Leyla McCalla
Schedule
Sat Oct 25 2025 at 07:30 pm to 09:00 pm
UTC-04:00Location
ArtYard | Frenchtown, NJ
About this Event
"In looking to the past, McCalla isn’t simply reclaiming a style of music. She’s also honoring the struggle and determination that originally kindled it." — The Washington Post
Born in New York City to Haitian emigrants and activists, Leyla McCalla finds inspiration from her past and present — her music vibrates with three centuries of history and influences from around the globe. McCalla possesses a stunning mastery of the cello, tenor banjo, and guitar and, as a multilingual singer and songwriter, has risen to produce a distinctive sound that reflects the union of her roots and experience. In addition to her solo work, McCalla is a founding member of Our Native Daughters (with Rhiannon Giddens, Amythyst Kiah and Allison Russell) and alumna of Grammy award-winning Black string band The Carolina Chocolate Drops.
McCalla’s new album and fifth studio recording, Sun Without the Heat, is playful and full of joy while holding the pain and tension of transformation. Throughout Sun Without the Heat’s 10 tracks, McCalla achieves a balance of heaviness and light with melodies and rhythms derived from various forms of Afro-diasporic music including Afrobeat, Ethiopian modalities, Brazilian Tropicalismo, and American folk and blues. The result is a transcendent collection of songs that hold the personal and universal, carrying grief and joy at once. Through this album, McCalla explores the elements of transformation and the heat necessary to move from darkness toward light.
About ArtYard
ArtYard is an incubator for creative expression and a catalyst for collaborations that reveal the transformational power of art. We are an interdisciplinary alternative contemporary art center comprised of an exhibition space, theater, and residency program, dedicated to presenting transformative artwork, fostering unexpected collaborations, and incubating original new work.
FAQ
Doors open 30 minutes to start time. Limited tickets will be available at the door. Please be in your seat at the scheduled start time so as not to cause a distubance to the artists or other guests. No flash photography is permitted. Visit ArtYard's FAQ for more frequently asked questions.
Photo and Video Consent
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Where is it happening?
ArtYard, 13 Front Street, Frenchtown, United StatesEvent Location & Nearby Stays:
USD 32.78
