Living Legends originally started as the Lamanite Generation which was an all-Native American performing group organized by
Janie Thompson. The organization was first formed in 1971 and their first tour was across
Indian reservations. They toured the Eastern United States in 1974 and they toured in Central and South American the following year.[2]: 160 Thompson stated that the 1975 tour was, "the most significant tour in [her] entire career", because it impacted and influenced Native Americans south of the United States.[2]: 373 Living Legends has performed around the world including China and the
1992 International Expo in Seville, Spain.[3][4][5]
In the 1970s, the group was noted for its closing song at most performances "Go My Son", written by Arliene Nofchissey and Carnes Burson.[6][7] The song encourages Native Americans to receive an education.[7] This idea comes from the
Navajo chief
Manuelito who urged Native Americans to obtain an education. Native communities did not always see this message from the Lamanite Generation positively.[8]
The transition to its current name was a long drawn out process. For example, in 1991 they still were using the name "Lamanite Generation" but performed a program entitled "Living Legends".[9] Professor and historian
Jared Farmer considers that BYU may have changed the name of the group to "Living Legends" to avoid racism associated with the word "
Lamanite".[7]
Tour history
This tour history begins in 1971 and ends in 2019.[10]
1972–73 Southern California, Arizona, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, Wyoming, Alberta, Saskatchewan
1973–74 Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Wisconsin, Germany
1974–75 Alberta, Saskatchewan, Oklahoma, British Columbia, Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Guatemala, Mexico, Panama, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela
1975–76 Ohio, Nevada, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Vermont, Virginia, Washington D.C., Ontario, Quebec
1976–77 Arizona, Southern California, Nevada, Idaho, Washington, Minnesota, South Dakota, North Dakota, Montana, Canada
1977–78 Colorado, Arizona, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland
1978–79 Nevada, Wyoming, Montana, Alberta, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Louisiana, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma