Leyla McCalla in Hamburg

Leyla McCalla is a Haitian American singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist born in New York in 1985 and based in New Orleans. Her music draws on folk, blues, Louisiana traditions and Haitian Creole song, led by her voice and cello. She is known for the albums Vari-Colored Songs: A Tribute to Langston Hughes, Capitalist Blues and Breaking the Thermometer, as well as her work with Carolina Chocolate Drops and Our Native Daughters. During her time in Carolina Chocolate Drops, Leyla McCalla toured internationally as the group brought Black string-band music to theatres and festivals. She subsequently carried her own repertoire into solo and ensemble performances, singing and moving among cello, tenor banjo and guitar. In 2019, she performed with Our Native Daughters at the Newport Folk Festival.