Florida Seminole Tourism

Gear Up for the Ultimate Tribal Fair Experience!

The countdown is on for the 52nd Annual Seminole Tribal Fair & Pow Wow! With less than two weeks to go, excitement is building for this vibrant celebration of Native culture. This week, we’re bringing you an exclusive look at everything you need to know about Tribal Fair. Don’t miss this free, family-friendly event packed with traditional dancing, music, art, and more!

The Seminole Tribe of Florida will host the Tribal Fair & Pow Wow January 31st through February 2nd at the Hard Rock Hollywood. The annual celebration features a dazzling array of pow wow dancing, drumming, wildlife shows, the Native Reel Cinema Festival, and a FREE concert by The Frontmen.

You can see an image of the event space, on the Hard Rock Hollywood campus, below. Onsite parking will be available for all festival attendees. Looking for more history and the origin of Tribal Fair? Check out our previous blog post on the 50th Annual Tribal Fair from a few years ago.

 

Pow Wow Dancing

Dancing is one of the most beautiful parts of Indigenous culture, with centuries of tradition woven into each dance. There are a number of different dances for certain occasions or social groups, and in general the dances seen at pow wows are social dances. They are intended to bring people together, create fellowship, and celebrate Indigenous culture. Pow wows “are the Native American people’s way of meeting together, to join in dancing, singing, visiting, renewing old friendships, and making new ones.  This is a time method to renew Native American culture and preserve the rich heritage of American Indians.”

In addition to dancing, each participant often wears vibrant regalia that is dependent on the type of dance, their personal style, and traditions. You can find out more about the different types of dance at this year’s Tribal Fair here.

At this year’s event, the Pow Wow Grand Entry will happen at 12:00 pm and 7:00 pm on both Friday, January 31st and Saturday, February 1st in the Seminole Ballroom. On Sunday, February 2nd there will be special Hoop Dance at 12:30 pm, followed by Pow Wow Exhibition Dancing from 1:00 – 2:00 pm in the Seminole Ballroom.

The Skye family and Six Nations Community are sponsoring the Dylan Issacs Smoke Dance Special. Wanda Bowers and family are sponsoring the Missing Murdered Indigenous Women’s Red Jingle Dress Special, which features prize money for 1st through 4th place. Eugenia Osceola is sponsoring the Spike Draper Men’s Fancy Dance Special. You can find the full event schedule below, as well as on the Seminole Tribal Fair & Pow Wow website.

In addition to pow wow dancing, there will also be a northern/southern combined drum competition. The Drum competition will also be held both days, with cash prizes going to groups from 1st through 7th place.

We encourage you to have fun and experience the magic of Native dance, music, and singing! But, as always, remember to be respectful and courteous to all festival participants and attendees.

 

Native Reel Cinema Festival

The Native Reel Cinema Festival is back! The festival schedule runs concurrently with the Tribal Fair schedule, with a number of exciting events on January 31st and February 1st. Check back in next Monday for an entire post dedicated to the Native Reel Cinema Festival!

 

Free Concert with The Frontmen… and more!

In addition to the Pow Wow events, a FREE concert will be held on February 2nd, 2025, for all festival attendees.

The Osceola Brothers will start off the performance at 2:00 pm in the Seminole Ballroom. Cameron, Tyson, and Sheldon Osceola grew up on the Hollywood Seminole Reservation, playing music together most of their lives. Cameron is the lead vocalist and guitarist, while Tyson plays bass guitar and Sheldon is on the drums. A hard rock trio, the band combines glam punk, heavy metal and blues. The message of their music is “hope, healing and power.” The Osceola Brothers won the First Americans Museum’s Rock the Native Vote battle of the bands in Oklahoma City in 2022.

Immediately following The Osceola Brothers, the Derek Miller Band will perform beginning at 3:00 pm in the Seminole Ballroom. Hailing from Six Nations of the Grand River, Miller has a prolific discography of 17 albums under his belt. His personal bio calls him a “journeyman musician with eclectic taste and a knack for guitar-oriented roots-inflected rock with a pop sensibility. With his unique take on roots rock, and soul-stirring blues, Derek Miller is a force of musical nature.” He is a two-time JUNO winning singer/songwriter.

