Leyla McCalla

Multi-instrumentalist singer-songwriter Leyla McCalla mixes a number of threads in her music, including jazz and folk drawn from Americana, various Louisiana traditions, Afro-Caribbean music, Haitian folk, and elements of classical music that she brings in through her cello work. She also plays the guitar and the banjo, and switches to French and Haitian Creole with some regularity in her vocals. Her body of work is as diverse as her influences, bouncing between the folk and jazz styles with equal dexterity, while keeping bluegrass, cajun, zydeco and calypso, all within reach at all times. She joined Carolina Chocolate Drops in the early '10s towards the end of the band's run. Alongside her solo work, she also performs with Our Native Daughters.