Cha Wa in New Orleans

Cha Wa is an American band formed in New Orleans by drummer Joe Gelini. The group plays Mardi Gras Indian funk built around call-and-response chants, brass-band rhythms and electric funk, and is fronted by J’Wan Boudreaux, grandson of Big Chief Monk Boudreaux. Its best-known recordings include the albums Funk ’n’ Feathers, Spyboy and My People. In 2018, Cha Wa performed an NPR Music Tiny Desk Concert, bringing voices, horns, guitar, bass and drums into the series’ office setting. The group has also played the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, a home-city stage closely tied to the Mardi Gras Indian tradition at the center of its music.