To complete the musical performance, headliner The Frontmen will be on stage at 4:15 pm in the Seminole Ballroom. All three members of The Frontmen were once lead vocalists for renowned country bands. Larry Stewart rose to fame with Restless Heart before launching a successful solo career. Richie McDonald was the former lead singer of Lonestar, best known for hits like My Front Porch Looking In. Rounding out the trio, Tim Rushlow previously fronted Little Texas. In March 2024, they released their debut studio album, The Frontmen.

 

Vendors, Wildlife, and Fashion Shows

In addition to all the dancing, singing, drumming, music, and the exciting event line ups explored above, there will also be a variety of Tribal vendors with items for sale. Attendees can peruse nearly 100 vendor booths, with items like crafts, baskets, patchwork, art, t-shirts, and other hand-crafted items. There are also crafts contests during the weekend, where participants can enter their own work. We encourage you to look at all of the incredible artwork that is competing this year! The Arts and Crafts contest covers Seminole dolls, baskets, woodcarving, beadwork, and patchwork. A separate Fine Arts contest will also be happening.

A clothing contest and fashion show are also on the schedule. The fashion show is scheduled for 11:00 am on Friday, January 31st. The Seminole clothing contest is scheduled for 9:00 am on Saturday, February 1st. Clothing contests are a time-honored tradition at Tribal Fair. The adult clothing contest will cover old style, traditional, men’s jackets, modern, contemporary, and women’s skirts styles. The youth contest includes old style, contemporary, and traditional styles.

Throughout the weekend there will also be a few opportunities to experience some true Florida wildlife! There will be an alligator demonstration and baby alligator photo op both Friday, January 31st and Saturday, February 1st. On both days, the alligator demonstration will be from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm, immediately followed by the baby alligator photo op from 6:30 pm to 7:00 pm. As we have discussed before on the blog, alligators and alligator wrestling are an important and valued Seminole tradition that have long roots. Modern Seminole alligator wrestlers work to create a bridge between the community and alligators, educating those on what it means to live with and around them.

 

Pow Wow Etiquette

  1. Be on time and be respectful.
  2. As an outside observer, take care to note which spaces are off-limits for you, and where you can and should not be.
  3. Be aware and respectful of places and spaces dancers may leave their personal items or claim as an area to rest. Arena benches are reserved for the dancers, who may place a blanket down to reserve an area for themselves.
  4. Appropriate dress and behavior are required by all participants and observers.
  5. Listen carefully to the Master of Ceremonies, who will be announcing the drum groups, dances and any changes or relevant information.
  6. No alcohol or drugs are permitted.
  7. If you are a dancer, respect the rules of the arena, as well as any cultural constraints on dress and dancing that may apply.
  8. When not dancing, be quiet and respect the arena.
  9. Be respectful of cultural traditions you may not be familiar with, understand, or be a part of. On the Seminole Tribal Fair & Pow Wow website, it states this clearly, saying “different groups have different customs and methods of doing things. Different is not wrong, just different. Be respectful of the uniqueness of each area.”
  10. If taking pictures, please gain the permission of the dancers you wish to photograph. Remember common courtesy and ask permission. Do not enter the dance floor to take photographs.  Any requests to photograph or film for media purposes must be cleared through Florida Seminole Tourism: floridaseminoletourism@semtribe.com
  11. Listen to the announcer intently for cues on the next drum groups, dances and important information.

Above all, be respectful but remember to have fun! Pow Wows are an incredibly exciting, vibrant, and whirlwind way to experience Indigenous dance, culture, and music. We hope that you can experience this unique and special event for yourself.

Don’t forget! Festival season is just beginning. Check back in on the blog on the dates below for more information on the individual events that are coming up.

 

January 27, 2025 – Native Reel Cinema Fest Spotlight Post
February 3, 2025 – Indigenous Arts and Music Festival Blog Post
February 10, 2025 – Brighton Field Day Blog Post

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