Leyla McCalla
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Leyla Sarah McCalla (born October 3, 1985 in New York ) is an American singer-songwriter , cellist and banjo player who combines the traditions of the Creoles , Cajuns and Haitians with North American folk , bluegrass and jazz in her music .
Live and act
McCalla grew up in New Jersey and Ghana ; her politically active parents immigrated to the USA from Haiti . After a year at Smith College , she studied classical cello at New York University . Then she became known as part of the folk band Carolina Chocolate Drops , with whom she recorded several albums and received a Grammy .
In 2009 she moved to New Orleans to raise a family. She also explored the music of her ancestors on several excursions to Haiti. Now her main instruments are the banjo and guitar. Their first album under their own name Vari-Colored Songs was a tribute to the poet Langston Hughes of the Harlem Renaissance . Her second album A Day for the Prey a Day for the Hunter (supported by musicians like Marc Ribot ) marked her breakthrough as a solo artist in 2016. In her third album under her own name, Capitalist Blues , she explores the mechanisms of capitalism with the participation of musicians from New Orleans . Together with Rhiannon Giddens , Amythyst Kiah and Allison Russell, she also released the album Songs of Our Native Daughters in 2019 . She can also be heard on Raphaël Imbert 's albums.
Discographic notes
- Vari-Colored Songs: A Tribute to Langston Hughes (2014)
- A Day for the Hunter, A Day for the Prey (Jazz Village / Harmonia Mundi 2016)
- Capitalist Blues (Jazz Village / PIAS 2019; # 14 in the US jazz charts)
Web links
- Web presence
- interview
- Johannes Paetzold: With "The [sic!] Capitalist Blues" Leyla McCalla explores the capitalist system. WDR 1, January 21, 2019, accessed on September 17, 2019 .
- Leyla McCalla at Allmusic (English)
- Leyla McCalla at Discogs (English)
- Leyla McCalla. Engelhardt Promotions, accessed September 17, 2019 .
- Literature by and about Leyla McCalla in the catalog of the German National Library
Individual evidence
- ↑ WDR 3 (album of the week)
- ↑ Leyla McCalla: A Day for the Hunter, a Day for the Prey Review - powerful songs about death and freedom. In: The Guardian . May 26, 2016, accessed September 18, 2019 .
- ↑ Chart sources: Billboard
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | McCalla, Leyla |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | McCalla, Leyla Sarah |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American singer-songwriter, cellist and banjo player |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 3rd October 1985 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | New York City |