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Big Chief Larry Bannock grew up in Gert Town on Edinburgh St. In 1979 he was named Big Chief of his tribe who would come to be know as “The Golden Star Hunters.” Big Chief Bannock and his tribe were Mardi Gras Indians, one of the oldest cultural traditions brought to New Orleans from African tribes. Bannock knew how to bead and sew Indian suits often teaching and sharing his skills with others in his community. Indian suits are preservations of African American folk art and are representations of New Orleans’ complex culture. These colorful beaded suits are hand-sewn all year long before they are paraded around the streets of New Orleans and shown off while singing, dancing, and chanting African American folk songs. In 1980 Bannock toured the world with one of his hand sewn suits selected by the Smithsonian Institution to represent the culture of Mardi Gras Indians. Bannock was past president of the The Mardi Gras council where he shared  his knowledge on Indian traditions and culture. The African drumming traditions in the indian tribes combined with the traditions of the New Orleans brass bands have had an influence on jazz in New Orleans. Many Indian gangs support the bands of traditional second-line parades or jazz funerals with percussion instruments. Since 1971 Bannock and The Golden Star Hunters were annual performers at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, until he passed away three days after his appearance at the festival in 2014.