Black Women In Metal: Part 4

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What’s special about these last four ladies is that they perform as solo-acts, crafting their own special sound while rocking out at the same time. This is the conclusion to our Metal series. The other 3 parts of the series can be found by clicking the following links: Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3

Adore (top left) – One-woman black metal, with artist Adore (Shantell Daggs)  playing all of the instruments on her recordings. If you like having your face melted, then definitely check her out! The Facebook page for her project is here: https://www.facebook.com/1adoremusic/

Dohrn (top right) – For even more face-melting, check out Alicia Warrington’s project Dohrn. Completely heavy, completely brutal, and stunningly good. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/dohrnmusic/

Omega Sirius Moon (bottom left) – OSM has a grungy sound that crosses over into stoner territory at times. Nice to listen to. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OmegaMoon/

Kudisan Kai (bottom right) – What’s best about Kudisan Kai are her powerful vocals, laid over tight instrumentation that’s as good as any other alternative band out there. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/KudisanKai/

Photo Credits: Adore (FB page), Dohrn (FB page), Omega Sirius Moon (http://omegasiriusmoon.tumblr.com/), Kudisan Kai (FB page)

Black Women In Metal: Part 3

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Far from being an anomaly, black women play extremely important roles in a variety of rock acts. This includes a number of metal acts. Here are five more ladies who shred and scream in metal bands. This is a continuation of the Metal series. Part 1 is here, and Part 2 is here.

Dana James (Helms Alee): Dana James plays bass for this stoner/sludge inspired metal band Helms Alee. High-quality music, recommended if you like laid-back metal like Torche and Baroness. Bandcamp page: https://helmsalee.bandcamp.com/

Militia Vox: The lead vocalist for the Judas Priest cover band Judas Priestess, and also works as a solo artist. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/militiaismyname/

Goldgrrl (Erzulie): Lead vocalist for Chicago-based metal band Erzulie and an all-around awesome person. Their sound is reminiscent of Plasmatics-esque punk metal. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/ErzulieBand/

Jada Pinkett Smith (Wicked Wisdom): Yes the actress! Besides acting, she is in a heavy metal band called Wicked Wisdom, who got to play Ozzfest a few years back. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/OFFICIALWICKEDWISDOM/

Kiyoe Krista Fluker: Guitarist for Harlequin and former bassist for Fortress of Empyrean. Based in Los Angeles. Facebook page for Harlequin: https://www.facebook.com/pg/harlequinofficial/.

Photo Credits: Dana James (Helms Alee Bandcamp Page), Militia Vox (Facebook page), Goldgrrl (Erzulie Facebook page), Jada Pinkett Smith (Wicked Wisdom Facebook Page), Kiyoe Krista Fluker (Harlequin Facebook page)

Part 4 is coming up next week to conclude the series!

The Tuts Upcoming Tour!

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Hi Folks! Following their stunning debut LP Update Your Brain, The Tuts — everyone’s favorite British punk-istas — are going on a UK tour this May! I haven’t been able to see these ladies live (yet – come to the US, The Tuts!!), but they look like they put on a good show.

UK Peeps, get your tickets at The Tuts’ Official Website — they’re going fast! Tour dates are listed below.

Black Women In Metal: Part 2

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This is a continuation of our Black Women In Metal series. View Part 1 here!

Black women instrumentalists are numerous, and play vital roles in a wide variety of metal bands. Here are five more talented black women who rock out the stage.

Alessandra Sbrana – Drummer for Botswana metal band Skinflint. Skinflint represents a vibrant metal scene in the African country, as discussed in this short documentary clip. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/SKINFLINTMETAL

Luanna Nascimento – Screamer/vocalist for Brazilian band Visceral Leishmaniasis. One of the most brvtal black women I’ve come across while running this blog. If you’re into death metal and needed to see a black woman as the focal point, this band is for you. You won’t be disappointed. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/VisceralLeishmaniasisBrutalDeathMetal

Larissa Pires – Screamer/vocalist for Brazilian band Retaliação Infernal. Another brvtal lady that leads a death metal/grindcore outfit. Anoher one to check out for the more extreme music fans. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/RetaliacaoInfernal/

Cierra White – Drummer for several Colorado-based metal bands: Morbid Asphyxiation, Oak Ash and Thorn, and Mount Cairn. Facebook pages for: Morbid Asphyxiation https://www.facebook.com/morbid.asphyxiation, Oak Ash and Thorn: https://www.facebook.com/OakAshAndThornMetal/, and Mount Cairn: https://www.facebook.com/mountcairncobm/

Diamond Rowe – Lead guitarist for Atlanta-based Tetrarch. Beyond awesome at guitar shredding and is awesome live. Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/tetrarchmusic/

Stay tuned for Part 3 next week!

