative niche,” Rabbit said.
Rabbit said she often uses her dancing videos to promote her work, something that’s proved successful and allowed her to quit her job in the food service industry and work for herself full-time.
“In my recovery I’m trying to prioritize taking care of myself first,” Rabbit said. “So nobody’s more important than myself right now and I decided a year ago that I just couldn’t take [food service] anymore. I’m extremely grateful that I’ve been able to do this full time since then. And it has helped a lot and in fact it’s grown even more because now all my time and energy is going into it and now I get to do all the things I wanted to do and all the things I want to learn and all the knowledge I want to pass on and things like that.”
Three years after Rabbit began having those dreams of entering the powwow arena again, her dreams have amounted to much more than she could’ve anticipated, she said.
“Before I dance I always try to pray on something,” Rabbit said. “[I pray] for my family, for people who are sick, people who can’t dance. I always try to pray while I’m dancing and I kinda just get lost in prayer. I don’t really think about what I’m doing and I guess it worked out in my favor.”
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