Acclaimed Indigenous American flute participant and hoop dancer, Kevin Locke, dies from deadly bronchial asthma attack

Kevin Locke, an acclaimed Native American flute participant, hoop dancer, cultural ambassador and educator, has died in South Dakota at age 68, in accordance to his relatives.

A member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and from the ancestral line of Lakota and Anishinabe, Locke died Friday evening immediately after returning to his hotel space in Hill City, his son Ohiyesá Locke said Monday.

The young Locke said his father, who had been carrying out at the Crazy Horse Memorial in the Black Hills, experienced an bronchial asthma attack and died though he was getting taken to the clinic.

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Ohiyesá Locke stated he experienced been video chatting with his father quite a few hours prior to he died.

"He was strolling by the Black Hills and telling me how attractive they ended up, and he talked about some of the record of the Lakota folks," he stated.

Kevin Locke, an acclaimed Native American flute player, hoop dancer, cultural ambassador and educator, died in South Dakota at age 68 on Sept. 30, 2022, in accordance to his relatives. Pictured: Kevin Locke performs a hoop dance in the Badlands, South Dakota, in 2002.  (Ohiyesa Locke via G3 Box News)

According to his web page, Locke executed for nearly 40 a long time to hundreds of 1000's of people in extra than 90 countries at undertaking artwork facilities, festivals, universities, universities, conferences, condition and nationwide parks, monuments and powwows.

As a people artist, Locke used his skills to teach others about Indigenous American heritage and particularly enjoyed doing work with little ones on the reservations to guarantee the survival and growth of indigenous culture, the site mentioned.

"He had an incredible gift to contact people’s hearts and was really generous with his time," said Ohiyesá Locke, who lives in Killeen, Texas.

"As a result of my new music and dance, I want to develop a good recognition of the Oneness of humanity," Kevin Locke when wrote on his web-site.

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The Indigenous American Songs Awards issued a assertion Saturday right after mastering of Locke’s loss of life.

"Kevin Locke was certainly 1 of the best flutists, hoop dancers and instructors the world experienced ever found. He will be significantly skipped. The Native American Tunes Awards would like to extend their deepest condolences and sorrow to his family," the statement browse.

Locke attended higher school at the Institute of American Indian Arts in New Mexico. He also attained a bachelor’s diploma from the College of South Dakota and a master’s diploma in educational administration from the College of North Dakota, his son explained.

Locke was a fluent Lakota speaker and served as a board member for the Lakota Language Consortium, a nonprofit corporation focused to preserving the language.

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Given that 1982, Locke, who played the Northern Plains flute, has recorded twelve albums of tunes and tales, most recently "The Initial Flute," "Open up Circle," "Keepers of the Aspiration," and "Aspiration Catcher," according to his site.

"I have normally been in admiration of him, and he wanted me to stick to in his footsteps. But his shoes were being way too significant to fill," his son explained.