Photo Credits: Alessandra Sbrana (Skinflint FB Page), Luanna Nascimento (The Female Vocalists of Extreme Music), Larissa Pires (Retaliação Infernal FB Page), Cierra White (Oak Ash & Thorn FB page)

Poly Styrene: “I Am A Cliché” Indiegogo Campaign

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At last, the original RiotGrrl is getting her own documentary — or will, if the funds can be raised to make it happen.

Poly Styrene was the first black woman rocker that I ever knew about, and her band X-Ray Spex was the band that got me into punk rock and changed my life forever. Her story needs to be told, and I am urging anyone that can contribute to this project to do so.

The currency being asked for the campaign is the British pound, but you should be able to donate regardless of your location. I was able to donate in dollars.

Let’s make this happen! The Indiegogo page is here: Poly Styrene: I Am A Cliché | Indiegogo

Black Women In Metal: Part 1

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It’s a common misconception that there are few people of color in metal bands, and particularly that there are no black women. In actuality, black women play very prominent roles in these types of bands — either guiding the group with their vocals, or powering through songs as instrumentalists.

Here are four black women who sing lead in metal bands:

Kayla Dixon (top left) – Lead vocalist for Witch Mountain, a doom/stoner metal band. Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/witchmountain/

Cammie Gilbert (top right) – Lead vocalist for Oceans of Slumber, a progressive metal band. Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/oceansofslumber/

Alexis Brown (bottom left) – Lead vocalist for Straight Line Stitch, a metal band from Tennessee (US). Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/straightlinestitch/

Audrey Ebrotié (bottom right) – Lead vocalist for Diary of Destruction, a French metal band. Facebook page – https://www.facebook.com/diaryofdestruction/

Part 2 coming next week!

Photo Credits: Kayla Dixon (Hillarie Jason), Cammie Gilbert (Catberry Photography), Alexis Brown (Kevin D. Soney), Audrey Ebrotié (Nicolas Gaire)

On the legacy of Sister Rosetta Tharpe

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Whenever a rock musician lets loose a glorious guitar solo, we’re in the living presence of Rosetta, who made a habit of playing as loud as she could, based on the Pentecostal belief that the Lord smiled on those who made a joyful noise.

Shout, Sister, Shout!: The Untold Story of Rock-N-Roll Trailblazer Sister Rosetta Tharpe (p.216)

BWIR Site Update: Genre Sorting Complete!

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Hi Folks — I have finished tagging all of the posts by genre. Hopefully this will help to make this blog a more useful resource for finding information. The available Categories can be found on the main site, by going to http://www.blackwomeninrock.info.

Let me know if there are any additional comments or suggestions on how this site can be made easier to navigate. Thanks! — Jaleesa

BWIR Site Update: Music Genre Categories To Be Added

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Hi All — I’m planning on adding music genre categories to all of the posts. One of the most frequent questions I get from people tends to be related to finding Black Women Rockers who are tied to a specific genre. It has always been my intention that this blog be used as a resource above anything else, and making it easier for you to get the information you are looking for is always a priority.

Tagging the thousands of posts that have accumulated on this blog will take some time, but I will soldier through it and post another update once this process has been completed. The music genres will be listed under the ‘Categories’ section so they can easily be found.

If there’s any features you would like to see here, or if you have any other questions or comments, feel free to reach out to the blog in either the comments section on this post, or by email (jaleesa@blackwomeninrock.info). I always welcome feedback and never mind serving as a sort of librarian to help anyone find information. 🙂

Thanks!

— Jaleesa